Volkswagen and Porsche are no strangers to bumps on the road to their reunification. That the planned merger would be held up by the legal liabilities hanging over Porsche as a result of its stakebuilding in VW three years ago was always a strong possibility. Claims by irate investors run to billions of euros. So far, all is indecisiveness: US courts must decide whether they have jurisdiction, and German prosecutors must consider pursuing a criminal case against former Porsche executives. That, in turn, could influence the prospects for successful civil litigation. With no chance of clarity on these questions in the near term, the companies have called off any plans for a deal in 2011. Investors are entitled to be baffled about what happens next.
大众(Volkswagen)和保时捷(Porsche)两家对重新合并之路上的障碍并不陌生。保时捷三年前大举增持大众股份所引发的法律麻烦致使合并计划搁浅，一直是一个很大的可能性。愤怒的投资者要求赔偿，总金额高达数十亿欧元。至今为止，一切都还未有定论：美国的法庭必须就自己是否具有管辖权作出裁决；德国检方尚未确定是否要对保时捷的一些前任高管提起刑事诉讼，而这进而将影响民事诉讼的成功希望。鉴于上述问题近期内无法明朗，两家公司已取消了在2011年内达成协议的计划。投资者有理由对下一步将发生什么感到困惑。