51.5 F
Laguna Hills
Thursday, Mar 28, 2024
-Advertisement-

Kia U.S. Plant On Schedule

South Korea-based Kia Motors Corp.’s first U.S. plant in Georgia is proceeding on schedule and will open as planned late next year.

The company still plans to finish construction on the plant in November 2009 and start producing cars a month later.

Kia said in 2006 it would build a $1.2 billion plant employing 2,500 workers in western Georgia.

The plant is expected to produce 300,000 vehicles per year at maximum capacity.

South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported that Kia might delay the start of manufacturing at the factory due to rising inventories resulting from the slowing global economy.

The automaker’s North American division based out of Irvine sold 15,182 vehicles last month, down 37% from a year earlier. It’s a worsening slump for Kia, which saw October sales fall by 38%.

A bright spot for the automaker’s November sales was the Sorento, posting a 47% increase over the same period last year.

Kia joins parent company South Korea-based Hyundai Motor Corp. in curtailing production as concerns of job losses and a lack of credit deter consumers from showrooms.

The automaker has been adjusting output in China and Slovakia plants since late October, but gave no details about the output cuts.

In addition to output cuts, the company has been taking steps to pare production by cutting some overtime and weekend shifts in December.

Want more from the best local business newspaper in the country?

Sign-up for our FREE Daily eNews update to get the latest Orange County news delivered right to your inbox!

-Advertisement-

Featured Articles

-Advertisement-
-Advertisement-
-Advertisement-
-Advertisement-

Related Articles

-Advertisement-
-Advertisement-