Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne told reporters at the Sevel plant at Val di Sangro yesterday that the outlook for Fiat's Fidis retail finance division was good, and that "the process (of finding a new partner to buy the 51 pct stake) is going very well."

Fidis Retail Italia Spa is the finance division of Fiat Auto and has consistently shown healthy profits. In 2003, the Fiat Group sold a 51 pct stake in Fidis to a consortium of banks (BancaIntesa, Capitalia, San Paolo-IMI and Unicredito Italiano) as it look to raise fresh funds. In November 2004 the new entity, now known as Fidis Retail Italia Spa, bought out the UK finance operation to add to its pan-European spread, and last year it constituted an new Irish arm.

Marchionne added yesterday that "We have the opportunity to choose from different partners,  to help develop our operations. Now that potential partners have been found, the next step will be to choose the most suitable one." In late March it was reported that the San Paolo-IMI Banking Group, Mediobanca, and the French banking group, BNP Paribas, had all submitted bids to take over the stake. "It will take some time," added Marchionne at Sevel, "but the important thing is to have people who share our objectives and are ready to play the game as we wish to play it."
 

Meanwhile, the daily MF reported yesterday that the Fiat Group could shortly spend up to 300 million euros repurchasing Mediobanca's remaining 11.7 pct stake in its Ferrari sportscar division, although no source was attributed. During his briefing at the Sevel factory yesterday Marchionne reaffirmed that Ferrari was a priority for the group and that the end of June target date for Fiat to restructure would remain the main factor.

Fiat originally sold a 34 pct stake in Ferrari to a Mediobanca-led consortium of banks in 2002 for 775 million euros, at a time when it needed to raise cash urgently. Mediobanca's position in Ferrari was whittled down with a small purchase by the Mubadala Development Corporation and the Italian bank is now anxious to divest their remain stake in Ferrari. Repurchasing Mediobanca's 11.7 perecent stake would take Fiat's shareholding in Ferrari up to just under 68 percent.