Renault share price drops as French PM rules out Nissan merger

Renault has seen a drop in its share price after the France’s Prime Minister said it does not want a merger with the French car maker Nissan.

Prime Minister Manuel Valls spoke out after Renault held an emergency board meeting on Friday, following reports the Government, which is a major shareholder, did want a merger.

Shares had dropped €1.99 (2.14%) to €90.99 at 1455 CET on the back on Sunday’s revelation.

Nissan owns a 15% stake in Renault, while the French company has a 43% interest in the Japanese car-maker.

Meanwhile in Germany, investors are anxiously waiting to see what comes out of a meeting of the Volkswagen AG Supervisory Board.

Bloomberg reported the board would be discussing cutbacks and the emissions scandal investigation, which gained pace as more irregularities came to light from internal whistleblowers than the carmaker had originally disclosed.

The carmaker made the revelations public on 3 November, and said how it happened is subject to ongoing internal investigations.

Volkswagen AG shares were down fractionally to €121.70, at 1444 CET, down €0.20 (0.16%).