Scania snubs Volkswagen takeover bid

Swedish truck manufacturer Scania on Tuesday rejected a multi-billion-euro takeover bid from Europe's biggest carmaker Volkswagen, saying the offer did not reflect the company's true value. Volkswagen last month offered 6.7 billion euros ($9.3 billion) to acquire the nearly 40 percent of Scania it does not already own. But Scania's board of directors recommended to shareholders not to part with their stock at that price. "Based on the long-term prospects of Scania, its growth outlook, technological excellence and the synergy potential, the committee believes the offer does not reflect the long-term fundamental value of Scania," the board wrote. "Scania is a world leader in its industry and the Committee has strong faith in the business plan set out by the company," added the board in a statement. Volkswagen currently has nearly 90 percent of voting shares in Scania, and owns 62.6 percent of the company. The German giant already owns truck- and bus-maker MAN and bought into Scania in 2000. It had previously said that it could make annual savings of 650 million euros through synergies by taking full control of the Swedish company. Investors did not appear to welcome the news, sending Scania stock down some three percent at the open, compared to a wider Swedish market decline of only 0.17 percent.