India's Apollo Tyres to buy Ohio-based Cooper Tire

[OhioChick]

June 13, 2013 at 2:37 AM

Toledo -- A tire maker whose main market is in India is buying Ohio's Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. for $2.2 billion and making a commitment to maintain the company's three U.S. manufacturing plants and retain its management operation in Ohio, Cooper's chief executive said Wednesday.

India's Apollo Tyres Ltd. said the combined company will be the world's seventh-largest tire maker and have a strong foothold across four continents.

Their tire brands include Apollo, Cooper, Roadmaster and Vredestein.

The deal gives Apollo access to markets in the United States and China while Cooper gets a premium price per share and some assurances that its domestic operations won't be gutted.

More: http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2013/06/indias_apollo_tyres_to_buy_ohi.html#incart_more_business

[atreides1]

1. How good is that commitment?

"Apollo has made a "pretty strong commitment" not to shut down plants in Findlay in northwest Ohio; Tupelo, Miss.; and Texarkana, Ark., Armes said.

It also plans to honor the terms of labor contracts currently in place and generally maintain pay and benefit levels for nonunion employees."

If it isn't on paper it isn't a commitment...

Any bets on how long it'll take before 13,000 American workers are no longer employed?

[OhioChick]

3. That's exactly what struck me as odd n/t

[datasuspect]

2. so they're going to export their slave labor force to the US?