Sharp Corp. said Tuesday trade frictions between the United States and China could provide an "opportunity" to expand its business with Chinese companies, in contrast to many other manufacturers who have voiced concerns.
Sharp CEO and Chairman Tai Jeng-wu said in a news conference the U.S.-China trade dispute would have only a "small" impact on its operations. While 68 percent of its products are manufactured in China, only 3.8 percent of them, including personal computers and printers, are produced for the U.S. market, he said.
The company plans to shift production of its computers, produced by its subsidiary Dynabook Inc., from China to Vietnam and Taiwan, Tai said, after the United States unveiled a plan in mid-May to slap tariffs of up to 25 percent on $300 billion worth of Chinese products, including laptop computers.
As some of Sharp's corporate clients may be affected by the U.S. tariffs, the company expects a 1.2 percent fall in group sales for the current business year through next March, according to the chief executive, who was sent from the Taiwanese parent Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. in 2016 to revive the struggling Japanese display manufacturer. read the rest here