Sharp, Hon Hai Seen Signing Deal Next Week

Tokyo, March 3 (Jiji Press)--Ailing Japanese electronics maker Sharp Corp. <6753> and Taiwan's Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. are seen signing a deal next week, possibly Monday, on Hon Hai's acquisition of Sharp, informed sources told Jiji Press on Thursday. Hon Hai is expected to shortly finish its screening of Sharp's recently-disclosed list of contingent liabilities, which are said to total 350 billion yen, the sources said. Terry Gou, chairman of Hon Hai, known as Foxconn Technology Group, on Thursday entered Japan again. The two companies are believed to have began the final round of the acquisition talks. Hon Hai is coming to believe that most of Sharp's contingent liabilities are unlikely to materialize, with the likely future maximum losses estimated at some 30 billion yen, the sources said Eager to buy the Japanese maker, Hon Hai has said in a statement that the negotiations will hopefully reach a happy end. On Feb. 25, Sharp's board decided at an extraordinary meeting to seek a turnaround under the umbrella of Hon Hai. But on the day before, Sharp submitted the 100-item list of contingent liabilities to Hon Hai. Due to the development, the Taiwanese firm put off the conclusion of the bailout deal with Sharp that was initially planned for Friday last week. Later, Sharp President Kozo Takahashi and the Hon Hai chairman had a meeting in China and agreed to put back the deadline for the negotiations by one to two weeks from the end of February. END