Lamborghini to cover losses

Lamborghini to cover losses

ROME (Reuters): Italian sports car maker Lamborghini SpA, controlled by former Indonesian president Soeharto's son Hutomo Mandala Putra, is to hold a shareholders meeting soon to decide on a reduction of its capital to cover 1997 losses, Italy's Official Gazzette said yesterday.

The meeting, scheduled for June 30 or July 7, was called in accordance with an Italian law which says a company must reduce its capital if losses amount to more than one third of the capital, the newsletter said.

Lamborghini's capital totals 19.6 trillion lira.

Italian companies are obliged to give the dates of their shareholders meetings and reasons for holding them in the Official Gazzette.

Managing director Vittorio Di Capua said last week in London that he expected Lamborghini to return to profit in 1997 after several years in the red. He saw operating profit at seven billion lira (US$3.9 million) on sales of about 70 billion lira.

Volkswagen AG's Audi AG unit last month made an offer for 100 percent of Lamborghini.