Foxconn and Sharp Approve $3.5 Billion Takeover Deal

TOKYO—The boards of Sharp Corp. and Foxconn Technology Group approved a plan Wednesday for the Taiwanese electronics assembler to take over the struggling Japanese consumer electronics company for about 389 billion yen (US$3.5 billion), capping months of negotiations that led to a lower price tag for the deal.

In a statement, Sharp said Foxconn would acquire newly issued common shares at ¥ 88 each, a discount from its previous offer for ¥ 118 a share.

The total amount that Foxconn pays may increase later after it buys preferred shares from Sharp's creditor banks.

The deal is a victory for Foxconn, which has been looking to expand in the market for next-generation displays with an acquisition of Sharp, a supplier of smartphone screens to Apple Inc. Foxconn believes acquiring Sharp would allow it to move up the technology value chain by manufacturing smartphone displays, which are the most expensive components in mobile devices.

Based in Osaka, Sharp offers a wide range of consumer products in Japan, from desktop calculators to flat-screen TVs and refrigerators. It invented many of the world's first tech products during its 103-year history but fell into a deep financial trouble beginning in 2012 due to big investments in display screens and solar panels. Its products remain a preferred choice for Japanese consumers, but Sharp hasn't been able to expand its business globally due to a lack of resources.

Write to Takashi Mochizuki at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 30, 2016 04:55 ET (08:55 GMT)

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