Unigroup to invest $47b for No 3 slot

Tsinghua Unigroup Ltd plans to invest 300 billion yuan ($47 billion) over the next five years in a bid to become the world's third-biggest chipmaker, Zhao Weiguo, chairman of the Chinese technology conglomerate, said on Monday.

Zhao said the company, controlled by Beijing-based Tsinghua University, was in talks with a United States company involved in the chip industry. A deal could be reached as early as the end of this month, he said.

However, buying a majority stake in the US firm was unlikely as it was too "sensitive" for the US government, Zhao said without disclosing any further details.