Oman fund in race for TUI’s Hapag-Lloyd stake

Oman fund in race for TUI’s Hapag-Lloyd stake    An Omani state-owned fund intends to buy a stake in German container line Hapag-Lloyd, Reuters reported last week.
   The fund put its intentions in writing to TUI, the European tourism giant that formerly owned a majority share of Hapag-Lloyd, and still maintains a 38.4 percent stake. TUI is reportedly deciding whether to sell or float some or all of its stake.
   Hapag-Lloyd had record profit in 2010, and TUI has been seeking to divest itself of the shipping line for a few years. The line is now majority-owned by the Albert Ballin consortium, a group of Hamburg-based businessmen.
   According to the Reuters report, there's another interested party in TUI's Hapag-Lloyd stake — China's HNA Group, owner of Hainan Airlines.