Maersk no longer interested in bidding for DB Schenker

Deutsche Bahn launched a sale process for DB Schenker last year and Maersk had said it was considering buying the business.

But Maersk chief executive Vincent Clerc said in a statement on Monday: "Over the past months, Maersk has conducted a review of the DB Schenker business and, during the past few weeks, there has been an opportunity to participate in an in-depth due diligence. Following this review, Maersk has decided to withdraw from the process.

"We said we would look into this opportunity, and we did. Our investigation confirmed DB Schenker as an interesting company with a comprehensive portfolio in the logistics market and with further potential to unlock for the future.

"But the in-depth review also identified areas of challenges from an integration perspective and, ultimately, we concluded that acquiring DB Schenker would not be the right thing to do for our business at this time. It has been a good process, ensuring that we can make the most well-informed decision possible."

At 1530 BST, Maersk shares were up 6.1% at DKK12,845.