General Motors Co’s (GM) main joint venture partner in China, Shanghai Automotive Industrial Corp (SAIC, 上海汽車), said it has bought an almost 1 percent stake in the US automaker through its initial public offering.
SAIC, which is owned by the Shanghai Municipal Government, said yesterday it paid US$33 a share for about 0.97 percent of GM at a total cost of almost US$500 million.
The two companies said the share purchase is meant to enhance their cooperation in the world’s biggest auto market.
“We are happy with SAIC’s decision to participate in GM’s public offering. GM has enjoyed a strong partnership with SAIC over the past 14 years,” Tim Lee, president of GM International Operations, said in a statement.
SAIC said it would raise the funds needed to finance the share purchase in the Hong Kong financial market. It did not give further details on that plan.
In related news, Ford is reducing its stake in Japanese automaker Mazda to 3.5 percent from 11 percent, giving up the position of top stakeholder it has held for 31 years.
However, Mazda Motor Corp said in a statement yesterday that its partnership with Ford Motor Co would continue in developing and marketing cars together.
Mazda did not specify which companies were buying the shares from Ford, based in Dearborn, Michigan. However, it said the buyers would be companies with which it does business.
Japanese media reports have said Mitsui Sumitomo Bank, already a major investor in Mazda, will be among the buyers as will Japanese trading conglomerate Itochu Corp.
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