UPDATED: Foxconn and...

An agreement to sell Japanese electronics manufacturer Sharp to Taiwans Foxconn for $5.8 billion ( 5.3bn) is currently on hold. The deal would be the first foreign takeover of a major Japanese electronics company.

According to CNBC, the takeover over is currently on hold, with Sharp CEO Kozo Takahashi and Foxconn chief exec Terry Gou reportedly meeting on Friday to discuss the deal. On Friday shares in Sharp dropped by 15 per cent, with undisclosed liabilities thought to be delaying the deal.

Foxconn has stated it would not sign the deal until it had clarified some new material information from Sharp.

Both Foxconn and Sharp declined to comment on the issue.

Foxconn assembles the majority of the worlds iPhones for Apple, while Sharp is one of Japans oldest technology firms.

There were rumours that Samsung was to lodge a rival bid, but Sharp has confirmed the only other offer came from Japanese investment fund Innovation Network Corp.

Sharp has suffered bouts of financial instability over the past few years, but it supplies a range of components for other technology providers, so remains an attractive proposition to Hon Hai (Foxconns parent company).

Media reports have suggested Foxconns offer will see Sharp remain intact, as it would have been broken up under the offer from Innovation Network Corp.

Foxconn and Sharp have actually been working together for a number of years on display technology.

Hon Hai and Sharp complement each other, said Yukihiko Nakata, a technology professor at Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University and a former Sharp engineer told The Guardian website.

Sharp is strong in research and development while Hon Hai knows how to market products to customers such as Apple and it also has expertise in production ... Together they can go global.

LINK:	http://www.inavateonthenet.net/news/article/foxconn-to-buy-sharp...
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