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Panasonic to Buy AI Logistics Firm Blue Yonder for $7.1 bn

A logo of Panasonic Corp is pictured at the CEATEC JAPAN 2017 (Combined Exhibition of Advanced Technologies) at the Makuhari Messe in Chiba, Japan, October 2, 2017. REUTERS/Toru Hanai
A logo of Panasonic Corp is pictured at the CEATEC JAPAN 2017 (Combined Exhibition of Advanced Technologies) at the Makuhari Messe in Chiba, Japan, October 2, 2017. REUTERS/Toru Hanai
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Panasonic to Buy AI Logistics Firm Blue Yonder for $7.1 bn

A logo of Panasonic Corp is pictured at the CEATEC JAPAN 2017 (Combined Exhibition of Advanced Technologies) at the Makuhari Messe in Chiba, Japan, October 2, 2017. REUTERS/Toru Hanai
A logo of Panasonic Corp is pictured at the CEATEC JAPAN 2017 (Combined Exhibition of Advanced Technologies) at the Makuhari Messe in Chiba, Japan, October 2, 2017. REUTERS/Toru Hanai

Panasonic will buy American AI supply chain software firm Blue Yonder for $7.1 billion, the Japanese company said Friday.

The deal will make Blue Yonder a wholly owned subsidiary of the Japanese electronics giant, which has held 20 percent of the US firm's shares since July last year.

Following regulatory approval, the deal will be one of the biggest acquisitions in Panasonic's history.

Blue Yonder has more than 3,000 clients worldwide, including multinationals Walmart and Coca Cola as well as airlines and couriers such as FedEx.

"The need for more intelligent, autonomous and edge-aware supply chains has been dramatically heightened by the Covid-19 pandemic," Panasonic said in a statement, citing "drastic shifts in supply demand" due to virus lockdowns.

The firm said the merger would allow it to gain expertise in "state-of-the-art" artificial intelligence technology, and would work to reduce waste in supply chains.

It also praised the "flexible, agile corporate culture" of Arizona-headquartered Blue Yonder, which was established in 2005.

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Apple Shares Fall as Tariff Costs to Add More Agony

FILE PHOTO: Customers walk past an Apple logo inside of an Apple store at Grand Central Station in New York, US, August 1, 2018. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Customers walk past an Apple logo inside of an Apple store at Grand Central Station in New York, US, August 1, 2018. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson/File Photo
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Apple Shares Fall as Tariff Costs to Add More Agony

FILE PHOTO: Customers walk past an Apple logo inside of an Apple store at Grand Central Station in New York, US, August 1, 2018. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Customers walk past an Apple logo inside of an Apple store at Grand Central Station in New York, US, August 1, 2018. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson/File Photo

Apple shares fell nearly 3% on Friday after the iPhone maker trimmed its share buyback program and CEO Tim Cook warned of additional tariff-related costs of about $900 million this quarter amid a raging Sino-US trade war.
The Cupertino, California-based company that makes over 90% of its products in China said it plans to shift production of iPhones to India to minimize the impact of President Donald Trump's trade war.
"It looks like Apple is progressing faster than expected with its move to shift production of US phones into the region (India)," said Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.
Analysts at Wedbush echoed this view, referring to India as Apple's "life raft supply chain" as the company navigates through tariff turbulence.
Cook outlined how Apple has started to build up a stockpile of products so that the majority of its devices sold in the US this quarter will not come from China.
“Tim Cook did his best to reassure investors on last night’s earnings call, but many likely came away still wanting more clarity about what lies beyond June," Matt said, adding that the $900 million hit to profit turned out to be smaller than many had feared.
Apple, which has been grappling with increased competition in key market China from rivals like Huawei due to slower rollouts of AI features, was already in troubled waters before the tariffs hit.
"The question for investors is what can replace China for Apple? This is not an easy question to answer and could threaten the long-term trajectory of Apple’s growth plan," said Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB.
Despite electronics being exempted from US.President Donald Trump's slew of import tariffs so far, Washington has signaled that some levies could be imposed in the coming weeks.
Big Tech peers Alphabet, Microsoft and Meta Platforms beat quarterly estimates aided by artificial intelligence, while Amazon.com's cloud revenue growth fell short of revenue expectations.
These results were in stark contrast to dour forecasts from consumer electronics companies that are more exposed to tightening consumer budgets - chipmakers Qualcomm, Samsung Electronics, and Intel.
Apple shares lost about 15% so far this year. That compares with a 2.3% fall in Meta, and a nearly 1% rise in Microsoft.
Apple's 12-month forward price-to-earnings ratio is 27.63, compared with Microsoft's 28.64 and Meta's 21.48.