PARIS (Reuters) - Journalists on Les Echos said on Wednesday they had suspended a strike to protest at the possible sale of the French business newspaper after further talks with its owner, Pearson (PSON.L: Quote, Profile, Research).
In a statement, the journalists said they remained unhappy with proposals Pearson had made to guarantee editorial independence in case of a sale and were ready to resume action "at any time".
Pearson confirmed on Tuesday it could sell the newspaper. The journalists fear it could be bought by French billionaire Bernard Arnault, who already owns rival French business newspaper La Tribune via luxury goods group LVMH (LVMH.PA: Quote, Profile, Research).
In their statement, the journalists said they "reiterate their opposition to any purchase of Les Echos by Bernard Arnault or any other industrial group which would come into conflict with the interests of the group's editorial staff."
Talk of a sale of Les Echos follows media reports that Pearson (PSON.L: Quote, Profile, Research), which also owns the Financial Times, is considering a counter bid for Dow Jones (DJ.N: Quote, Profile, Research), publisher of the Wall Street Journal.
A source familiar with the situation told Reuters on Monday that Pearson could team up with General Electric (GE.N: Quote, Profile, Research) to make an offer for the U.S. newspaper group, which is already subject to a $60 a share bid from Rupert Murdoch's News Corp (NWSa.N: Quote, Profile, Research).
