The Nikkei business daily said Lenovo planned to take a controlling interest in NEC's PC unit. But a buy-out might be a delicate move as Japan eyes China's growing clout, and sources told Reuters it was not clear what form the partnership might eventually take.

Lenovo, ranked fourth in the global PC market behind Hewlett-Packard, Dell Inc and Taiwan's Acer Inc, is looking to tap NEC's technology for development and expand its share of the Japanese market, the Nikkei said.

NEC, which is the top maker in Japan's mature PC market but does not rank in the top 10 globally, would likely see the tie-up as a chance to take advantage of the fast-growing Chinese market.

The Japanese company, with a market value of $7.6 billion, clocked sales of about 250 billion yen ($3.03 billion) from the PC business last year, accounting for roughly 7 percent of its revenue, the Nikkei said.

"Demand for PCs is weakening with the advent of smartphones and tablets," said Tomomi Yamashita, fund manager at Shinkin Asset Management.

"As they seek a survival strategy, it is positive that they are looking to a growth area like Asia, rather than choosing a domestic partner."

A spokesman for NEC declined comment. Lenovo declined to confirm the report, but said that the company was always looking at ways to expand its market share and talk-ing to potential partners.