South Korea’s Hankook Tire is to build a new plant in China according to media reports.

“Expansion of production capacity is a must to increase our share in the fast-growing market,” Hankook Tire China Headquarters head Heo Ki-yeol,” was quoted as saying by South Korean press.

“To meet the growing demand here, we started to equip one of our existing factories with additional facilities, and are now considering building a new one.”

The South Korean tyremaker has held the biggest share in the Chinese market since 2003, note the reports.

As China’s automobile market has undergone rapid growth, current output is thought insufficient to cope with demand, leading to an expansion in production.

Hankook is also believed to be mulling Indonesia and India as possible areas for plants.

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The South Korean sources add that should the new plant be built, it will bring total production in the country to around 44m units per year, with the aim of upping sales to some US$1.2bn in 2010.

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