Sony plans Thai expansion

Sony plans Thai expansion

TOKYO (DPA): Sony Corporation said on Thursday the company plans to invest about 2.5 billion yen (US$20 million) to its semiconductor chip plant in Thailand to boost annual output by 20 per cent to 47 million units in 2001.

A spokesman at Sony said the company will increase production capacity by adding new machines at its Pathum Thani plant, which is run by its subsidiary Sony Semiconductor Thailand Co.

The plant produced 39 million units of chips in 2000. Those chips were used for mobile phones and digital devices, the official said.

The plan comes amid increasing moves by Japanese electronics makers to shift their microchip production to countries such as Thailand and Taiwan with cheaper labor expenses in order to reduce production costs amid intensifying global competition.

The Thai plan supplies microchips primarily to the Japanese parent and its other Thai subsidiaries, the Sony official said.