Toyota Motor Corp the world's largest automaker, said it would buy out the rest of minivehicle unit Daihatsu Motor Co an all-stock deal worth about $3 billion and part of its strategy to strengthen its push into compact cars for emerging markets.
The companies intend to develop Daihatsu into a global brand as they focus on growing markets for compact cars, noting that entry-level car markets were expanding due to economic development and that vehicles were becoming smaller due to environmental and traffic concerns.
Acquiring full control of Daihatsu, of which Toyota currently owns 51.2 percent, will allow it to better leverage the lower-cost brand and enable Daihatsu to more easily adopt next-generation technologies developed by Toyota.