STMicroelectronics may partner Asian firm

FRANKFURT: STMicroelectronics, Europe's No.2 semiconductor group, will not rule out partnering a rival Asian company to grow its market share in the region, Handelsblatt said in an article to be published on Thursday.

"A partnership with an Asian firm would make sense," Carlo Bozotti, who took over as president and chief executive in March, told the German newspaper.

Bozotti also said the Franco-Italian company wanted to grow its market share in Japan from currently four percent. Japan's share in the world chip market was about 20 percent.

"We want to attack Japan," he said, adding that the company would develop more products aimed at the Japanese market.