Showa Denko, a Japanese chemical engineering firm, agreed to acquire a 51% stake in Hitachi Chemical, the chemical unit of Hitachi, a Japanese multinational conglomerate company headquartered in Chiyoda, for $6bn. Showa Denko beat rival bids from Nitto Denko, and US buyout funds Bain Capital and Carlyle Group. The purchase would be Showa Denko’s largest on record and would boost the company’s revenue from lithium-ion automotive batteries and related materials — segments that are growing fast as carmakers race to make more electric-powered vehicles. Hitachi has been shedding non-core businesses to re-focus on manufacturing equipment and data services that benefit from internet-of-things technologies.