WSJ says Maersk is not likely to take over Hanjin and Hyundai

WSJ says Maersk is not likely to take over Hanjin and Hyundai. October. 05, 2016 07:35. by 김성규기자 sunggyu@donga.com.

Danish shipping conglomerate Maersk is not likely to buy either Hyundai Merchant Marine Co. or Hanjin Shipping, according to the Wall Street Journal. Such prospects came as a surprise as the ruling predictions so far has been that the world’s no.1 shipping company will come to buy the two troubled Korean container ship operators.

The Wall Street Journal quoted people familiar with the matter saying, “Buying Hanjin or HMM are rumors invented out of thin air. Maersk isn’t really interested in the Korean operators.” The talk among top industry executives is that Maersk will wait for creditors of smaller carriers going bankrupt to knock on its door and discuss buyout deals at very low prices, according to the source.

Shipping industry analysts have been anticipating that Maersk would come to takeover Hyundai ever since the 2M shipping alliance led by Maersk had requested Hyundai to join the group. Last week, Jefferies International, a U.K.-based investment bank, had predicted that Maersk would consider buying out of the two struggling Korean operators. All of these have added to the unexpected nature of the report by the Wall Street Journal. Hanjin’s shares had risen by more than 20 percent last week on the predictions for Maersk’s buyout, but closed at 1,110 won per share after plummeting by 4.31 percent after the news broke.