Elpida Memory Inc., facing a deadline to repay ¥93.5 billion in debt by April, may gain financial support for the second time in three years as the government seeks to keep the company alive amid a slump in the chip market.
The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry will probably extend support, now set to expire in March, for Elpida, said Yoshihiro Nakatani, a senior fund manager at Asahi Life Asset Management Co.
"The ministry can't let Elpida go under, as it rescued the company under the banner of a Japanese flagship," Nakatani, who manages ¥95 billion and doesn't hold Elpida shares, said in an interview. "Japanese electronics makers are using Elpida's DRAM, so it would mean trouble."