US auto-parts maker eyes Russia

By Hugo Miller  |   2008-12-20  |     NEWSPAPER EDITION

  EMAIL STORY

  PRINTABLE VIEW

  BLOG STORY

  COPY HEADLINE AND URL

  SHARE

MAGNA International Inc, North America's largest auto parts maker, plans to build a plant in Russia to produce metal body components for Hyundai Motor Co and affiliate Kia Motors Corp by early 2011.

Construction of the St Petersburg stamping plant will start next year under a memorandum of understanding signed on Thursday, Daniel Witzani, a spokesman for the Aurora, Ontario-based company's European business, told Bloomberg News yesterday. Magna is adding factories and engineering centers in eastern Europe and Asia as sales slump in North America.

The supplier got 49 percent of its revenue through three quarters of this year from North America, down from 56 percent in all of 2005. The company says it has confidence in the Russian market.

Expand to view all explore Business (33)