SINGAPORE, 20 JANUARY 2009 - IBM's Chinese subsidiary last week acquired a stake worth US$15.8 million in Chinese television set maker Changhong Electric, according to a company filing at the Shanghai Stock Exchange.
IBM Global Services China, the services and consulting arm of IBM China, acquired a 1.56 percent stake in Sichuan Changhong Electric from its parent company and largest shareholder, Sichuan Changhong Group. Changhong Group transferred 29.76 million shares to IBM on Jan. 16, with the transaction valued at 3.64 yuan (US$0.53) per share, the filing said. Based on that valuation, IBM's stake in Changhong Electric is worth $15.8 million.
At the time of writing, Changhong Electric's shares were trading at 3.67 yuan, down slightly from Monday's close of 3.72 yuan.
Changhong is China's biggest TV maker, and also produces air conditioners and other electronics products, like MP3 players, set-top boxes, and DVD players. The company is also an IBM customer, having adopted the Product Innovation Management model developed by IBM Global Services.
The reason for transferring the shares to IBM China was not immediately clear. An IBM spokeswoman could not be reached for comment.
