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TOKYO/HONG KONG, Dec 8 (Reuters) - Japan Industrial Partners, the preferred bidder to buy out Toshiba Corp (6502.T), has moved closer to securing financing from banks, three people with knowledge of the matter said. JIP's bid has called for Toshiba management to retain their jobs - a proposal which initially made some of the banks cautious about lending, sources have said. The sources all declined to be identified as the talks are private. Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp, the core unit of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc (8316.T), and Mizuho Bank Ltd, the core unit of Mizuho Financial Group Inc (8411.T) declined to comment. ($1 = 137.0500 yen)Reporting by Kane Wu, Makiko Yamazaki and Ritsuko Shimizu; Editing by Edwina GibbsOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Fuji Soft proxy fight the latest test of Japan Inc board independence
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-04 | by ( Makiko Yamazaki | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Three battles in recent months have questioned how independent from management Japan's outside board members really are after nearly a decade of governance reform has sharply increased the number of independent directors. Governance experts say outside directors are only nominally independent if they have close ties to management or fail to give proper oversight. 3D, which owns more than 20% of Fuji Soft, has nominated four additional members for the company's nine-member board at Sunday's extraordinary general meeting (EGM), saying existing outside directors have failed to address years of inefficient capital allocation. The Yokohama-based firm defended its current board, telling Reuters in a statement that the independence of its outside directors "has been ensured with no conflict of interests with shareholders. JSF has a statutory nomination committee, but Strategic Capital said its inaction over the troubled practice shows the committee is dysfunctional.

When you buy through our links, Insider may earn an affiliate commission. Cyber Monday has come to a close, but we're still seeing great discounts on TVs from LG, Sony, Samsung, TCL, Hisense, Vizio, and more. High-end 4K OLEDs, like the LG G2, and premium 4K QLEDs, like the Samsung QN90B, are all marked down to fantastic prices. Below, we've rounded up all of the best Cyber Monday TV deals still available right now, along with discounts on popular streaming boxes and sticks from Roku, Apple, Amazon, and Google. Top Cyber Monday TV deals still available right now

Cyber Monday is here to close out the holiday shopping weekend, and there are still tons of excellent TV deals available. If you're on the hunt for a new TV, you've come to the right place. We're keeping track of all the best Cyber Monday TV deals right here throughout the event, along with discounts on streaming devices and services. If you're looking for the best deals, be sure to check out our Cyber Monday liveblog, where we'll be keeping track of the best ways to save. Top Cyber Monday TV deals right now

Great Price Hisense U8H 4K TV (55-inch) This HiSense 4K TV offers impressive features like Dolby Vision, Alexa-voice control, and variable refresh rate for gaming at an excellent price for a TV that launched in 2022. Great Price Vizio 70-inch MQ6 QLED 4K TV Vizio's latest MQ6 4K TV model uses quantum dots to deliver a wide ranger of colors. Deal LG 65-inch C1 OLED 4K TV LG’s C1 remains an excellent 4K TV. Who has the best TV deals on Cyber Monday? Many stores offer TV deals on Cyber Monday, but Best Buy, Amazon, and Walmart tend to have the best sales.

Black Friday is here, and there are tons of excellent TV deals pouring in from retailers like Best Buy and Amazon. If you're on the hunt for a new TV, you've come to the right place. We're keeping track of all the best Black Friday TV deals right here throughout the event. Be sure to check back often as we'll be updating this page with new discounts as Black Friday and Cyber Monday continue. Top Black Friday TV deals right nowBlack Friday TV sales from major retailers

☆ Here's what you need to know before you shop for a new TV on Black Friday
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-23 | by ( Sofia Pitt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

"TVs you'll find on Black Friday are typically going to be entry-level sets," said Paul Gagnon, vice president and industry advisor for the market research company The NPD Group. People will be able to play Xbox Game Pass games over a cloud connection on 2022 Samsung smart TVs. When it comes to using the preloaded apps on your TV, it's important to know that smart TV stores, where you can download apps for your TV, vary depending on the TV's brand. Samsung TVs will let you access the Samsung Smart TV store, and LG TVs have the LG Content Store. If you're relying on the TV's built-in applications, Gagnon suggested, make sure the smart TV you're buying supports all the streaming apps you frequently use.

