NEW YORK, Nov 25 (Reuters) - Japan's largest tiremaker, Bridgestone Corp. , will spend about 17 billion yen ($139 million) to build its third factory in Thailand, aiming to secure a top spot in the global tire industry, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun said.
The new factory, with targeted annual sales at 20 billion yen, would be the company's first industrial tire plant since it built its plant in the United States in 1990, the paper said.
The firm, which is neck-and-neck with French rival Michelin in the global tire market, plans to start producing an annual 90,000 industrial tires at the plant in Chonburi, Thailand, from Sept. 2004, the paper said.
Its move to place Thailand as Asia's largest industrial tire production base outside Japan is aimed at meeting growing global demand for those tires, especially in Asia, where highways are constantly under construction, the paper's online Tuesday edition said.
The company is also considering boosting output in Thailand at its existing facilities in Rangsit and Nong Khae, where it makes tires for passenger-cars, it said.
The global market for radial tires for trucks and buses is estimated at about 60 million units a year, with an annual increase of around 5 percent, the Nihon Keizai said.
The company was not available for immediate comment.