Piaggio and Ducati to merge?

An Italian news wire service has sent the rumour mill into overdrive by promulgating a potential merger between the country's two motorcycle giants: the privately owned Ducati and Piaggio.

And despite a categorical denial by Piaggio's majority shareholder, Immsi SpA, that a union is on the cards, the story continues to gain momentum.

The wire service, MF, reported that a global management consultancy company, McKinsey & Company, had been contracted to evaluate potential merger candidates for the struggling Piaggio Group, and Ducati is being tipped as the best option.

A merger between the two would certainly create a behemoth to take on the might of Japan, both in the wide range of products on offer - from scooters to top-shelf sportsbikes and everything in between - and in volume to take on emerging markets such as south-east Asia.

Ducati is an eponymous marque, but Piaggio owns Vespa, Gilera, Derbi, Aprilia, Moto Guzzi, as well as badging products under its own name,

Currently, Immsi SpA, controlled by businessman Roberto Colaninno, has a 51.1 percent stake in Piaggio after selling about 2.5 percent just last week.

Ducati is owned by Performance Motorcycles S.p.A, which is an investment vehicle of three main emporiums: Investindustrial, BS Investimenti and Hospitals of Ontario Pension Plan.