Apple considering multi-billion dollar investment in Toshiba chip unit

Apple Inc (AAPL.O) is thinking about collaborating with its provider Foxconn to offer for Toshiba Corp's (6502.T) semiconductor business, public broadcaster NHK said on Friday - the most recent contort in the offer of the world's second-greatest flash memory chipmaker. 

Apple is thinking about contributing no less than a few billion dollars to take a stake of more than 20 percent in an arrangement that would have Toshiba keep up a fractional stake to hold the business under U.S. furthermore, Japanese control, NHK revealed, referring to a unidentified source. 

The proposition is gone for alleviating the Japanese government's worries over any exchange of touchy innovation to financial specialists it esteems a hazard to national security, it said. 

Apple was not prompt accessible to remark. Taiwan's Foxconn, formally known as Hon Hai Precision Industry (2354.TW), declined to remark. 

The report comes as Western Digital Corp (WDC.O), Toshiba's accomplice and one of the bidders of its chip business, cautioned for this present week that the Japanese firm is damaging a joint wander contract in arrangements to pitch to its chip unit, and asked that it be given selective arranging rights. 

 
Toshiba has limited the field of bidders for its chip unit to four suitors, sources have said already. 

They are U.S. chipmaker Broadcom Ltd (AVGO.O), which has joined forces with private value firm Silver Lake Partners LP; South Korean chip creator SK Hynix (000660.KS); Foxconn, the world's biggest contract hardware producer, and Western Digital.