China International Marine Containers Co shares surged on Friday after the firm, the world's largest maker of freight containers, said it would buy the Netherlands' Burg Industries BV for 108 million euros (144 million U.S. dollars) under a deal modified to address anti-trust concerns.
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China International Marine Containers Co, the world's largest maker of freight containers. |
China International Marine, seeking to expand in Europe and extend its product range, will buy Burg's trailer and truck bodies as well as its storage tank manufacturing business, the Chinese company said.
The cargo box maker, also known as CIMC, won't acquire Burg's tank container business, according to Yu Yuqun, a spokesman for the Shenzhen-based company. In July, CIMC dropped plans to purchase Burg after European regulators expressed concerns over the merger of the two companies' tank-container businesses and extended the deal's review.
"This way the deal will be cleared," said Nancy Wang, an analyst at KGI Asia Ltd in Shanghai. "Burg's technology and market will help China International Marine expand around the world."
The European Union's anti-trust regulator in March said the acquisition as originally planned would create "a quasi-monopolistic market position" because it would have combined the two largest makers of tank containers.
"Burg will sell its tank container business to facilitate our acquisition," Yu said.
CIMC's yuan-denominated A shares gained 6.3 per cent to 17.65 yuan (2.23 U.S. dollars) at the 11:30 a.m. trading pause in Shenzhen after earlier jumping 7.6 per cent. The company's B shares rose 2.9 per cent to 14.70 HK dollars (1.88 U.S. dollars).
A shares can be bought by domestic investors and qualified foreign institutional investors. There are no such restrictions on the ownership of B shares.
The acquisition will be made through a 60 million euro (79.80 million U.S. dollars) venture formed by CIMC's Hong Kong unit CIMC Tank Equipment Investment Holdings Co with one of the shareholders of closely held Burg, according to the statement. The deal, subject to government approval from China, Germany and the Netherlands, is scheduled to be completed by March 31, China International Marine said.
CIMC said its main shareholders include Hong Kong-listed COSCO Pacific Ltd, Asia's third-largest port operator, and China Merchants Holdings (International) Co, a State-owned port operator.
COSCO Pacific's shares rose 0.9 percent to 17.16 HK dollars (2.20 U.S. dollars) as of 12:30 a.m. and China Merchants Holdings' shares jumped 9.4 percent to 31.35 HK dollars (4.02 U.S. dollars).