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Thailand Auto Industry Brakes Sharply
This article initially appeared in the February 2020 issue of PowerTALK News.
THAILAND–Vehicles produced in Thailand are exported to the world, including Asia, Oceania, the Middle East and Europe. However, the automobile industry is in trouble because of the double punch of the global economy slowing down due to the US-China trade friction and the spread of the new coronavirus.

Akihito Komuro Exports, which account for half of Thailand's automobile production, where Japanese and other automakers such…
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Isuzu Agrees To Buy Volvo’s UD Trucks Unit
PSR Analysis: Isuzu has agreed to form a business alliance with Sweden’s Volvo in the Truck field and to acquire Volvo’s UD Trucks subsidiary. The amount of the acquisition depends on the negotiations, but Isuzu sees UD Trucks as a business size of 250 billion yen.
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2019 Tokyo Motor Show

The Tokyo Motor Show was a major event that attracted 2 million people from the 1980s to the 1990s, but in recent years the number of visitors has decreased and the last exhibition in 2017 drew only 770,000 attendees.
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FAR EAST: SOUTH KOREA REPORT
Increased Uncertainty Causes Export-Investment Slump To Continue
In the August edition of the Economic Trend Report (Green Book), the Korean Ministry of Planning and Finance defined the recent Korean economy this way: “production has increased moderately but exports and investments continue to be sluggish”.
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SOUTHEAST ASIA: THAILAND, INDONESIA REPORT
Thailand May Become New Car Sales Leader in 2019
New car sales from January to June in six major countries in Southeast Asia were 1.7 million, unchanged from the same period of the previous year.
Thailand and Indonesia are the two major markets. Thailand, where consumption is strong, increased by 7% year-on-year, while Indonesia, which faces a decline in resource prices, decreased by 13%. Thailand could be ranked first this year for the first time in six years.
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FAR EAST: JAPAN REPORT
Mitsubishi Manufactures Wind Turbines
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries has begun manufacturing the basic structure of wind turbines at the Nagasaki Shipyard, where excess capacity exists. This is because MHI’s specialty LNG carriers are monopolized by Korean manufacturers and MHI is not receiving orders. Now, they take on non-shipbuilding jobs and help maintain the employment of the shipyard. Their Nagasaki Shipyard started manufacturing the basic structure that supports large wind turbines. Since the shipyard has a space for handling large parts of the ship, it can also be used to manufacture wind turbines.