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Kyodo Industry Brief (Jan. 9) -2-(Japan Economic Newswire Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) TOKYO, Jan. 9 -- (Kyodo) _ ---------- Rakuten Travel offers package tours to Guam aboard chartered flights TOKYO - Rakuten Travel Inc. said it started to offer package tours to Guam using chartered flights operated by United Airlines. The online travel agent started selling the tours for the Golden Week holiday through early May at a special price of 99,200 yen for a four-day trip. ---------- Panasonic forms business alliance with GM, IBM LAS VEGAS - Panasonic Corp. said the company has concluded business alliances with General Motors Co. and IBM Corp. as part of its efforts to turn itself around by focusing on services for major global enterprises. The Osaka-based electronics maker will jointly develop an information system for automobiles together with GM and cooperate with IBM in home electric appliances using cloud computing. ---------- Fast Retailing eyes zero discharge of hazardous chemicals by 2020 TOKYO - Fast Retailing Co. said it will eliminate discharges of hazardous chemicals from the lifecycle and production processes of all of its products by 2020. The operator of casual clothing chain Uniqlo announced the commitment based on an agreement with environmental group Greenpeace, which has been urging apparel makers to eliminate such discharges. ---------- New Hitachi film slit processing base in China to begin operating soon TOKYO - Hitachi Chemical Co. said its new slit-processing base for photosensitive dry films for printed wiring boards in the central Chinese city of Chongqing will begin operating later this month. Although Hitachi has provided slit services from its business bases in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, and Dongguan, Guangdong Province, it set up Hitachi Chemical (Chongqing) Co. last July as wiring-board makers have been moving their factories inland from China's coastal areas as the country's semiconductor industry grows. ---------- Ito-Yokado, Aeon launch vegetable sales amid rising prices TOKYO - Supermarket operator Ito-Yokado Co. launched an "emergency" three-day sale of vegetables amid rising prices of farm produce due to cold weather. Rival supermarket chain Aeon Co. is also vying with the key unit of Seven & I Holdings Co. through its two-day discount campaign from the same day. ---------- Suzuki Motor's new car sales in India gains 6.6% in 2012 TOKYO - Suzuki Motor Corp. said its new car sales in India grew 6.6 percent from a year earlier in 2012, due to robust demand for newly introduced models. Maruti Suzuki India Ltd., the automaker's Indian unit, sold a total of around 1.06 million units last year, having recovered quickly from the impact of worker violence at its Manesar factory in July. (NOTE: Corporate press releases are available on Japan Portal, a multilingual website powered by Kyodo News providing information about a wide range of topics and events in Japan. URL: http://www.japanportal.jp/industry/) (c) 2013 Kyodo News International, Inc. |