The share price of Neptune Orient Lines leapt further this morning in early trading as rumours abounded of a possible leak in a deal to sell Singapore’s most famous name in shipping. By midday NOL’s share price stood at S$1.115, up 11.5% in just 24 hours.
Temasek Holdings, Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund, is keen to offload its majority stake in NOL, which runs containerline APL. Both Maersk and CMA CGM have been linked with taking over Southeast Asia’s top boxline.
The spike in trading this morning forced NOL to issue a release on the Singapore Exchange in which it acknowledged that “it is continuing in discussions with respect to a potential acquisition of NOL”.
NOL added: “There is no assurance that any such discussion will result in any definitive agreement or transaction, or that any offer for NOL will be made.”
NOL said it did not know why its shares were trading so heavily today.
