By Naoko Fujimura and Reiji Soga
Nov. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Mazda Motor Corp., Japan's fifth- largest automaker by output, is looking to expand its global production capacity to help reduce the impact of currency fluctuations and deliver products faster to customers.
``We've been studying various possibilities globally to expand our production capacity for the future,'' Ken Haruki, a spokesman at Mazda, said today in response to a newspaper report. ``No details have been decided.''
The company plans to build new factories in Thailand in a joint effort with its top shareholder Ford Motor Co., the Nihon Keizai newspaper earlier today reported, without saying where it obtained the information.
Mazda, based in southwestern Japan's Hiroshima, is trying to reduce the impact of currency fluctuations as it exported 75 percent of its domestic production in the six months ended Sept. 30. Chief Executive Officer Hisakazu Imaki said in May the company may decide as early this year to add a U.S. plant or use a factory of partner Ford Motor.
The company expects a third year of record earnings as it increases sales with Mazda3 small cars and CX-7 crossover vehicles in the U.S. and MX-5 sports cars in Europe.
Mazda and Ford may invest more than 50 billion yen ($430 million) in the new Thai factory, which is scheduled to open in 2009, Nikkei reported. They may also build a plant to make transmissions, which will increase the total investment to about 100 billion yen, the newspaper said.
Mazda may also build its own factory in Mexico or other locations in North America, the report said. The automaker is also considering using a plant that Ford plans to shut as part of its restructuring, it said.
