Daimler-Benz expands

SINGAPORE: Daimler-Benz in Germany plans to invest nearly US$3.4 billion over the next three to five years to expand operations in Asia.

According to Associated Press, sales of cars and trucks in the region presently account for 10 percent of the German-industrial giant's total revenue.

The company plans to use Singapore -- where Mercedes cars have a 14 percent market share -- as its base for expansion into China, India and Southeast Asia.

It hopes to double or triple sales in Southeast Asia over the next 10 years, a region which presently only accounts for 3 percent of the company's total.