LG. philips LCD. Co. confirmed in a regulatory filing on Tuesday that it has not been notified of a possible sale of a stake held by its Dutch partner in the world's second-largest flat panel manufacturer.
The confirmation comes after the nation's stock market operator asked LG.Philips LCD earlier in the day to clarify rumors that Royal Philips Electronics NV is seeking to sell its stake in the South Korea-based company.
Royal Philips Electronics of the Netherlands owns 32.9 percent of LG.Philips LCD, with LG Electronics Inc. of South Korea having a 37.9 percent stake in the company that was set up as a 50-50 joint venture in 1999.
An LG Electronics spokesman declined to comment on the issue, saying that it is not in a position to talk about the stake sale of another company.
The rumors came after Royal Philips announced last week that it has an "intent" to sell its stakes in such flat panel makers as TSMC of Taiwan and LG.Philips, as part of its business realignment plans.
Under the partnership deal, the Dutch company is required to have stakes of 30 percent or more in LG.Philips LCD until July 2007.
Analysts said an end to the partnership could deal a blow to LG Electronics' LCD business, which has already been struggling with a sharp decline in panel prices due to a global oversupply.
In the second quarter, LG.Philips LCD reported a record loss of 322 billion won (US$334.1 million), compared to a profit of 41 billion won a year earlier.
LG Electronics, however, said an exit by the Dutch company would not have a significant impact on its business as the bilateral business ties will remain intact even after a stake sale.
Seoul, Aug. 8 (Yonhap News)
LG.Philips denies being notified of exit plan by Dutch partner |
