OREANDA-NEWS. Toyota Tsusho Corporation ("Toyota Tsusho") announces it will establish an automotive steel pipe processing company, Toyota Tsusho Steel Pipe de Mexico S.A. de CV ("Toyota Tsusho Steel Pipe de Mexico"), as a joint venture with Toyota Tsusho Mexico, S.A. de. C.V. ("Toyota Tsusho Mexico") and Toyotsu Steel Pipe & Tubular Products Co., Ltd. ("Toyotsu Steel Pipe & Tubular Products"). The new company will be established in July 2015 in Parque Industrial Querétaro, State of Querétaro, Mexico, and business operations are scheduled to begin in October 2015.

Mexico is one of the countries in which Toyota Tsusho is focusing on developing new markets for  its investments. The company has carried out market research with the aim of creating new business in the Mexican automotive field, which is expected to continue growing in the future. In Querétaro, Japanese-affiliated auto parts manufacturers are entering the market and expanding their factories to support increased production of four-wheel vehicles by Japanese automakers as well as the growth of various industries in the region. Japanese automakers are also building plants in the neighboring State of Guanajuato. Amid this activity, the demand for processed automotive steel pipes has surged, and users are increasingly seeking local procurement options.

Since February 2012, Toyota Tsusho has had a stake in the management of MARUICHIMEX S.A. de C.V., a Mexican joint venture that manufactures various steel pipe and tube products and is part of the Maruichi Steel Tube Group (Toyota Tsusho is a 20% owner of MARUICHIMEX S.A. de C.V.). Toyota Tsusho is now partnering with Toyotsu Steel Pipe & Tubular Products, which has pipe processing know-how, and Toyota Tsusho Mexico, an expert in the local market, to establish a new company which can leverage the existing logistics network to expand the value chain and serve the local procurement needs of customers.