Sweden

Chinese carmaker Zhejiang Youngman Lotus Automobile has made a 3 billion crowns ($446 million) offer for bankrupt Swedish group Saab which has drawn a cool response from receivers, a source with knowledge of the situation said on Friday, Reuters reported. The receivers want bids for parts of Saab rather than the whole business as that would raise more for creditors, the source said. Saab was declared bankrupt last December after months of efforts to keep it afloat by owner Swedish Automobile. "Youngman made an offer for all of Saab on Monday.

Sweden's Debt Office has paid back loans the European Investment Bank made to Saab, making the Nordic country the bankrupt car firm's biggest creditor, Reuters reported. The Debt Office guaranteed Saab's original 400 million euro ($526 million) loan from the EIB, of which the carmaker used 217 million euros. Shares in Saab Automobile Parts and Saab Automobile Tools held as collateral by the Debt Office are worth more than the loan, it said.

Sweden’s tough regulations on its own lenders, regarded as even more stringent than the Basel III bank capital rules, could fire up the Nordic country’s corporate debt market in 2012, as small and mid-cap borrowers in particular rush from hard-to-get loans to readily available bonds, International Financing Review reported. While heads of the world’s leading economies have agreed to introduce stricter bank capital and global liquidity rules by 2013, Sweden has urged its four biggest lenders to ensure that they have bigger buffers sooner.

Chinese group Zhejiang Youngman Lotus Automobile could make a fresh bid for failed Swedish carmaker Saab next week, sources with knowledge of the situation said on Wednesday, Reuters reported. Saab was declared bankrupt by a Swedish court in December after protracted rescue efforts by owner Swedish Automobile. A key stumbling block was the refusal of former owner General Motors to allow its technology, which underpins Saab cars, to fall into Youngman's hands.

Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., India’s biggest sport-utility vehicle manufacturer, is interested in buying at least parts of bankrupt Swedish carmaker Saab Automobile, two people familiar with the situation said, Bloomberg reported. Mahindra, based in Mumbai, is in the process of trying to set up meetings with the two court-appointed administrators who are overseeing Saab’s bankruptcy to possibly buy parts of the carmaker or the whole company, said the people, who declined to be identified because the plans are private.

China's Pang Da Automobile Trade said on Wednesday it would halt its attempt to acquire Swedish carmaker Saab in light of Saab's bankruptcy, Reuters reported. Saab was declared bankrupt by a court on Monday, ending a nine-month survival battle by its Dutch owner. "In view of Saab being declared bankrupt, Pang Da Automobile Trade has decided to stop the acquisition transaction of Saab," Pang Da said in a statement to the Shanghai stock exchange.

Saab Automobile filed for bankruptcy on Monday, giving up a desperate struggle to stay in business after previous owner General Motors Co. blocked takeover attempts by Chinese investors, the Associated Press reported. Saab CEO Victor Muller personally handed in the bankruptcy application to a court in southwestern Sweden, ending his two-year effort to revive the carmaker that over more than six decades has become known for its rounded sedans and quirky design features.

Struggling carmaker Saab suffered its latest embarrassment on Thursday as it was forced to name a new administrator a day after identifying another lawyer to take the key role, himself a replacement for a previous administrator who had quit, Reuters reported. The appointment comes days ahead of a court decision that could push Saab closer to bankruptcy. Sweden's Vanersborg District Court said Saab had put forward Lars Soderqvist of law firm Hokerberg & Soderqvist as its new administrator, having said on Wednesday another lawyer called Lars-Henrik Andersson would take the position.

Ailing Swedish carmaker Saab and its court-appointed administrator Guy Lofalk want him replaced amid reports of disagreement as the company struggles to stay in business, a court said on Wednesday, Reuters reported. The court is due to decide whether to keep Saab in a scheme which grants it protection from creditors while it secures itself a stable future. Lofalk, who applied to have the creditor protection scheme ended, now wants to leave his position.

Swedish carmaker Saab faced a fresh threat to its existence on Wednesday when a court-appointed administrator said its protection from bankruptcy should be removed due to a failure to secure Chinese investments, Reuters reported. Saab, one of Sweden's best-known brands, has been teetering on the brink since early last year when a cash crunch forced it to halt production. It currently has court protection from creditors and possible bankruptcy claims.