AP – Intel announced that it was selling the majority of its Altera chip business to technology investor Silver Lake in a deal valued at USD8.75 billion. Silver Lake will own 51 per cent of Altera, which Intel acquired in 2015 for USD16.7 billion in an effort to expand its business into chip markets focused on wireless, automobiles and other products. At the time, it was the biggest deal in Intel Corp’s history. Intel spun Altera off into an independent company earlier this year. Silver Lake’s acquisition of Altera is expected to close in the second half of this year. “Today’s announcement reflects our commitment to sharpening our focus, lowering our expense structure and strengthening our balance sheet,” said Intel Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Lip-Bu Tan. “We look forward to partnering with Silver Lake upon closing of the transaction, as their industry expertise will help to accelerate Altera’s efforts and unlock additional economic value for Intel.” Tan joined Intel as CEO just one month ago. Intel also announced that Raghib Hussain will succeed Sandra Rivera as CEO of Altera, effective in early May. Intel shares were up 3.2 per cent just after the opening bell on Monday. The broader technology sector was boosted on Monday after United States (US) President Donald Trump announced on Friday said he was exempting smartphones, computers and some other electronics from some of his stiff tariffs. Trump then spent on Sunday downplaying the significance of exemptions that reduce but won’t eliminate the effect of US tariffs on imports of popular consumer devices and their key components.