The daily business briefing: March 30, 2016

1. Foxconn agrees to buy Sharp for $3.5 billion

Foxconn Technology Group and Sharp Corp. agreed Wednesday to a plan for Foxconn to take over the Japanese consumer electronics maker for $3.5 billion. The deal came after months of negotiations, and marks a big victory for Foxconn. The Taiwanese electronics assembler has been pursuing Sharp for months, and cut its original offer from $5.5 billion. Foxconn assembles iPhones at factories in mainland China, and acquiring Sharp, which makes iPhone screens, will give Foxconn a bigger role in Apple's supply chain.

The New York Times The Wall Street Journal

2. Yellen's caution on interest rate hikes lifts stocks

Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said Tuesday that the central bank still appears on course for two small interest rate hikes this year, as the U.S. economy continues to show progress despite global economic weakness. Yellen did not give any indication about the timing of the future increases. The Fed was projecting four hikes this year in December, when it raised rates from near zero for the first time in years. Yellen's remarks gave U.S. stocks a boost Tuesday, and helped fuel a global rally Wednesday.

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3. Apple could use New York case to ask how FBI hacked iPhone

The roles have reversed in Apple's showdown with the FBI. Magistrate Judge Sheri Pym on Tuesday rescinded her order compelling Apple to help the FBI unlock an iPhone used by one of the San Bernardino shooters, a day after the Justice Department said it had accessed the phone's data without Apple's help. Prosecutors plan to say within two weeks whether it still needs Apple's help accessing an iPhone in a Brooklyn drug case, according to a court filing Tuesday. Apple could use that case to push for the FBI to reveal how it accessed the iPhone in the San Bernardino case.

Reuters

4. Virgin America shares rise on reports of takeover bids

Shares of Virgin America have surged by 11 percent this week following reports that JetBlue and Alaska Airlines were considering making takeover bids for the airline. An acquisition would be the latest evidence of consolidation in the industry. A deal joining Virgin America, owned by celebrity entrepreneur Richard Branson, and a mid-sized airline likely would not invite the intense scrutiny from regulators that the recently completed merger of American Airlines and US Airways did.

Los Angeles Times

5. CBO says Obama budget would reduce deficits, but not as much as administration says

Congressional budget forecasters said Tuesday that President Obama's proposed budget would result in $6.9 trillion in deficits over the next decade if enacted. That would be about $2.4 trillion less than the deficits that could be expected under current tax and spending laws, the Congressional Budget Office said. The CBO's deficit figure is $776 billion higher than the administration's, largely due to the CBO's lower projections for economic growth.

Reuters