Springer upbeat on Telegraph bid

GERMAN publishing giant Axel Springer is 'quietly confident' that it will add the Telegraph stable of newspaper titles to its portfolio as the hotly contested auction comes to a head this week.

Chief executive Matthias Dopfner is thought to have tabled a bid of almost e1bn (£675m) for Hollinger International, owner of the papers.

'Word from the inside is that Dopfner's expansionist, internationalist approach has won, and that Springer will acquire this crown jewel,' Austrian radio said today.

German and Austrian Press reports also said the company was upbeat about its prospects in a race that involves at least four other parties.

Dopfner said last week that the company hopes to double the size of its foreign operations to about 30% of sales within five years and his plan has the approval of founder Axel Springer's widow, the group's major shareholder.

Hellman & Friedman, a San Francisco private equity group that owns 19.4% of Springer, is underwriting its bid.

The company is debt free after aggressive cost-cutting and the disposal of several businesses.