TROUBLED UK car maker MG Rover last night denied it was a takeover target for China's largest passenger car-maker Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC).
MG Rover has signed a technology sharing agreement with the Chinese company, but chairman John Towers said there had been no talks about a potential acquisition.
He said: "We have already made it clear that we are in major collaboration with Shanghai Auto, but I have to say that within those discussions there has been absolutely no discussion at all about an equity stake or an acquisition of the business."
Speculation that MG Rover would be bought came from UK and Chinese sources quoted by Automotive News Europe.
The publication claimed SAIC would eventually take over the UK company, which was formed when German car maker BMW sold the Rover Group in 2000.
According to Automotive News Europe, a source in China said: "SAIC will buy MG Rover. When the announcement is made, depends on the progress of the negotiations, hopefully (it will be) in a few months.''
Max Pemberton, analyst for Autointelligence, a London automotive research company, said: "I am of the opinion that the Rover Group is on the point of disappearing. It is a plum ripe for picking."
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