Informa calls off Springer talks

1st Dec 2009 16:25

Lloyds List publisher Informa has scrapped merger talks with German publisher Springer."Whilst there is clear strategic logic in combining Springer and Informa, the board has concluded after detailed consideration that the current environment is not conducive to making such a significant acquisition in the timescale required by the vendors," read a short statement Tuesday.Informa said last week it had been given access to Springer's books but had not agreed a price.Reports suggested Springer's private equity owners, Candover and Cinven, had been talking about the sale of a 49% stake for €400m before Informa registered its interest.Informa added today that the business is trading in line with management expectations for the full year.