CEO says Volkswagen's buying spree is over

After adding Italian motorcycle icon Ducati to its stable and spending $5.6 billion on the rest of Porsche, Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn says he's done shopping for a while.

"We have enough to do at the moment in taking our twelve brands to where we want to be," Winterkorn tells German newspaper Handelsblatt.

Rumors of VW's pending purchase of Malaysian carmaker and Lotus owner Proton have been swirling for a while – as recently as July. And a year ago, VW Chairman Ferdinand Piëch implied interest in relieving Fiat of its Alfa Romeo brand. But Winterkorn says his company is just too busy integrating Porsche and Ducati into the corporate structure to add any more brands right now.

"That I find Alfa Romeo an interesting brand is not a secret," Winterkorn said. "But we are currently busy enough with our brands."

At least one industry analyst, Michael Punzet of DZ Bank, thinks VW wouldn't pass up a bargain-priced Alfa or Proton if offered. "But at the moment I guess they are really focusing on integrating Porsche AG and consolidating the truckmakers MAN and Scania," Punzet said.

Read the full story at Bloomberg.

By Chris Tutor