, The German government and DaimlerChrysler have reached agreement on “broad outlines” of a deal to allow the carmaker to sell part of its stake in European aerospace giant EADS, according to a government spokesman.
“The broad outlines (of a deal) have been agreed to, but some details have yet to be worked out,” spokesman Ulrich Wilhelm said at a news briefing in Berlin.
Earlier, business daily Handelsblatt had reported that the government and DaimlerChrysler were set to unveil next week a deal to sell part of the auto giant's EADS stake to a pool of financial investors, thereby maintaining the delicate balance of national power within the European Aeronautic Defense and Space Company.
“Talks are close to completion,” the newspaper quoted sources in the German finance ministry as saying.
The group of investors includes private-sector banks such as Deutsche Bank, Commerzbank and Goldman Sachs, as well as the public-sector banking firm WestLB, the newspaper said.
The price of shares in EADS jumped in Paris on the report, while DaimlerChrysler's stock slipped in Frankfurt.
Preventing increased Russian, French involvement
DaimlerChrysler holds a stake of 22.5 percent in EADS, but has signaled its intention to cut its share to 15 percent next year. The German government has been adamant that the 7.5-percent stake being put up for sale should remain in German hands and must not be allowed to fall into French or Russian hands.
France is already represented in EADS via a 30-percent interest shared by the state holding company Sogeade and media group Lagardere.
Russia and Spain also have stakes in the aerospace consortium — Russia via state-owned bank Vneshtorgbank, which bought a 5.02-percent stake in September, and Spain through the Sepi holding group, which owns 5.48 percent.
Just after midday Wednesday on the Paris stock exchange, EADS shares were showing a gain of 4.38 percent at 23.83 euros ($30.60), while in Frankfurt, DaimlerChrysler's stock were showing a loss of 0.38 percent at 46.66 euros.
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