American auto giant Ford Motor Company plans to set up its second China production base in Nanjing, capital of eastern Jiangsu Province, Cheng Meiwei, chairman and CEO of Ford Motor China Ltd. said Tuesday.

Cheng told an international manufacturing forum, which opened Tuesday the company has signed an agreement on the construction of the base with the Jiangning economic development zone in Nanjing, but he did not disclose any details the plan.

Cheng said the construction of the second auto production base is an important step of Ford's plan to realize a "large-scale business" in the Yangtze River Delta area, which is regarded as an engine of the China economy.

Ford has listed China as one of its principal parts providers, second only to the United States, as it plans to purchase more than 1 billion US$s worth of auto parts in China in 2004, he said.

Ford set up its first production base in Chongqing, southwest China, in April 2001 and it has five joint ventures in China.
 
(Xinhua News Agency April 7, 2004)