China National Bluestar Group's bid yesterday appears not to have satisfied Ssangyong's creditors.

The 'final' bid submitted by Bluestar for Korea's financially ailing 4x4 maker Ssangyong has effectively been rejected, according to an auto-asia.com report. It says the Chinese bidder has been asked to clarify its bid price by the end of March, and also to prove that its bid enjoys the support of the Chinese government.

It has been revealed that Bluestar's bid for Ssangyong, which has no apparent industrial logic inasmuch as Bluestar has no other automotive investments, was greeted with dismay by the Beijing authorities, who are are attempting to consolidate the Chinese automotive industry rather than encourage new entrants. It has also been revealed that VW partner Shanghai Automotive was one of the prospective buyers of Ssangyong before Bluestar was selected as the preferred bidder; a decision that Ssangyong's Korean bank creditors may now be regretting.