FCA 'contacts' with China's Geely (4)

(ANSA) - New York, February 27 - Fiat Chrysler Automobiles had contacts with Geely of China before the Chinese group became the largest shareholder in Daimler, Bloomberg reported Tuesday.
    It said Geely and FCA talked about a possible merger but the preliminary talks were interrupted in mid-2017 because of differences on valuations.
    The billionaire who controls Geely, Li Shufu, contacted FCA while evaluating options to expand outside China, Bloomberg reported.
    Li decided not to present a formal offer because of differences of opinion over the future evaluation of FCA.
    There has been a lot of speculation about Chinese interest in FCA recently.
    Among the potential bidders, media said, were Dongfeng Motor, Great Wall, Guangzhou Automobile and Geely. The latter denied a bid fro FCA in mid-August.
    Geely is a multinational carmaker headquartered in Hangzhou, Zhejiang. It sells passenger vehicles under the Geely Auto, Volvo, Lynk & Co, PROTON, and Lotus brands and commercial vehicles under the London EV Company and Yuan Cheng New Energy Commercial Vehicle brands.