Kia Motors on Tuesday said it was considering building a plant in the United States, Reuters reported.
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South Korea’s second-biggest car maker reportedly did not give a possible site or timetable in a filing to the stock exchange but the comment came after Mississippi governor Haley Barbour visited the firm to lobby it to build a plant in his state.
Reuters noted that Kia is an affiliate of Hyundai Motor Co., which opened its first US plant in Alabama in May.
Analysts reportedly see the plant as a litmus test for the company’s success in overseas markets.
Reuters said Hyundai Motor Group plans to strength Kia after handing control of the company to a son of its group chairman – Kia controls 23% of the home market.
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By GlobalDataBarbour reportedly met Hyundai Motor Group chairman Chung Mong-koo in Seoul on Monday.
“Governor Barbour offered incentives equivalent to those given for Hyundai Motor’s Alabama plant if Kia builds a plant in Mississippi,” Hyundai said in a separate statement cited by the news agency.
Chung reportedly said the group would seek further globalisation of production for Hyundai Motor and Kia, according to Hyundai.
