Japan's Sharp shares soar on report of S$3.5b offer from Hon Hai

The logo of Sharp Corp is seen at Tochigi plant in Yaita, north of Tokyo, on Nov 19, 2015. PHOTO: REUTERS

TOKYO (REUTERS) - Shares of Japan's Sharp Corp jumped as much as 8.2 per cent on Monday (Dec 28) after Kyodo News reported Taiwan's Hon Hai Precision Industry Co, also known as Foxconn, proposed buying the struggling display maker for around 300 billion yen (S$3.5 billion) on condition that it top management be revamped.

Kyodo cited unnamed sources in its report, published late on Friday.

While the news remains unconfirmed by either company, the 300 billion yen sum would represent around a 50 per cent premium to Sharp's current market value and Hon Hai may even shoulder Sharp's massive debt load, which stood at 760 billion yen as of September, CNBC reported said.

It added that investors have long been anticipating such a tie-up, with Hon Hai chairman Terry Gou repeatedly expressing his desire to invest in the firm.

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