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Air China parent to confirm China Eastern bid: report
2008-01-20
Shares in Air China will be suspended in Shanghai and Hong Kong from Monday, as its parent company gets ready to bid for a stake in rival China Eastern, a newspaper report said Sunday. The details of the bid are set to be announced Tuesday, according to the report in the South China Morning Post, which cited a spokesman from China National Aviation Corporation (CNAC), Air China's parent. Air China company secretary Huang Bin said it would suspend shares listed in Hong Kong and Shanghai on Monday, the report added. Company officials could not be reached for confirmation Sunday. A report in the mainland media Saturday said CNAC was now proposing to pay 14.9 billion Hong Kong dollars (1.9 billion US) for a 26 percent share of China Eastern. Singapore Airlines and Temasek Holdings, Singapore's state-linked investment firm, signed a preliminary deal in September to take a 24 percent stake in China Eastern for 923 million US dollars. But minority shareholders rejected the bid, worth 3.80 Hong Kong dollars per share, earlier this month. CNAC pledged to offer 5.00 Hong Kong dollars per share within two weeks after shareholders voted down the Singapore bid on January 8. A report last week said China Eastern would "seriously consider" the bid from CNAC, after previously ruling out the rival offer.
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