Sony financial unit cuts IPO price

The recent market downturn made Sony Corp. slash the value of its financial unit's initial public offering Tuesday.

The sale by Sony Financial Holdings Inc. will be worth up to 348 billion yen (US$3.02 billion; EUR2.18 billion), according to a price range it set Tuesday. That would make it one of the biggest in Japan's history.

But the amount was less than the tentative 361 billion yen (US$3.14 billion; EUR2.26 billion) value the company set for the offering in its initial filing two weeks ago. Some analysts and investors say that the recent downturn in domestic markets will weigh on the offering, set for Oct. 11.

Sony Financial set a price range of 380,000-400,000 yen (US$3,300-US$3,475; EUR2,378-EUR2,504) a share for the sale. Its original tentative price was 415,000 yen (US$3,605; EUR2,598).

The price cut came as the Nikkei 225 Stock Average fell 325.62 points Tuesday, down about 4 percent since the offering was first announced on Sept. 4.

The IPO is expected to be Japan's largest since Aozora Bank Ltd.'s 379.97 billion yen offering last year.