Toshiba’s prospective buyer mulls reducing £13bn bid after weak earnings

The prospective buyer of Toshiba is reportedly mulling the decision to lower its bid for the Japanese tech giant.

Japan Industrial Partners (JIP) secured 2.2 trillion yen (£13.23bn) for Toshiba from four Japanese banks on Friday.

However, local business newspaper Nikkei reported yesterday that Toshiba’s weaker than expected earnings may knock some value off the offer, to below 2 trillion yen.

In a letter to shareholders on Friday, Toshiba said it was aiming to reach a conclusion with potential partners as soon as possible.

Toshiba is “planning to receive binding and bona-fide proposal(s) and shall be making strong efforts to arrive at a conclusion as early as possible after necessary negotiations,” the letter said.

Buyout giants CVC and KKR were reported to be considering their own bids for the Japanese conglomerate earlier this year.

The Japanese tech giant, which makes tech big and small – from railway systems to semiconductors – had its operating profit plunge nearly 94 per cent in the six months to the end of September, as inflation ramps up the cost of production.

Confidence among Japan’s major manufacturers is steadily falling as consumer and producer price inflation rises, according to the quarterly Tankan survey by the central bank.

The government in October pledged to spend $260bn (£213.8bn) on an economic stimulus package to soften the blow of inflation, the lower value of the yen and high energy costs.

But confidence has been falling since April, despite nearly two years of sentiments improving within the industrial sector.

Toshiba and JIP could not be immediately reached for comment when approached by City A.M.