Haniel to cut Metro, Celesio stakes

FRANKFURT Nov 27 (Reuters) - Family-owned conglomerate Haniel said on Tuesday it would reduce its stakes in retailer Metro and drugs distributor Celesio to reduce its debt to less than 2 billion euros ($2.59 billion).

Haniel said it would place around 7.9 million shares in Celesio in the short term by way of an accelerated bookbuilding to institutional investors.

Celesio shares will be offered at between 12.20-12.50 euros a share, a source familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.

Furthermore, Haniel's board approved the sale of about 4.24 percent of Metro shares within the next 18 months, representing a total volume of about 13.7 million shares, Haniel said. (Reporting By Edward Taylor and Alexander Huebner; editing by Maria Sheahan)