AP Mo/ller confirms bid for PON

A.P.MO/LLER – Maersk has confirmed that discussions are taking place with Royal P&O Nedlloyd regarding a possible combination of the companies.
A merger would lead to the world’s largest shipping company – with Maersk already the biggest container line operator.
A Bloomberg report quoted by Schednet.com cited experts saying that a combined company would command a 17% share of the world shipping market.
The intense speculation about the Royal P&O-Maersk merger delighted shareholders in the Rotterdam-based P&O – with shares on the Amsterdam stock exchange leaping up by as much as 10%. They ended 7.6% up to EUR44.70 (R344.64) when trading was suspended on April 10.
This, said the Bloomberg report, valued the company at EUR1.8-billion (R13.8-bn).