World Business Quick Take

■ Automobiles
Toyota doubles China shops
Toyota Motor Corp, the world's No. 3 automaker by unit sales, agreed with China FAW Group Corp to set up an equally owned venture by the end of the year, aiming to double the number of sales outlets in China, the Nikkei English News reported. Toyota reached a broad agreement to establish the venture that will sell cars made by the two companies across China, making Toyota the first foreign automaker to build a nationwide sales network, Nikkei said, citing unidentified officials familiar with the matter. The venture is part of Toyota's plans to acquire a 10 percent share of China's growing vehicle market by 2010, the newswire reported. Toyota, which produces cars in China in ventures with local partners, aims to double its annual production capacity to more than 200,000 vehicles, the report said. Last October, Toyota started producing the Vios compact sedan through Tianjin Toyota Motor Co, a venture with China FAW.

■ Tourism
HK numbers back to normal
Passenger at the Hong Kong International Airport recovered last month to more than 95 percent of the level before the SARS outbreak earlier in the year, the Airport Authority (AA) said yesterday. Almost 2.62 million passengers traveled through the airport last month, the AA said. SARS gripped Hong Kong from March to June 23, when it was removed from the WHO blacklist of SARS-affected regions. Last month's figure was 4.8 percent down from a year earlier, the AA said. It was also a fall of 13 percent on the August numbers due to the end of the summer holiday, it said. Cargo throughput for the month stood at 235,000 tonnes, up 7.90 percent year-on-year driven by a growth in exports to Hong Kong's major markets of Europe, Taiwan, China and Australia.

■ Electronics
NEC forges alliance
NEC Corp, Japan's biggest maker of telecommunication equipment, has joined forces with Electronic Data Systems Corp, Engineous Software Inc and Japan Research Institute Ltd to boost computer sales to manufacturers, Nikkei English News reported. NEC plans to sell a package of computers and software developed by the two US companies and Japan Research that, for example, will help manufacturers cut the time required for developing new products, Nikkei said, citing people it said were familiar with the matter. It didn't name those people. Japan Research is a unit of Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. The package will include software that allows different departments of a manufacturer to share information about parts and product designs through a computer, the report said.

■ Trade
S Korea, Japan discuss FTA
South Korea and Japan will discuss launching negotiations for a free-trade agreement when their leaders meet next week, a senior South Korean government official said yesterday. President Roh Moo-hyun, who will attend the APEC summit in Bangkok, Thailand, next week, will discuss establishing a free-trade accord with Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, said Kwon Okyu, a senior presidential secretary for policy planning. Kwon said a joint statement is being prepared to launch government-level negotiations for the trade accord this year. "If the talks start taking place this year, we can aim to conclude the agreement by 2005," he said.