Samsung Electronics has reduced its stake in semiconductor manufacturing equipment maker ASML by more than 50%, its recent filings showed.
Samsung held 2.75 million shares in the Dutch company as of end-June, the South Korean technology giant said in its semi-annual report, down from 6.3 million shares in its first quarter report.
The stake that Samsung sold is worth around €2.1-billion based on the latest share prices.
Samsung is expected to spend the proceeds on new memory chip production lines, local media reported on Wednesday.
A Samsung Electronics spokesman confirmed the stake sale but did not elaborate. — Ju-min Park and Heekyong Yang, (c) Reuters