SAIC heads to UK for factory project

SAIC Motor Corp, China's biggest auto maker, plans to re-open a Longbridge car plant in Britain in the second half of the year, resuming production at a factory that closed three years ago when MG Rover collapsed.

The factory will initially make MG-TF roadsters, Bloomberg News reported. It may add other models later, Vice Chairman Chen Hong said yesterday in an interview at an event to mark the opening of a Beijing research center. SAIC Motor, Great Wall Motor Co and other Chinese car makers plan to open factories overseas as fierce domestic competition crimps profit margins.