Thaindian News

Investors in Harman International were left whining yesterday after the SP and P 500 audio equipment maker was forced to deny that it had received a bid approach from a mystery suitor, who called themselves as the Arabian Peninsula Group.

A fax, which claimed to be from a Saudi-based investment group, was sent to news rooms across the world on Sunday suggesting a $49.50 per share offer which is almost a 100 percent premium to Friday’s closing price. Reports of the “mysterious” fax had initially sent shares in the company sharply higher in a pre-trading in New York, by as per as 30 percent, according to the Reuters.

However, the shares slumped, closing down at 17.6 percent at $20.86, after Harman issued a statement denying any knowledge of a bid as questions popped up regarding the identity of the unknown bidder. Reports suggest that the fax didn’t contain any contact details of the Saudi Investment Vehicle, called as the Arabian Peninsula Vehicle. The fax contained punctuation errors and moreover the “mysterious” group’s website weren’t to be found on the net.

Even The Financial Times were not able to find any press archive that mentioned the Arabian Peninsula Group, which claimed to have been established in the year 1981 to manage the wealth of “two prominent parties from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates.” The fax also claimed that the company’s headquarters is situated in Jeddah and owns 17 private groups in the Gulf and South Asia.

Harman, which sells speakers and other audio equipments said in a statement that “it had not received any such communications and is not familiar with any parties claiming the solicitation.”