Lots of news swirling around the industry. Sharp seems to be the latest company that’s on the block. Rumors had swirled for ages that Foxconn wanted Sharp for their glass manufacturing (Foxconn manufactures the iPhone among other products).
While Sharp had rebuffed Foxconn in previous attempts, it seems Sharp is now ready to consider the offer, apparently signing an agreement giving the Taiwanese company “favored position” in negotiating a final offer. The offer from Foxconn (Hon Hai) is valid until Feb. 29.
What does this mean for the copier group? Nothing for now. At the very least, Sharp (and the copier group) would become part of a financially stable mega company. As the office equipment group is one of the most profitable within the firm, I’d guess Hon Hai would let them continue with their operations unscathed. After all, why rock the boat?
Long-term is another story. We can only guess at whether Hon Hai might search for a buyer for the copier group or possibly keep it as a recognizable brand for the Taiwanese company. Either way, the pending acquisition is a major step forward for the struggling company and should significantly stabilize the chaos that has plagued the LCD group over the last several years.
The following appears on forbes.com
By Stephen Harner – It appears that I was wrong (would “dead wrong” be more accurate?) in my last post. Its title was: “Why Sharp Is Being Rescued By Japan Inc. And Taiwan’s Hon Hai (Foxconn) Rebuffed.”
On Friday February 5, Hon Hai Precision Machinery (Foxconn)’s chairman Terry Kuo spent over eight hours in meetings with Sharp Corporation’s president, Kozo Takahashi at Sharp’s Osaka headquarters, during which Kuo pitched his JPY 700 billion (USD 5.8 billion) rescue-acquisition and restructuring plan for Sharp.
Emerging from the meetings, Kuo announced to the press that he and Sharp (NASDAQ:SHCAY) had signed an agreement giving Hon Hai (OTCMKTS:HNHPF) “favored” position in negotiating a final acquisition agreement. Kuo indicated that his offer would be available to Sharp only until February 29, which had been agreed with Sharp as the deadline for reaching final agreement. He added that agreement had already been reached on 90% of matters, suggesting that remaining issues will be easily resolved.
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