PUTRAJAYA, Malaysia: Malaysia's state-controlled car maker Proton Holdings Bhd. needs new management — possibly even a foreign one — to prevent it from sliding further into losses, former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said Monday.
Mahathir, currently an adviser to the company that he championed during his 22-year rule, warned that Proton "will go downhill" if it remains under its present management.
"They need to have a change in management, that is obvious. Foreign or local, it doesn't matter — whoever the government thinks is the best," Mahathir told reporters.
Mahathir's comments signaled a shift from his previous opposition toward allowing foreign companies to own a key stake in Proton, which is losing money and market share amid mounting competition from local and foreign automakers.
In recent months, the Malaysian government has also stopped opposing the idea of selling a stake in Proton to a foreign automaker.
Khazanah Nasional, the state investment company that controls Proton, is in talks with Volkswagen AG, Europe's No. 1 automaker, while several Malaysian industry players have also lobbied to buy into Proton.
Proton's losses are expected to widen after the company reported a 250.3 million ringgit (US$71.5 million; €55.0 million) loss in the three months ended September 2006 because of lower car sales and rising expenses.
The government hired Syed Zainal Abidin Mohamed Tahir as Proton's chief executive in December 2005 to turn around the company, five months after firing long-serving Tengku Mahaleel Arif, a Mahathir appointee.
Source:
International Herard Tribune 8 Jan 2007
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/01/08/business/AS-FIN-COM-Malaysia-Proton.php
No comments:
Post a Comment