Reuters is reporting that U.S. crane maker Terex Corp has told Chinese peer Zoomlion to sweeten its $3.3 billion offer in order for it to abandon its merger agreement with Finland's Konecranes , according to people familiar with the matter.
Terex's response shows that Zoomlion has made little progress toward a deal since its offer was disclosed publicly by Terex a month ago. Terex said on Feb. 17 that it was continuing to review Zoomlion's proposal to determine the course of action that is in the best interest of its shareholders, and that this process would take time.
The latest development also illustrates that Zoomlion's main stumbling block in its negotiations with Terex is price, rather than concerns that the United States could block the deal because of Terex's ties to the U.S. military and presence in U.S. ports.
