Daimler Chrysler Motor Corporation will become a major
shareholder in the Beijing-based Beiqi Foton Motor Company through
a share-purchase contract worth 818 million yuan (US$105
million).
Under the contract, Daimler Chrysler will buy 297 million shares
in Foton, a 24-percent holding, at 2.75 yuan per share, said a
statement from Foton, a leading minivan manufacturer, on
Tuesday.
The two sides also signed an alliance agreement to cooperate in
heavy-duty truck manufacturing.
Daimler Chrysler is speeding up its expansion in China. It has
just joined Taiwan China Motor Corporation and Fujian Motor Group
in setting up a joint venture in southeast China's Fujian
Province.
The new company, Daimler Chrysler Light-Duty Motor Company,
involves a total investment of 200 million euros with Fujian Motor
Corporation holding 50 percent of the shares, Daimler Chrysler
Motor AG 33.78 percent and Taiwan China Motor Corporation 16.22
percent. It will have an annual production capacity of 40,000
medium-sized and light-duty vehicles.
Daimler Chrysler also reached an agreement in principle with
Chery, a carmaker based in the eastern Anhui Province, allowing
Chery to produce vehicles under Chrysler Group brands.
(Xinhua News Agency January 17, 2007)