Who needs private equity when you have Asian trade buyers? Acer, the Taiwanese PC maker, is set to become the latest north Asian manufacturer to snap up a sluggish but better-known rival following Monday’s $710m bid for Gateway of the US.

The deal carries hallmarks of earlier acquisitions such as Chinese rival Lenovo’s successful 2004 purchase of IBM’s PC business or BenQ’s takeover of Siemens’ mobile handset business. As with Lenovo, Acer appears to have paid up handsomely in order to secure a brand and market share. Acer’s offer represents a near-60 per cent premium to Gateway’s undisturbed share price. In an industry where scale is crucial, the deal returns the Taiwanese group to the number three slot, ahead of its Chinese rival. Added muscle – the combined company would ship more than 20m PCs a year, giving a market share of 8.8 per cent, according to research consultancy Gartner – means cheaper component parts.