Korean airline conglomerate Kumho Asiana Group is cementing its foothold in Vietnam. Kumho Engineering and Construction, the group's building arm, is to invest US$260 million (US$1=W959) to convert a market in Ho Chi Minh City into a residential and commercial complex, Kumho Asiana Plaza. It will consist of a 21-story hotel, offices and a 32-story apartment with 260 homes. Construction will be completed in October 2009.

Kumho Tires is to invest $150 million in a tire factory in the My Phuoc industrial complex in Binhduong there. The plant will be completed in the first half of 2008 and capable of producing 3.15 million units a year.

The first is Kumho Engineering and Construction’s first overseas project in 23 years, while the Vietnam plant will be Kumho Tire’s fourth factory abroad. The plaza “will be a symbol of Korea’s advance into Vietnam,” Kumho Asiana chairman Park Sam-koo said. “Kumho Tire’s factory in the country will offer us an opportunity to evolve into a global tire maker.”

(englishnews@chosun.com )