Bosch Buys Stake in Heating Equipment Maker

Robert Bosch has purchased a 7.5% stake in heating equipment maker Buderus for about 100 million euros ($105 million) from Deutsche Bank as the financial institution sheds investments in other companies to focus on its ailing banking business.
Germany’s biggest bank said it will book the proceeds from the sale to auto parts supplier Robert Bosch in its 2002 accounts, boosting earnings hit hard by slumping capital markets and economic growth.
Bosch said separately that it had bought a total of 13.35 percent of Buderus at “current market conditions,” without identifying the other sellers or indicating whether it plans to revive an earlier takeover bid rejected by Buderus.
Bosch, which also makes consumer goods such as power tools and washing machines, has said it wants to reduce its dependence on the auto industry.