The premier of the German state where ThyssenKrupp is based on Thursday backed the company's chairman in opposing a breakup of the industrial conglomerate following the resignation of CEO Heinrich Hiesinger. Cevian, ThyssenKrupp's second-largest shareholder with an 18-per cent stake, has demanded a review of all of ThyssenKrupp's business areas, saying each might thrive better in a different set-up. Fellow investor Elliott has also called for a radical overhaul amid broad discontent over strategy. "We want long-term development, not short-term profits," Armin Laschet, the conservative prime minister of North Rhine-Westphalia, said after meeting managers and labour leaders in state capital Duesseldorf. Laschet's comments echoed those by Chairman Ulrich Lehner, who was quoted on Wednesday as saying that a break-up of ThyssenKrupp was out of the question. The Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach Foundation, the group's biggest investor with a 21 per cent stake, said this would not happen. Laschet, who sits on the foundation's board, urged dialogue.
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