Fiat plans Ferrari listing: analysts

ROME: Italian auto company Fiat is planning a listing of its luxury car division Ferrari within the next 18 months, analysts said on Monday after a meeting with Fiat chief executive Sergio Marchionne.

Fiat's press service declined to comment on the reported conversation.

An initial public offering (IPO) for Ferrari "appears increasingly likely in the next 12-18 months," analysts from US bank Morgan Stanley said in a note.

The analysts also cited Marchionne as saying that Fiat and US auto firm Chrysler would eventually merge after Fiat after the IPO.

Analysts from Germany's Deutsche Bank said: "Marchionne aims to have one single listed unit between Fiat and Chrysler before the end of 2014."

After the publication of the analyst notes, shares in Fiat shot up 3.08 percent to 13.38 euros in Milan, where the main index was up 0.43 percent.

Fiat holds a 20-percent stake in Chrysler, which emerged from bankruptcy proceedings in June 2009. Fiat's stake is set to rise to 25 percent by the end of the year and 35 percent by the end of next year.

Fiat currently owns 85 per cent of Ferrari.