SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korea's Ssangyong Motor Co Ltd (KS:003620) on Friday said it is reconsidering establishing a joint venture in China due to diplomatic tension between Seoul and Beijing over the deployment of a U.S. missile defense system.
Ssangyong last year signed a letter of intent to build cars in China with Shaanxi Automobile Group Co Ltd [SHAANN.UL], headquarters in Xian.
But the Chinese automaker has not pushed for the project since Seoul's decision to deploy the system met with anti-Korean protests in China, Ssangyong said. The system is intended to deter any attack from North Korea, but Beijing objects to the potential reach of the system's radar into Chinese territory.
"We are considering outsourcing and other ways to make cars in China," a Ssangyong spokesman told Reuters.