☆ With TV prices down 17%, Black Friday shoppers may find ‘excellent deals’
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-23 | by ( Greg Iacurci | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Why TV prices are falling amid broader inflationAverage TV prices fell by almost 17% in October 2022 compared with the same month in 2021, according to the consumer price index. They're an outlier at a time when stubbornly high inflation led prices to climb steeply for a broad basket of consumer products. Manufacturers had cranked up production to historic highs to meet consumer demand — and retailers now have a glut of TVs, Kowalski said. Black Friday and Cyber Monday TV dealsRetailers have long used TV deals to draw in shoppers on Black Friday — the Friday after Thanksgiving and the traditional start to the holiday shopping season. watch nowSome Black Friday deals from retailers such as Best Buy have been jaw-dropping, especially for some well-known brands, said Julie Ramhold, consumer analyst with DealNews.

☆ Japanese chipmaker Rohm considering joining JIP for Toshiba buyout
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Hadeel Al Sayegh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TOKYO, Nov 16 (Reuters) - Japanese chipmaker Rohm Co Ltd (6963.T) said on Wednesday it was considering joining a consortium led by private equity fund Japan Industrial Partners (JIP) to buy out Toshiba Corp (6502.T), as JIP works to consolidate its proposal. The Nikkei newspaper reported that Kyoto-based Rohm planned to invest up to about 300 billion yen ($2.14 billion) in the proposed 2.2 trillion yen acquisition of Toshiba, citing multiple sources it did not name. A Rohm spokesperson confirmed that the company was considering joining the JIP consortium for the buyout but added that nothing had been decided, including the amount of any investment. Rohm and Toshiba are both major manufacturers of power management chips, which efficiently control electric power in cars, electronic devices and industrial equipment. JIP has contacted several Japanese companies to join the bid for Toshiba, including utility Chubu Electric Power Co Inc (9502.T) and financial services group Orix Corp (8591.T), sources familiar with the matter have said.

☆ Japan's Rohm, Suzuki Motor join Toshiba buyout bid - Nikkei
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Hadeel Al Sayegh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

TOKYO, Nov 16 (Reuters) - Japanese chipmaker Rohm Co Ltd (6963.T) and automaker Suzuki Motor Corp (7269.T) have joined a proposal by private equity fund Japan Industrial Partners to take over Toshiba Corp (6502.T), the Nikkei newspaper said on Wednesday. Rohm will invest about 300 billion yen ($2.14 billion) in the buyout proposal, Nikkei said, citing multiple sources it did not name. ($1 = 139.8900 yen)Reporting by Mariko Katsumura and Daniel Leussink; Editing by Christopher CushingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Japan's Toshiba slashes profit outlook after second-quarter slump
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( Makiko Yamazaki | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TOKYO, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Toshiba Corp (6502.T) on Friday cut its full-year operating profit outlook after a 75% slump in second-quarter profit - dismal results that heighten the uncertainty surrounding its prospects for a buyout deal. It cut its profit forecast for the year ending in March by roughly a quarter to 125 billion yen ($885 million). Kioxia Holdings Corp, a memory chip maker some 40% owned by Toshiba, has also said it would cut production by about 30% from in October. For the July-September quarter, Toshiba posted an operating profit of 7.5 billion yen ($53.2 million). That was far short of a Refinitiv consensus estimate of 36.9 billion yen from four analysts.

☆ SoftBank buyout goes from impossible to improbable
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The $74 billion Japanese investor logged earnings of $21 billion in the three months to end September after trimming its stake in Alibaba (9988.HK). It offsets some gloom as technology valuations plummet; writedowns of its punt on crypto exchange FTX will follow. Expectations that these repurchases are a prelude to a buyout have helped lift SoftBank’s shares by one quarter in the past month. But any further sales of Alibaba or other assets would give SoftBank the firepower to keep buying out minorities. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

☆ Toshiba reports 75% plunge in Q2 operating profit, cuts full-year outlook
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

