Toll confirms structural review but not Patrick and rail spin-off report

<p>Toll Holdings restated today (Tuesday, December 12) that its strategic review would end &#8220shortly&#8221 but refused to be drawn on a report that it would spin off ports and its rail operations to fund a pan-Asian logistics push.</p> <p>&#8220We haven’t made a decision there’s no board sign-off it’s speculation,&#8221 a Toll spokeswoman told <em>Lloyd’s List DCN</em> .</p> <p>A report in the <em>Australian Financial Review</em> said investment bank UBS and law firm Clayton Utz were advising Toll on separating Patrick Corp and Toll’s share of Pacific National into a managed trust.</p> <p>It also said there was speculation Toll was the subject of a private equity takeover bid.</p> <p>Toll rose 1.7% in morning trade to a record $18.36 after a 30 cent rise to $18.05 yesterday.</p> <p>Toll managing director Paul Little has made no secret of his desire for the company to become an Asian player and Toll has identified China’s lack of a national logistics provider as an oportunity.</p> <p>Meanwhile, the purchase earlier in the year of SemCorp Logistics, with its presence in east and southeast Asia, was always a precursor to expansion in the region. </p> <br />