News In Brief

In a deal valued at about $2 billion, automobile parts-maker Mark IV Industries announced it will be acquired by BC Partners, a London-based private equity firm. The transaction is one of the largest purchases to date of a US concern by a European buyout fund, The Wall Street Journal reported. Mark IV, based in Amherst, N.Y., has been seeking a buyer since January in an effort to boost its stock price. BC Partners has $4.5 billion in funds under management.

A 10 percent to 20 percent stake worth at least $3.8 billion in US mobile phone service provider VoiceStream Wireless Corp. is being sought by NTT DoCoMo of Japan, published reports said. Negotiations, if successful, would give NTT DoCoMo another link in a growing network of partnerships. It already has a stake in Hutchison Telephone Co. of Hong Kong and and is pursuing similar deals with carriers in the Netherlands and South Korea. Voice Stream Wireless is based in Bellevue, Wash., and has more than 2 million customers.

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