TOKYO -- Asahi Glass is purchasing Denmark's CMC Biologics for an estimated 70 billion yen to 80 billion yen ($598 million to $684 million), hoping to tap into pharmaceutical-sector growth fueled by the rising middle classes in emerging markets.
The Tokyo-based company is a major global supplier of automotive glass but faces growing competition from such emerging economies as China. Glass production techniques are already well-established, making significant growth in the business unlikely. Asahi Glass is instead bolstering operations in the more promising field of life science.