Honda exports Thai-made cars

Honda exports Thai-made cars

BANGKOK (AFP): Japan's Honda Motor Co. Ltd. yesterday shipped
out its first batch of Thai-manufactured cars to Singapore in a
symbolic boost to Thailand's flagging export performance.

Some 120 Honda City cars departed from a port south of Bangkok
as Thailand's industry minister Korn Dabarangsi hailed the
country's emergence as the "automotive manufacturing capital of
Southeast Asia."

The cars were assembled at Honda's four billion baht (US$129
million) factory in Ayutthaya, opened in 1996 and with an annual
production capacity of 60,000 units.

The shipments of the Thai-made autos abroad is seen as a key
to kickstarting the country's economic recovery, as export growth
has slowed dramatically in the past two years.

Korn said the government was committed to keep Thai exports
competitive, which was "not something guaranteed by the new
exchange rate mechanism."