Page and Brin will remain directors, but will cede their CEO and president titles, respectively, immediately, Alphabet said.

US carriers are not inclined to cede market share to Chinese airlines either.

Stern action will be taken against those found guilty of withholding the mandatory information and they may be forced to cede their shares in the company or face curbs on their shareholder rights, Guo wrote in an opinion piece published in the Economic Daily on Friday.

Althusmann said he will not sell down the state's capital stake should the CDU win the vote, but he wants to cede one of two seats to a non-political expert and hire a specialist at the chancellery in Hanover to handle matters related to VW.