Toyota, Siam sign deal

Toyota, Siam sign deal

BANGKOK (AP): Group companies led by Japan's Toyota Motor
Corp. and Siam Cement, Thailand's largest industrial
conglomerate, signed an agreement Wednesday governing three
joint-venture automobile parts makers in Thailand.

The ventures produce parts for leading Asian automotive and
component manufacturers and for producers of motorcycles,
agricultural machinery and air-conditioning compressors.

Siam Cement is spinning off non-core operations and increasing
the role of strategic partners in key sectors to streamline
operations and reduce debt.

Siam Cement said in a statement that under a group
restructuring, it has sold off portions of its stakes in the
three firms to make the Toyota group a majority holder with up to
60 percent in each.

The firms are Siam AT Industry Co. Ltd., The Nawaloha Industry
Co. Ltd., and Thai Engineering Products Co. Ltd.