Wassall cash raiser

General Cable Corp, a US subsidiary of Wassall, said it plans to offer 16.9 million shares in an initial public offering that could raise $466m (pounds 287m).

The shares will be sold in two offerings, one in the US and Canada and another in other countries, and all the proceeds will go to Wassall. After the sale Wassall will own between 19 and 30 per cent of General Cable, depending on whether the underwriters opt to sell an additional 2.54 million shares.

General Cable, which is based in Kentucky, makes cable products for the communications and electrical markets. It reported net profit of $39.2 m in 1996, a 55 per cent increase on 1995.