Word: magnas
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After weeks of twists and turns in the battle for control of General Motors' European unit Opel, the U.S. car giant finally made up its mind Thursday and decided to sell a majority stake to a bid headed by Canadian car-parts firm Magna, albeit with strings attached. The deal came as something of a surprise; over the past few days there has been feverish speculation in Berlin that GM had decided to hang onto Opel in Germany as well as its Vauxhall brand...
...Fritz Henderson phoned Chancellor Angela Merkel's office Thursday to seal the deal. The decision to sell Opel and Vauxhall to Magna is a coup for Merkel who has staked her credibility on the bid, a joint offer from the Canadian car-parts manufacturer and Russia's state-owned Sberbank. Since May, Merkel and the German government have thrown their weight behind Magna's offer, arguing that Magna already had extensive experience in building autos. Berlin also likes the fact that the Magna bid will keep open Opel's four factories in Germany, thus saving more jobs there than rival...
...Merkel's government announced it would bankroll the Magna bid in May, pledging $2.1 billion as a bridge loan to keep Opel afloat, as well as $4 billion in future loan guarantees. The German government also made it clear it wouldn't stump cash for any other bidder. Some politicians accused Merkel of "blackmail" and warned that her government's support for Magna could backfire. Initially, GM had serious reservations about Magna's offer and seemed to favor a rival bid by the Belgian-based investor, RHJ International. One GM official said RHJ's offer was "simple and elegant...
Tushar Amin, 33, Editor, FHM The first thing you must do is go to a very small place in Kala Ghoda called the Magna Book Gallery & Nutrition Centre, tel: (91-22) 2267 1763. It's an old café that most people don't even know about, on the balcony of a bookshop. You'll get very good herbal teas and sandwiches there, and it's the perfect meeting place before going out for the evening...
However, Frank Stronach, Magna's flamboyantly unpredictable founder and chairman, sees the acquisition of Opel as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to create a global car empire on which to stamp his imprint. "It's a risky deal for Magna," says auto analyst George Magliano of IHS Global Insight. "But car assembly is something they really want to do." This ambition may be too tall an order for the Austrian-born Stronach, 76, whose entire career has been marked by both spectacular successes and failures. Most recently, his dream of creating a horse-racing and gaming empire collapsed when...