GE eyes Belgian property, financial sectors: paper

Jeffrey R. Immelt, chairman and chief executive of General Electric leads a discussion with business leaders at an Ecomagination news conference at Universal Studios in Los Angeles, California May 24, 2007. General Electric Co <GE.N> is eyeing up takeover targets in Belgium in the property and financial services sector and in the port of Antwerp, its Benelux head was quoted as saying in a newspaper on Tuesday.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - General Electric Co (GE.N) is eyeing up takeover targets in Belgium in the property and financial services sector and in the port of Antwerp, its Benelux head was quoted as saying in a newspaper on Tuesday.

"We have always been interested in dominating where we are not yet sufficiently present, for example in financial services," said John Vassallo in an interview with financial daily De Tijd.

The group has already bought consumer credit group Auxfina from French financial services group AXA.

"That was a first step but it's clear that we want to go further in Belgium or the Netherlands," he said.

It has also bought Artesia from Franco-Belgian financial services group Dexia DEXI.PA (DEXI.BR).

Asked if the group was looking at other sectors in Belgium, Vassallo said: "We will be well on the look-out when the state privatizes real estate. We do not have any real estate yet in Belgium and we are very interested in sale-and-leasebacks."

The Belgian state has been selling off government buildings to property groups such as Belgium's Befimmo BEFIt.BR and Cofinimmo COFIt.BR and then leasing them back.

"We are also following developments in the Port of Antwerp," he said.

Antwerp is one of Europe's largest harbors and home to Belgian shipping groups Exmar (EXMR.BR), Euronav (EUAV.BR) and CMB CMBBte.BR.