JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs are understood to be running a dual-track sale or flotation of VDO Automotive, the car-equipment unit of German industrial conglomerate Siemens, worth between €8bn ($10.4bn) and €9bn.

Siemens said it would sell a stake in VDO after acquiring private equity-backed UGS, a US software services company, last week. Sources said trade and private equity firms would be likely bidders.