steep decline in touring and road bike sales. This allowed manufacturers such as Specialized, Giant, and Trek to make inroads into Fuji's share of U.S. bicycle sales, often using frames produced at lower cost in Taiwan. With the continued rise of the yen, Fuji fell on hard times in the early 1990s. One of the last Japanese bike companies to shift production to Taiwan after the fall of the dollar, Fuji bicycles cost more in the United States than most competing brands, causing a drop in sales. Fuji bicycles produced in Taiwan were not as well regarded by U.S. buyers as the Japanese-built bicycles. The company eventually designed new models, taking advantage of modern improvements in materials and construction techniques, but this proved insufficient. Toshoku America filed for bankruptcy in 1997, and in 1998, Nichibei Fuji Cycle Company Ltd., Fuji America's parent company, also declared bankruptcy. Following bankruptcy, bicycle distribution in the United States was taken over by Advanced Sports. In 1998, Jadeland Pacific, an investment group in Taiwan, acquired 100% of Advanced Sports, which had purchased the assets of Fuji America as well as the worldwide distribution rights to the Fuji bicycle brand. In 2004, Ideal Bike Corporation, Taiwan's third-largest complete-bicycle maker, acquired 17% of Advanced Sports International Asia, which markets the Fuji brand of bicycles in Asia. Fuji bicycles are now built in Taichung, Taiwan; Dong Guan, Guangdong Province, China; and in Kutno, Poland by Ideal Bike Corporation. In the United States, the Fuji brand is owned and distributed by Advanced Sports International (ASI), a privately held corporation located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In November 2018 ASE (the parent company of ASI and Performance Bicycle) declared bankruptcy, leaving the fate of US distribution of Fuji bicycles uncertain. It was reported on January 17, 2019 that HEAD was buying the assets of ASE (the parent company of Fuji) out of bankruptcy. On January 22, 2019 it was reported that Head Sports backed out of the deal to buy ASE. On February 1, 2019 it was reported that the Tiger Group won the auction for ASE. Sponsored teams and riders Currently Fuji sponsors the UCI Continental Circuits Caja Rural-Seguros Cycling Team. Previously, until the end of 2014, Fuji sponsored and equipped the UCI Continental Circuits NetApp Endura, which rode the Fuji Altamira Road Bike and Fuji D-6 1.0 Time Trial bike. Riders of NetApp Endura also worked with the Fuji design