Sony to sell Olympus General stake to 5%

Xinhua Beijing, April 2, according to the Wall Street Journal Chinese web 1st reported that Sony said in Wednesday, will sell its stake in Olympus half. By the end of the deal, Sony will no longer be Olympus's biggest shareholder, and will be the second-largest shareholder of Olympus, from 10% per cent to 5%.

Sony said it had agreed to sell 17.2 million shares of its camera and medical equipment producer Olympus to JPMorgan Nomura Japan Co by April 6. The company said it would record a one-time sale of about 46.8 billion yen (390 million dollars) in the first quarter of the fiscal year, which began in Wednesday.

Sony also said it would announce the value of the deal in Thursday. The company said it decided to sell its stake to bolster its financial base and focus its investment on the growth of its business. Foreign media said that this is the Japanese electronics giant, in order to rationalize the business financing of the latest measures.

Although Sony is no longer the biggest shareholder in Olympus after the deal is completed, Sony says it will continue to work with Olympus through joint venture Sony Olympus Jude FX. (Beijing, the IT channel)