Hino plans Thai truck plant

Hino plans Thai truck plant

TOKYO (Dow Jones): Hino Motors Ltd., hoping to boost its sales
in Southeast Asia, may start making its own small trucks in
Thailand, instead of simply assembling those of Toyota Motor
Corp., Hino said Monday.

Last month, Toyota lifted its equity stake in Hino to 50.1
percent from 36.6 percent, providing the struggling truckmaker
with Y66.39 billion to beef up its two-ton truck business and
offshore operations. Hino is now Toyota's fully fledged truck-
making arm.

The two companies are discussing the possibility of switching
production from Toyota's recently remodeled "Dyna," currently
assembled by Hino Motors (Thailand), to Hino's own-brand two- to
three-ton truck, modeled on the Hino "Dutro" sold in Japan, a
Hino spokesman said.

Talks center around not only the assembly, but also the
production of small truck components, some of which will be made
at Hino's Thai plant and others procured from local suppliers, he
said. At present, the Thai plant only uses parts imported from
Japan for Dyna assembly.