Foxconn to overhaul Sharp management after planned takeover

[TAIPEI] Taiwan's Foxconn is planning to overhaul Sharp Corp's management including replacing its CEO after a multi-billion-dollar takeover of the Japanese display maker expected to be announced on Wednesday, the Yomiuri newspaper reported.

Foxconn, formally known as Hon Hai Precision Industry Co, is scheduled to select a majority of Sharp board candidates by April 15 but had been expected to leave much of management in place for some time.

Foxconn was not immediately available for comment. A spokesman for Sharp denied that such a decision had been made at this point.

After a month of wrangling over the ailing Japanese electronic maker's potential liabilities, the two firms have scheduled board meetings on Wednesday to finalise a deal in which Foxconn is expected to gain a two-thirds stake at a much lower price than first planned.

Sources have said that the original offer price of 489 billion yen (S$5.89 billion) is likely to be reduced by around 100 billion yen.

The Taiwan Stock Exchange has suspended trading in Foxconn shares due to a major announcement. Shares in Sharp were up 6 per cent on Wednesday morning.

The deal, the largest acquisition by a foreign company in Japan's insular tech industry, would give Foxconn control of Sharp's advanced screen technology and strengthen its pricing power with major client Apple Inc.

REUTERS