US conglomerate General Electric said Monday it was mulling an offer for Spain's second-largest property firm, Colonial, whose share price has slumped recently due to concerns over its financial health.
In a statement, General Electric "confirmed we are studying a possible operation regarding Colonial but as of today have not reached any decision regarding this matter. "The adoption of any decision regarding any operation would depend, among other conditions, on an analysis of financial, fiscal and legal information regarding Colonial and on internal approval," it added.
The business daily Expansion reported Saturday, citing unnamed sources close to the deal, that General Electric was considering a full bid for the troubled Spanish property firm.
The US giant already owns property worth 1.5 billion euros (2.2 billion dollars) in Spain, the newspaper said. Colonial shares have lost over 50 percent since the end of 2007 due to concerns over its debts of around 8.6 billion euros, falling property sales and the international lending crunch that has slowed a credit-fuelled expansion.
The stock rose sharply after it resumed trade Monday on news of the interest by General Electric. Shares in the firm were up 4.00 percent at 1.56 euros just after 2.00 pm (1300 GMT), outperforming the Ibex-35 index of most-traded Spanish shares which fell 4.56 percent in line with sharp losses across Europe. Spain's stock market regulator CNMV had suspended trade in Colonial until noon pending an announcement from the firm.
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