Hyundai Kia Automotive Group to invest 9 tln won this year

SEOUL, March 1 (Yonhap) -- Hyundai Kia Automotive Group, South Korea's top
automaking conglomerate, said Sunday it will invest a total of 9 trillion won
(US$5.9 billion) in facility expansion and research and development this year.
This year's investment is similar to that of last year and reflects its
commitment to helping overcome the current economic crisis, said the group which
owns the nation's top two automakers, Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Motors Corp.
Of the total, 3 trillion won will be earmarked for the development of
fuel-efficient and environmentally-friendly vehicles, and other research
activity, the group said.
Through the investment, the group aims to put hybrid cars on the domestic market
and increase hybrid car output to 30,000 units next year.
The remaining 6 trillion won will be invested in new plants and equipment, with 2
trillion won of that money to be injected into completing an integrated steel
mill, it said.
Hyundai Steel Co., the group's steel arm and South Korea's second-largest steel
maker, plans to put the integrated steel factory into operation in April next
year. Currently, construction is 58 percent complete.
The group said its investment will likely help create jobs and that it will make
greater efforts to support its struggling parts suppliers which have been hit by
car factory shutdowns.
Top automaker Hyundai Motor Co. said Thursday it again idled some of its
production lines to cope with a rising inventory of unsold vehicles amid sinking
demand at home and abroad.
In January, Hyundai saw its vehicle sales tumble 26.7 percent on-year to 179,044
units, buffeted by the global economic slump.
(END)