Stuttgart - Daimler of Germany confirmed Tuesday its desire to sell the one-fifth of US automaker Chrysler which it still owns after their unhappy marriage.

"We continue to be interested in selling the 19.9 per cent," said a spokeswoman in Stuttgart, the same day as Chrysler and Fiat announced a preliminary agreement to merge.

The German carmaker's talks with private-equity investor Cerberus on a sale of the stake ground to a stop last autumn, when Cerberus demanded compensation from the Germans in connection with the earlier sale of the majority of Chrysler shares.

Daimler chief executive Dieter Zetsche said in Detroit last week that his Stuttgart-based company was willing to talk again to Cerberus. The spokewosman said Tuesday the companies had never broken off contact with one another.

She declined comment on Fiat's negotiations to take a stake in Chrysler, but said the German company welcomed any move with the potential to stabilize Chrysler's position and save jobs there.

Daimler controlled Chrysler for over a decade, but sold out when the US maker's losses started to mount again. Cerberus claims it was misled about the true extent of Chrysler's problems before the sale. (dpa)