AXA Asia Pacific gained more sheen for takeover bids as the company reported yesterday that its first quarter sales for 2010 bumped up to 92 percent or an actual currency value of $146, with its strong sales surge pushed forward by the upbeat Asian markets.

AXA has informed the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) that much of the growth were spurred by encouraging business index advancements in South East Asia, China and India, as total sales growth in the whole of its Asian operations peaked to a new business index of $289 million or an increase of 57 percent from the first quarter of 2009.

The company also said that its total wealth management inflows, such as its Alliance Bernstein, went up 41 percent to $2.2 billion while its total Australian individual financial protection new business gained 12 percent hike to $23 million.

AXA said that its total wealth management inflows in Australia reached $1.5 billion. That includes some $124 million sales from North management platform, noteworthy as the reason cited by ACCC for turning down National Australian Bank's (NAB) takeover proposal of AXA.

Last week, ACCC released its decision favouring AMP over NAB, which has a similar investment platform in Navigator, while NAB reiterated its stand yesterday that it is bent on its pursuit of AXA and pointed out that the company is even prepared to divest some of its assets and businesses to fund the merge bid.

As the market closed yesterday, NAB shares gained 2.6 percent or 75 cents and showing signs that investors were happy to be unburdened of funding the AXA takeover, while AXA shares tumbled to $6.13 per share as its investors came to grip the prospect of an AMP takeover, which ironically has tossed a lower proposal for an AXA takeover.

On the other hand, AMP investors seemed wary about raising big cash to fund the merger negotiations with AXA, sending its shares falling to $6.29 and in spite of latest pronouncements from AXA that its Australian investment influx grew by 2 percent in March and it currently commands a total group fund of $80.7 billion.

Both the takeover proposal of NAB and AMP are poised to snatch AXA's Australia and New Zealand operations while the remaining Asian assets will continue operating under its French parent company, AXA SA.