Speculation that MAN is about to launch a takeover bid for Scania caused Scania shares to rise over 9% in Stockholm yesterday, according to dpa-AFX news. Trading was suspended during the day.
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In a statement Scania said that it has received information to the effect that there are reasonable grounds to assume that MAN will make a bid for the company. This was notified to the Stockholm Stock Exchange and the Stockholm Stock Exchange suspended the trade in the Scania shares on its own initiative.
MAN may have been interested in taking a stake in Scania for some time. Earlier this year MAN was reported to have said it would take a look at acquiring VW’s 34% voting stake in Scania if were put up for sale.
MAN chief executive Hakan Samuelsson later made clear he did not want to buy the stake.
“To be clear, to avoid speculation, we have no interest in that stake because it’s not giving us any type of flexibility or freedom,” Samuelsson reportedly told analysts, in February, adding: “But, of course, looking into industrial co-operations with Volkswagen or Scania – we would be willing to look into that if there was a corresponding interest from the other side.”
Scania employs 30,000 people world wide and achieved a total revenue of SEK 63.3bn (US8.7bn). Net income in 2005 was SEK 4.7bn (US$644m).
