Fiat head plans to sell truck division******

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MILAN, May 4 (Reuters): Fiat chief Sergio Marchionne is planning to sell Fiat Industrial, the company's heavy vehicle division, in order to finance a merger with Chrysler, Italian daily La Repubblica reported Wednesday. The newspaper, which did not cite any sources, said that Marchionne had recently contacted a group of banks to find a buyer for Fiat Industrial. Several major investment funds were interested in the purchase, the newspaper said. Contacted by the reporter, a spokesman for Fiat Industrial declined to comment. La Repubblica said the sale of Fiat Industrial could generate enough funds to pursue a merger with US firm Chrysler, which is already managed by Fiat. Fiat Industrial, which was formally split off from Fiat in January, includes truck maker Iveco and agricultural machinery producer CNH. Investors cheered the report, with Fiat Industrial shares gaining 2.01 per cent to 10.13 euros on the Milan stock exchange where the benchmark index was down 0.24 per cent. Fiat shares were also up 0.75 per cent at 7.385 euros.