TOKYO, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Japan's Toshiba Corp (6502.T) on Friday reported a 75% slump in second-quarter operating profit and lowered its full-year earnings outlook. It posted an operating profit of 7.54 billion yen ($53.2 million) for the July-September quarter. The result compared with a consensus estimate of 36.9 billion yen from four analysts polled by Refinitiv. Toshiba, which is exploring options for a buyout, cut its profit forecast for the year ending March to 125 billion yen from 170 billion yen. ($1 = 141.6500 yen)Reporting by Makiko Yamazaki; Editing by David Dolan and Edwina GibbsOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

JIP, Chubu Electric and Orix will each invest 100 billion yen, the paper said, without saying where it got the information. A Toshiba representative declined to comment, saying the company could not "answer information about candidates, including co-investors, as it may undermine fair process". Investor focus could now turn to another potential bidder, state-backed fund JIC, which sources have said is also preparing a bid. The fund has been in talks with U.S. private equity fund Bain Capital and north Asia fund MBK Partners to form a separate consortium, sources have said. Differences over JIP's plan to retain Toshiba's management were a source of friction between the two, Reuters has reported.

☆ Japanese consortium submits 2.2 trln yen Toshiba bid, Nikkei reports
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

TOKYO, Nov 7 (Reuters) - A consortium of more than 10 Japanese companies, led by the Japan Industrial Partners investment fund, has submitted a bid to buy Toshiba Corp (6502.T) for about 2.2 trillion yen ($15.01 billion), the Nikkei newspaper reported on Monday. The consortium, including Chubu Electric Power Co Inc (9502.T) and Orix Corp (8591.T), appears not to have obtained commitment letters from banks but is aiming to complete the lending deal by end-November if Toshiba accepts the bid to go private, Nikkei said. Japanese companies in the consortium will spend about 1 trillion yen, while multiple overseas funds decided not to join the bid due to expectations for low returns, the newspaper added. When asked for a comment on the report, a Toshiba representative said the company "cannot answer information about candidates, including co-investors, as it may undermine fair process". ($1 = 146.5400 yen)Reporting by Kantaro Komiya and Makiko Yamazaki; Editing by David Goodman and Bernadette BaumOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Differences over JIP's plan to retain Toshiba CEO Taro Shimada and his team were a source of friction between the two bidders, according to two sources familiar with the talks. Despite being selected as preferred bidder, JIP has struggled to secure enough equity commitments from potential partners, sources have said. It now looks set to miss a Monday deadline to deliver a firm proposal that includes letters of commitment from banks, sources have said. In late October, JIC expanded the size of its buyout fund to 900 billion yen ($6.11 billion) from 200 billion yen. Two of the sources said the expansion was not just for a Toshiba buyout but also aimed at other deals.

☆ State-backed Toshiba suitor boosts buyout fund size to $6 billion-plus
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Takaya Yamaguchi | Makiko Yamazaki | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

FILE PHOTO: The logo of Toshiba Corp is displayed atop of the company's facility building in Kawasaki, Japan, June 24, 2022. REUTERS/Issei KatoTOKYO (Reuters) - Japan Investment Corp (JIC), a potential bidder for Toshiba Corp, has expanded the size of its buyout fund by 4.5 times to 900 billion yen ($6.11 billion), a spokesperson for the state-backed investment firm said on Wednesday. It faces competition from private equity firm Japan Industrial Partners (JIP), which other sources say is having difficulty securing sufficient equity commitments from potential consortium partners. JIC received approval for the fund boost from the industry ministry on Oct 27, the spokesperson said. Japan has seen more large-scale buyouts in recent years, and the expansion is designed to allow JIC’s private equity arm to handle such deals, he said.

☆ Our guide to semiconductor companies and how their chips run our everyday lives
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( Zev Fima | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +17 min

Semiconductor companies are also in the news a lot lately, whether it's the U.S. government cracking down on chip exports to China or innovations in connected cars and artificial intelligence. Since these companies don't need to invest in expensive fabrication facilities, they can run a more agile asset-light business model. Memory : The two main categories of memory chips are NAND and DRAM. Examples include those used for 5G, WiFi, Bluetooth, radiofrequency chips, near field communication chips (NFC), application-specific integrated circuit chips (ASICs), and so on. These chips are made by companies like Qualcomm, Marvell Technology, Broadcom (AVGO), ON Semiconductor, NXP Semiconductor (NXPI), and others.

