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STX PO up on takeover hopes again

STX PO up on takeover hopes again
Seoul: Korea Development Bank (KDB) has launched due diligence for a takeover of STX Pan Ocean (STX PO), pushing up shares in the Korean shipowner.

KDB, a creditor to STX PO and 15% stakeholder, announced a preliminary review of acquisition after a 36% stake in STX PO, with a market value around $290m, failed to attract any interest when its initial round of bidding closed on 29 March.

Shares in STX PO were up at $3.31 at the time of writing after closing the previous session at $3.10. The uptick comes after shares fell dramatically from $3.87 to $2.96 from 29 March to 2 April.

In February this year, STX PO's share price rallied as rumours spread that Korean steelmaker Posco was considering buying a controlling stake. The company posted a full year net loss of $418.29m in the same month. 

Subsequent disclosure on the KDB deal is not expected until 7 October 2013