Hapag parent caught in stock exchange speculation

Hapag parent caught in stock exchange speculation    TUI AG, the German tourism group that owns Hapag-Lloyd, has seen its share price boosted by speculation of a possible takeover.
   The TUI share on the Frankfurt exchange rose 3.84 percent this morning to 14.60 euros ($17.57c) on speculation of a takeover of the company.
   TUI decided to publish key figures on the second quarter 2004 early, this Thursday, saying that “performance of the TUI share has been very volatile in recent days due to various market speculations including the performance in the second quarter 2004.”
   The tourism group, which faces a possible ejection from Germany’s DAX index, confirmed last week that the investment bank Morgan Stanley has raised its stake in TUI to 10.1 percent. The reason for Morgan Stanley’s move is not known. The German state-owned bank WestLB, the biggest shareholder in TUI, told Reuters it has not sold any of its 30-percent stake in TUI to Morgan Stanley.
   The latest jump in the TUI share price follows several months of decline. Reuters reported that TUI chief executive Michael Frenzel said last weekend the share price did not reflect the company’s performance, and that he blamed hedge funds for driving it lower.
   The tourism group is in the middle of selling various activities, including the initial public offering of Hapag-Lloyd AG planned by the end of the year.