Honda: China vehicle plants restart production today

Shanghai, June 4 (Gasgoo.com) Honda Motor, Japan's second largest automaker, said its vehicle assembly plants in China resumed full operations today, more than a week after production was suspended by a strike at its auto parts factory in southern China, media reported.

"Operations have resumed today", Zhu Linjie, a Beijing-based Honda spokesman, told AFP, referring to Honda's Chinese assembly plants, mainly operated by its two Chinese joint ventures: Guangqi Honda (in southern Guangdong province) and Dongfeng Honda (in central Hubei province).

The walkout starting on May 17 at Honda Auto Parts Manufacturing Co in the city of Foshan brought Honda's vehicle production in China to a halt last week as the assembly lines of its local auto plants ran out of main auto parts. The Foshan plant makes auto transmissions and engines.

The auto parts plant resumed full operations on June 2 after Honda offered a 24% pay raise, or 366-yuan ($54), to the factory's workers to persuade them to stop the strike. The carmaker said most employees had accepted this offer.

The joint ventures between Honda and its Chinese partners (Guangzhou Auto and Dongfeng Motor) have a combined annual production capacity of 650,000 vehicles, including the Accord sedan and Civic compact.