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UPDATE 1-ChemChina chairman says hopes to re-list Pirelli in Italy

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By Chen Aizhu and Matthew Miller

BEIJING, March 29 (Reuters) - The chairman of China National Chemical Corp (ChemChina) said on Sunday he hopes to re-list Italy's Pirelli on the Italian stock exchange after his firm agreed earlier this month to acquire the world's fifth-largest tyre maker.

Ren Jianxin also warned that a counterbid for Pirelli would hurt the Italian firm's investors and long-term strategy. ChemChina has agreed to become majority owner of Pirelli as part of a multi-layered 7.3 billion euro ($8 billion) deal, putting one of Italy's oldest household names in Chinese hands.

"We were worried that due to cheap liquidity, there might be blind competition," Ren told reporters. "But a counterbid will hurt Pirelli investors and also its long-term strategy."

On Thursday, Pirelli CEO Marco Tronchetti Provera told Reuters his firm is not talking to others about a possible counterbid.

Ren described his partnership with Tronchetti as a "very beautiful marriage" and said the Italian will be CEO for the next five years, and after which, the Italian would select his successor. In Thursday's interview, Tronchetti said he may stand down as CEO before five years if the right successor could be found. He also said Pirelli may be re-listed within four years, though not necessarily in Milan.

The deal, agreed with Pirelli's top shareholders last week, is the latest in a series of takeovers in Italy by cash-rich Chinese buyers taking advantage of a weak euro just as Europe is slowly emerging from economic stagnation.

Ren said he does not want to see the Pirelli brand hurt by ChemChina's investment.

The deal will give ChemChina access to technology to make premium tyres which can be sold at higher margins, and give the Italian firm a boost in China, the world's biggest autos market.

The bid will be launched by a vehicle controlled by the Chinese state-owned group and part-owned by Camfin investors, who include Tronchetti, Italian banks UniCredit and Intesa Sanpaolo, and Russia's Rosneft. (Writing by Sui-Lee Wee; Editing by Michael Perry and Ian Geoghegan)