Hyundai Motor Group plans to up the funds it provides to its subcontractors, giving out about 600 billion won ($530 million) this year.
About 320 billion won will support suppliers’ research and development activities and the rest will be allocated as loans with low interest rates, the group said in a statement on Sunday.
The automotive group said it is showing its commitment to co-prosperity, as its 11 business units, including Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors and Hyundai Mobis, have signed a pact with 2,560 suppliers on “shared growth for 2012.”
“The amount will represent a 50 percent increase from 412.7 billion won in funding to its autoparts suppliers,” a group spokesman said.
Also, the number of employees at the subcontractors who will enjoy the group’s vocational education programs will reach 101,000 in 2012 from 52,000 a year earlier, he said.
Aside from first-tier suppliers, Hyundai plans to expand the program to its second-tier and third-tier subcontractors so that they can chalk up stable growth over the long term.
Two years ago, Hyundai said that it would push for “mutual growth” with suppliers and added that it would push ahead with a string of steps aimed at strengthening the subcontractors’ competitiveness, most of which are small- and medium-sized enterprises.
An executive of R&D department of Hyundai-Kia said the group’s R&D sector has been competitive at a global level, buoyed by multi-dimensional cooperation with and support from our subcontractors.
He said the group is considering expanding the suppliers’ participation in the development of new technologies and is in the early stages of creating new models, such as planning and designing.
Hyundai Motor affiliates have complied with fair trading standards in choosing and managing its subcontractors since it signed a relevant agreement in 2008.
Meanwhile, Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors will hold a series of job fairs to hire jobseekers for subcontractors, including auto parts manufacturers, between April 25 and May 10.