☆ U.S. alleges Seagate broke export rules to sell Huawei hard drives -source
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Karen Freifeld | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Seagate, a Dublin-based company that also operates in California, said it was cooperating with the Commerce Department and attempting to resolve the matter. The company paused its shipments to Huawei a year ago, the person said. The company hopes to make its case in an upcoming meeting with the Commerce Department, the source said. At issue is a U.S. regulation that governs the way certain foreign-made items destined for Huawei become subject to U.S. export regulations. The hard disk drives are made in China and Thailand and also do not have enough U.S. content to make them subject to U.S. export rules, the person said.

The logo of Toshiba Corp is displayed atop of the company's facility building in Kawasaki, Japan, June 24, 2022. JIP's initial offer was below 6,000 yen per share, the two sources told Reuters, putting the value of a potential tender offer at less than 2.6 trillion yen ($17.5 billion). Investors have considered 6,000 yen to be a key threshold. During a strategic review last year, at least one global private equity firm told Toshiba's review committee that a deal to take the conglomerate private could be done at 6,000 yen a share or more. In Japan, the court-led rehabilitation of auto parts supplier Marelli Holdings Co Ltd - owned by U.S. private equity firm KKR & Co Inc (KKR.N) - has turned banks cautious about terms for financing leveraged buyouts, private equity sources said.

☆ BYD catches investors at distracted driving
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Investors drove the $93 billion company’s shares up around 5% on Tuesday after the company estimated its net profit nearly quadrupled in the quarter ending September compared to the same period last year. Its global market share overtook Tesla (TSLA.O) in the first eight months of the year, according to Bernstein analysts. Tuesday’s recovery suggests at least some investors now believe that was overdone. BYD is driving into new markets overseas and moving its once budget brand up-market. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

☆ Ye becomes Donald Trump’s social media frenemy
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The rapper formerly known as Kanye West is buying social media firm Parler for an undisclosed price. That may be partly because Trump has launched his own app, Truth Social. That gives the former president’s followers even less reason to engage with Parler and Truth Social. If Musk wriggles out of the Twitter deal, Parler will still have to compete for Trump’s attention. That leaves Ye looking like the least promising of the three would-be social media tycoons.

☆ Tricky Monte Paschi cash call comes at high cost
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The fees amount to some 15% of the 857 million euros banks and fund Algebris have agreed to backstop. The fees in Saipem’s (SPMI.MI) 2 billion euro rights issue amounted to less than 5% of the amount banks had agreed to mop up. Monte Paschi says investors have committed 37 million euros and others say they will take up more than 50% of the 900 million euro portion of the rights issue reserved for private investors. That implies the banks may get stuck with some 400 million euros of unsold stock in a worst case scenario. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterFor Monte Paschi, the cost of the rights issue will cut some 15 basis points off its Tier 1 capital ratio target of 14.2% for 2024.

☆ Next Italy PM is bolstering her EU credentials
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MILAN, Oct 14 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Italy’s would-be premier Giorgia Meloni is seeking to score points with investors. The hard-right Brothers of Italy party leader, expected to become prime minister later this month, is looking to appoint pro-European lawmaker Giancarlo Giorgetti, 55, as finance minister. A veteran member of the League, Meloni’s coalition partner, Giorgetti is a moderate, pro-market politician. But the central banker, a top candidate to become Bank of Italy governor next year, turned down Meloni’s approach, people close to him told Reuters Breakingviews. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

TOKYO, Oct 13 (Reuters) - Shares in Toshiba Corp (6502.T) surged on Thursday following a report that a domestic investor-led group was looking at a $19 billion bid in a deal that could lead to foreign activist shareholders being bought out after years of tension. A consortium led by private equity firm Japan Industrial Partners has been given preferred bidder status in the second round of bidding, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterJapan Industrial Partners has contacted multiple Japanese firms, sources have said. Japan Industrial Partners declined to comment. Toshiba and activist shareholders have been at odds over the direction of the company, with several large foreign funds pushing the conglomerate to consider private equity bids.

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