Apple supplier Japan Display to seek funding, shares surge

Tokyo

APPLE supplier Japan Display Inc said on Monday that it aims to raise as much as US$990 million in new financing as early as this week, sending shares of the struggling manufacturer sharply higher.

Japan Display, one of the world's top vendors of liquid crystal display (LCD) panels used in iPhones, has been battered by a slowdown in iPhone sales and a proliferation of new models that use newer, organic light-emitting displays (OLED).

Japan Display said it is aiming for a total capital increase of 110 billion yen (S$1.3 billion). As much as 80 billion yen of that would be through issuance of stocks and bonds to external investors, an agreement it aimed to reach this week, it said.

The remainder of the financing would come through preferred shares to refinance existing debt held by its largest shareholder, the state-backed INCJ Ltd, Japan Display said.

Japan Display flagged its fifth straight year of net losses in February.

Shares of Japan Display rose as much as 16 per cent in early trade on Monday and ended 10 per cent higher. REUTERS