Shares in the German semiconductor equipment maker fell more than 5% on Friday following a report by Bloomberg, citing sources, that said Obama was poised to block the deal. An Aixtron spokesman said it had not received a ruling, but that the deal would be called off if Obama formally blocked it. Loss-making Aixtron has said it would have to cut jobs and scale down if the transaction fails. Aixtron had 713 employees at the end of the third quarter, 5% less than a year ago. Analysts consider Aixtron has a bleak future as a stand-alone company as it struggles with market overcapacity.

Source: The Edge Markets December 02, 2016 13:49 UTC