Germany's review of Siltronic sale still underway as deadline nears

BERLIN – The German government’s review of the planned sale of chipmaker Siltronic to Taiwanese rival GlobalWafers, which requires formal approval by the end of the day, is still underway, a German Economy Ministry spokesperson said on Monday.

The spokeperson declined to say more when asked for details at a regular government news conference.

Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action must approve the 4.35 billion euro ($4.86 billion) sale, agreed about a year ago, by Jan. 31. Otherwise the transaction will collapse.

($1 = 0.8954 euros)