Ayala adds Kia to automotive stablehome/Business/Top Business/Ayala adds Kia to automotive stableAyala Corp. has added Kia to its stable of automotive brands, on Wednesday announcing that a subsidiary had signed a distributorship deal with the South Korean carmaker. In a disclosure, Ayala said an agreement had been inked by unit AC Industrial Holdings, Inc. and Kia Motors Corp. to “re-establish” the brand, which was formerly under Columbian Autocar Corp.Ayala, which earlier this year was reported to be buying a majority stake in Columbian, said a joint venture would be established with the Jose “Pepito” Alvarez-owned firm. “A comprehensive transition is currently ongoing in line with a targeted relaunch under AC Industrials by January 2019,” it said. Kia will become the sixth brand to be handled by AC Industrials unit AC Automotive — the exclusive distributor of Volkswagen and KTM in the Philippines and also operates Honda and Isuzu dealerships — that just last September forged a partnership with China’s SAIC to bring in the Maxus commercial vehicle brand starting next year. Ayala ended Wednesday down 1.08 % or P10.50 to P960 apiece, tracking a 0.95 percent drop for the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index.

Source: Manila Times December 05, 2018 16:30 UTC