Adidas-Salomon Plans to Buy Back Shares

Adidas-Salomon, Europe's leading maker of sportswear and equipment, said Wednesday it planned to buy back up to 10 percent of its own shares in a transaction worth around €500 million ($665 million). Shareholders had already given their approval to a possible share buy-back program at the group's last annual meeting in May 2004, Adidas-Salomon said in a statement. The management board had now decided to make use of that authorization, which was valid until Nov. 12, 2005. Under the terms of the transaction, the repurchase price per share "will not exceed 5 percent above or below the average share market price in the last three trading days prior to the relevant purchase," Adidas-Salomon said. The exact timing, size and price of the share buyback program would be announced separately, the statement added.