Whirlpool to sell Hoover to Techtronic

CHICAGO, Dec 7 (Reuters) Whirlpool Corp. said on Thursday it signed a deal to sell the Hoover vacuum cleaner business to Techtronic Industries Co. Ltd. for $107 million in cash to focus on bigger appliances.

Whirlpool, the world's No. 1 appliance maker, acquired Hoover when it purchased Maytag earlier this year and had considered selling it for months. Whirlpool said it reached a definitive agreement with Techtronic.

Hoover, a nearly 100-year-old brand that has reached iconic status in some countries, struggled in recent years in the face of heated competition and a lack of innovation.

Whirlpool expects to close the deal in the first quarter of 2007 after regulatory clearance. Whirlpool will retain the liabilities associated with pension and post-retirement benefit plans for currently retired Hoover employees.

Whirlpool also said it is working to selling the Jade commercial appliance business by the end of this year. It already sold the Dixie-Narco vending systems and Amana commercial microwave businesses acquired as part of the Maytag purchase.

Whirlpool, based in Benton Harbor, Michigan, bought Maytag for about $1.7 billion in cash and stock in late March, and assumed about $900 million in debt.

REUTERS SBA RAI2014