A logo of Sharp Corp. is pictured at CEATEC JAPAN 2012 electronics show in Chiba, east of Tokyo, Oct. 2, 2012.YURIKO NAKAO/Reuters
Embattled Japanese electronics firm Sharp Corp. is considering making a public share offering worth more than ¥100-billion ($1.15-billion U.S.) early this year, a report said Tuesday.
The public offering could take place in the spring with the firm hoping to use the funds to strengthen its mainstay liquid crystal display (LCD) business and improve its creditworthiness, the Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper said.
Sharp has started talks with major creditor banks and wants to include the capital increase scheme in a mid-term business plan to be announced as early as February, the mass-circulation daily said without naming its sources.
The cash-strapped company said in December it had struck a ¥9.9-billion capital injection deal with U.S.-based chipmaker Qualcomm Inc. as it moves to repair its tattered balance sheet.
The Qualcomm deal will see the pair jointly develop energy-efficient LCD panels for smartphones using the Japanese firm's technology, with the U.S. company initially getting about 2.64 per cent of Sharp's stock.
Japan's battered electronics sector has suffered from a myriad of problems including a high yen, slowing demand in key export markets, fierce overseas competition and strategic mistakes that left its finances in ruins.
Sharp has suffered a series of credit rating downgrades and warned it expects to lose about $5.6-billion in the fiscal year to March, 2013.
The Osaka-based maker of Aquos-brand electronics has announced thousands of job losses while cutting wages for employees – from the factory floor to the boardroom – and selling real estate to shore up its balance sheet.
Sharp said last year it had reached a capital injection deal worth about $800-million with Taiwan's Hon Hai Precision, which makes Apple Inc. gadgets in China, but the deal stalled as Sharp's share price nosedived.