Japan’s Toshiba Corp has sold its medical devices unit to camera and office equipment maker Canon Inc for about US$6 billion, it said yesterday, as it sheds businesses to recover from an accounting scandal.
The deal came as Toshiba’s share price plunged about 8 percent after a report it was under investigation by US authorities over allegations it hid losses in its nuclear business.
News of the Canon deal comes as Toshiba expects a loss of about US$6 billion for the year to this month due to sagging global demand and a profit-padding scandal, in which high-handed bosses for years systematically pushed their subordinates to cover-up weak financial figures.
PHOTO: AP
In the wake of the scandal, Toshiba — a vast conglomerate that makes everything from rice cookers to nuclear plants — has ushered in thousands of job cuts and plans to sell various business units in a bid to revive its fortunes.
Under the deal Toshiba sold all its shares in Toshiba Medical Systems, a major producer of medical imaging tools such as magnetic resonance imaging and computerized tomogprahy scans, to Canon for ￥665.5 billion (US$5.9 billion).
Separately, Toshiba said it had reached a basic accord to sell a majority interest in its home appliance business to China's Midea Group Co (美的集團), though a Toshiba spokeswoman said a price for the deal had yet to be announced.
She said the two sides were scheduled to reach a final accord by the end of this month.
Sales in Toshiba's home appliance business came to 225.4 billion yen for the fiscal year to March last year, the most recent annual figure available.
In December last year, Japan's Securities and Exchange Surveillance Commission said Toshiba should be slapped with a record 7.37 billion yen fine over the profit-padding scheme that hammered the reputation of one of Japan's best-known firms.
Many Japanese high-tech companies are rushing to enter the medical field, as a greying population boosts demand for healthcare services and tools.
Sony Corp launched a medical joint venture with endoscope maker Olympus Corp, which also went through a massive loss-hiding scandal and required a strong partner to rebuild itself.
Shares in Toshiba plunged 7.96 percent to ￥191.8 after a report said it is being probed by US authorities over allegations it hid US$1.3 billion in losses at its nuclear power operations.
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