Fiat Chrysler denies report of merger talks with Volkswagen

Fiat Chrysler has denied a magazine report saying it is in merger talks with Volkswagen, while the German carmaker said it had no takeovers on its agenda.

Germany's Manager Magazin said Volkswagen chairman Ferdinand Piech had held talks with the owners of Fiat Chrysler about buying all or part of the group that was formed this year from the merger of Italian and US carmakers.

However, a VW spokesman said Europe’s biggest carmaker was focused on delivering improvements at its existing operations.

“There are currently no M&A projects on the agenda,” he said. “We are now focusing on boosting efficiency across the group.”

The Agnelli family’s holding firm Exor, which owns a 30 per cent stake in Fiat Chrysler, denied any talks had taken place. – (Reuters)