GM Korea to increase vehicle production amid US tariff-related exit concerns

Seoul, April 16 (IANS) GM Korea, the South Korean unit of General Motors, plans to increase production at its Incheon plant by about 9 per cent this year, the company's labour union said on Wednesday, easing concerns over a potential withdrawal amid growing uncertainty over the United States' tariff policies.

According to the union, the company recently said it would allocate an additional 21,000 vehicles to the plant in Bupyeong, Incheon, west of Seoul, for production this year.

The increase amounts to nearly 9 per cent of the plant's annual production capacity of 250,000 units, reports Yonhap news agency.

The move comes as speculation has grown about a possible exit of GM from South Korea in response to Washington's 25 per cent tariff on imported vehicles.

GM Korea ships about 85 per cent of its exports to America.

According to the union, the added production volume signals that GM intends to maintain the South Korean base as a key export hub.

"The decision to boost production will likely ease some of the anxiety among our members," a union official said.

The union plans to hold a meeting with management to reflect the updated production plan in next month's work schedules.

A separate labour-management meeting is also scheduled for later this month to discuss countermeasures against U.S. tariff policies and strategies for stable operations.

Meanwhile, South Korea's import prices fell for the second consecutive month in March due mainly to a drop in global oil prices, central bank data showed on Wednesday.

The import price index shed 0.4 percent from a month earlier in March, following a 1.0 percent on-month decline the previous month, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK).

Import prices of raw materials went down 3.3 percent on-month in March, while those of intermediate goods rose 0.7 percent.

The decline came as the average price of Dubai crude, South Korea's benchmark, fell 7 percent from a month earlier to an average of $72.49 per barrel in March, government data showed.

--IANS

na/