Esat Telecom shares fell sharply in midday trading on the Nasdaq market, with some market players taking the view that an expected solo bid by Telenor may not be finally pitched as agressively as some in the market had first thought.

While the trading in Esat was very light, the shares fell from an overnight level of $78 to $74.75 by midday in New York, less than $4 above the $71 a share on offer from Newtel, the takeover vehicle still owned jointly by Telia and Telenor. The shares closed in New York on $77, a fall of $1??? on the day.

Analysts believe the fall in the Esat share is a kneejerk reaction to the collapse of the Telia/Telenor merger. But it is understood that Telenor plans to proceed with the bid with full ownership of Newtel, once the details are sorted out with the Takeover Panel.