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’Schaeffler in €12bn debt restructure
Schaeffler on Tuesday announced a €12bn refinancing that will enable its family owners to stay at the helm of the debt-ridden group and pave the way for its merger with Continental, the rival car parts maker.
Continental to aid ailing Schaeffler
Continental, Germany’s second-largest car parts supplier, vowed Thursday to slash costs and pledged to help Schaeffler, its heavily indebted majority shareholder, after posting a record loss for the past year.
Schaeffler and Continental in aid talks
Schaeffler and Continental are in talks with two regional governments about a possible state bail-out, as the German car parts makers struggle under a combined debt of €22bn ($29bn). The governments of Lower Saxony and Bavaria are in talks with Conti and Schaeffler over state aid packages,
CDS report: worse and worse
The cost of protecting high-risk European corporate debt ballooned past record levels on Tuesday as investor sentiment was battered by cascading global equities and brutal economic data. The National Bureau of Economic research confirmed on Monday the US economy had been in recession since December 2007,
German groups slash capex
Germany’s industrial companies are cutting long-term investments, as executives in Europe’s biggest exporter prepare for a long global recession. Leading industrial groups such as ThyssenKrupp, Continental and Heidelberger Druckmaschinen plan to slash investments in machinery,
Deal for Continental sparks rift
A further rift has opened at the top of Continental after Schaeffler succeeded in its fierce €12.1bn takeover battle for Germany’s second-largest automotive supplier. Conti’s chief Manfred Wennemer announced that he would step down at the end of August after his rift with Hubertus von Grünberg,
Schaeffler wins Continental battle
Continental, Europe’s second-largest tiremaker, said Thursday it had accepted Schaeffler Group’s takeover bid after the family-owned ball-bearing maker raised its offer by 7%, reports Bloomberg. Continental’s head Manfred Wennemer,
Conti lines up potential ‘white knights’
Continental has lined up potential investors which could act as “white knights” as the German motor supplier seeks to fend off an €11.3bn ($17.6bn) hostile bid from Schaeffler, its privately owned rival.
Schaeffler raises Conti bid
Germany’s financial watchdog on Monday forced Schaeffler, the privately-owned bearings maker, to increase its offer for Continental slightly to €11.3bn ($17.9bn). Schaeffler on Monday said it would raise its offer for the German car parts supplier to €70.12 per share from €69.37 to tally with the calculation of Bafin,
Natixis to launch €3.7bn rights issue
Natixis, France’s fourth-largest bank, said it would launch a €3.7bn rights issue yesterday after revealing that it would make €1.5bn of subprime-related writedowns when it announces its first-half results next month.
Schaeffler swoops on €11bn Continental
Schaeffler Group triggered what would be the biggest takeover in Europe this year when it launched a bid for Continental yesterday in a deal valuing the German tyre and automotive company at about €11.2bn.
Europe poised for Continental takeover battle
Shares in Continental jumped more than 20 per cent yesterday after Schaeffler, a privately owned German industrial group, confirmed it had approached the world’s largest listed car parts supplier. Jürgen Geissinger,
JP Morgan on US airlines: “There will be blood”
Maybe it’s the Meredith Whitney effect, maybe it’s the stress of not knowing if you’ll still have a job in the morning, but analyst notes have taken on a certain sense of drama in recent months.
Take the latest forecasts from JP Morgan’s airline team,
Continental gains traction
Frankfurt saw a late flurry of rumours around Continental, the German auto group best known for its tyres. While the shares closed 1.7 per cent higher at €99.20, well-placed sources indicated that 10 per cent of the company – worth about €1.5bn – was set to hit the market Thursday.
What’s going on with Goldman’s Global Alpha fund
It may have been a horrible, final week in July for the hedge funds. But Goldman Sachs is in particularly zealous damage control over reports of trouble at its Global Alpha hedge fund.
On Tuesday Goldman denied market talk that it was liquidating the fund,
Siemens Löscher marks debut with €18bn of deals
Siemens agreed a combined €18bn ($24.6bn) of deals on Wednesday, marking Peter Löscher’s first big moves since taking over as chief executive of the German engineering group last month, reports the FT.
View of the day: How LBO difficulties are hitting equities
The current difficulties in financing leveraged buy-outs, such as that for Alliance Boots, could have far-reaching implications for equities, says Daniel Stillit, analyst at UBS, in the FT’s View of the Day column.
National Express in €700m bid for Spanish bus group
Bus and rail company National Express is in advanced negotiations to acquire Spanish bus group Continental Auto for in excess of €700m (£480m), reports the Daily Telegraph. Other parties to offer for the business include private equity firm Doughty Hanson,
CDS report: Continental tightens on VDO talk
The cost of insuring the debt Continental, the German tyremaker, traded lower throughout Monday morning on news that the company might be interested in buying Siemens’ VDO auto parts business.
The development,
CDS report:Continental widens on continuing bid rumours
Five-year credit default swaps on Continental, the German tyre and car parts maker, widened sharply on Tuesday on rumours of a private equity bid approach.Credit default swaps, which are a kind of insurance against non-payment of bonds,
Siemens scandal puts German groups on alert
Several large German blue-chip companies are urgently checking – and in some cases tightening – their compliance and anti-corruption systems in the wake of a €426m ($563m) bribery scandal that has engulfed Siemens,
TRW joins race for Siemens’ VDO
TRW, the US auto parts supplier, has joined the hunt for Siemens’ €7bn VDO unit alongside Germany’s Continental as pressure grows on Europe’s biggest engineering group to sell it to a competitor rather than float it.
Delta creditors hire ex-Continental chief to advise on strategy
Delta’s unsecured creditors plan to hire former Continental chairman Gordon Bethune as an adviser to evaluate the competing claims for control of the third-largest US airline. The official committee and an ad hoc group of bondholders are examining Delta’s plan to emerge from bankruptcy protection in the second quarter of next year and the hostile $8.3bn merger plan from US Airways.