Saab-owner shares soar on report of new US investor

Swedish Automobile, which owns beleaguered carmaker Saab, saw its shares soar over 40 percent Thursday following a report the company had found a new investor in the United States. Quoting unnamed sources close to Saab, Swedish financial daily Dagens Industri (DI) said Swedish Automobile chief executive Victor Muller was "working on concluding an agreement with a big American investor." The deal regards "long-term financing through which the investor would take part-ownership in Saab Automobile." "Saab hopes the deal will be reached at the end of the week or at the weekend," DI reported, adding Muller had been in the United States for two weeks and had held discussions with many American investors. Saab could not be immediately reached for comment. A spokesperson for the company quoted in DI said Muller was "working hard to find both long-term and short-term capital to reach a stable situation for Saab." The report sent Swedish Automobile's shares soaring more than 41 percent to 1.65 euros at 1000 GMT on the Amsterdam stock exchange, which was down 0.16 percent. Swedish Automobile has been seeking fresh cash since March to secure Saab's future. On Wednesday, it announced a new share issue but with revenue earmarked to pay already-delayed salaries, not to restart production. Saab has also entered a deal to sell and lease back its real estate, and signed deals with Chinese distributors. But the cash has not been enough to restart production at its Trollhaettan plant in southwestern Sweden, which has been halted on and off since April as suppliers stopped deliveries over unpaid bills. Iconic Swedish brand Saab was saved at the last minute at the beginning of 2010 when it was bought by small Dutch firm Spyker -- now known as Swedish Automobile -- from US giant GM. The new owner had big ambitions for Saab but the carmaker has since then lurched from one cash crisis to another.