Toyota plans air bag plants in Vietnam

Toyota plans air bag plants in Vietnam

HANOI: Japanese automaker Toyota Motor Corp. will invest more
than US$38.2 million in two factories in Vietnam to make air bags
for domestic and export use, the company said on Monday.

The two plants will be built in the northeastern port city of
Haiphong and are due to be operational in October next year.

Toyota Motor Vietnam, which is the largest foreign-invested
automaker in the communist nation, said $38.2 million would be
invested in the smaller of the two factories, which would have
317 employees by the end of 2009.

It declined to say how much it was investing in the second
plant but said it would have 1,200 employees in 2007.

The company said in a statement that the new investments
reaffirm its "long-term business commitment to further
contributing to the development of Vietnam's economy in general
and the automobile industry in particular". -- AFP