Seafood processor denies Thai bid

Seafood processor denies Thai bid

Thailand's largest shrimp exporter, Charoen Pokpand Foods (CP Foods), expects to buy a 40-per-cent stake in Minh Phu Seafood (MPC) at US$2.16 per share, according to the website IntraFish.com, but the Vietnamese seafood processor has denied the report.

IntraFish, a seafood industry site based in Norway, noted that the total value of the deal might reach $60 million, with CP Foods to buy shares from institutional investors as well as through a new issuance. The reported purchase price was considerably higher than MPC's current trading price, which was VND35,100 ($1.60) per share at the close of market trading yesterday.

IntraFish.com also said other investors from Japan and the Middle East were also circling Minh Phu.

A Bangkok-based analyst noted it would be a very hot deal, as CP Foods would be able to "bypass possible higher tariffs under a proposed change in the Generalised System of Preferences."

The acquisition could also facilitate CP Foods to increase shrimp farming and processing in Viet Nam without building new infrastructure, the analyst said

However, Minh Phu spokeman Nguyen Xuan Toan denied the report yesterday, calling it mere rumour.

The company was still focusing on a plan to sell 30 million new shares through public auction and increase charter capital to VND1 trillion ($47.6 million), Toan said. However, he noted, due to the complexity of issues surrounding the offer, it has been delayed until next year.

Minh Phu currently has a concentrated ownership structure, with major shareholders holding almost 80 per cent. In particular, company chairman Le Van Quang and his family hold over 60 per cent of the outstanding shares in the company

vietnamnews