Daimler Chrysler executives cash in on share price rise
 

BERLIN, Aug. 4 (Xinhuanet) -- It surfaced on Thursday that six top executives at German-US auto giant Daimler Chrysler are cashing in on the recent sharp rise in the company's share price sparked by Chairman Juergen Schrempp's announcement of resignation.

According to mandatory legal filings published on the automaker's web site, six managers have bought shares of the company at a discounted price and immediately re-sold them at a much higher market price on the same day, reaping big profits from the transactions.

Since Schrempp announced last week that he planned to resign atthe end of the year, three years before the expiration of his contract, Daimler Chrysler shares have rocketed by more than 10 percent on the stock exchange.

Two board members, Thomas Sidlik and Eckhard Cordes, and four others liquidated their holdings since the announcement, cashing in a total 1.26 million euros (1.56 million US dollars), according to Daimler Chrysler.

Besides, the managers received additional cash payments to makeup for differences between the reference price and the actual strike price of the options, DaimlerChrysler said.

In total, the executives netted more than 1.5 million euros in profits from the deals, which were criticized by shareholder groups. They said that the variable components of managers' wages should not be linked to the share price but to a company's long-term profits. Enditem


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-Matt-