Thainox big shareholder in sale talks, stock surges

BANGKOK Oct 9 (Reuters) - Thainox Stainless Pcl INOX.BK, Thailand's largest stainless steel producer, said on Friday its major shareholder was in talks on a possible share sale, sparking an 11.5 percent rise in its stock price.

It did not identify a possible buyer, but South Korean steel maker POSCO (005490.KS) has been cited in media reports as in the final stages of talks to buy a stake.

A POSCO source told Reuters on Wednesday that POSCO was in talks to buy Thainox but nothing had been decided yet.[ID:nSEO306902]

Thainox Stainless said in a statement that its major shareholder, the Mahagitsiri Group, was in talks but had not reached any conclusion.

"We were informed that they are in the process of negotiation on the terms and conditions of the share sale transaction, and until now they have reached no conclusion," it said in the statement to the stock exchange. ($1=33.30 Baht) (Reporting by Viparat Jantraprap; Editing by Jason Szep)