Treasury prices sale of AIG shares at $32.50

[September 11, 2012]  WASHINGTON (AP) -- The U.S. government is selling a big chunk of its shares in bailed-out insurer American International Group Inc. for $32.50 apiece.

The Treasury Department announced the pricing of the sale of almost 554 million AIG shares on Monday. It said the sale should net the government about $18 billion.

The sale reduces the government's stake in AIG to under 22 percent from about 53 percent.

That puts the U.S. government's holdings in the insurer below a majority stake for the first time since the $182 billion bailout in 2008.

AIG, which is based in New York, nearly collapsed in 2008 after suffering massive losses during the financial meltdown.

Its bailout was the biggest of the Wall Street rescue packages.

[Associated Press]

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