2012.05.08 15:26:09 MARKET TALK: Eurodollar Futures See Higher Libor

SAO PAULO (Dow Jones)--Hyundai Motor Co (HYMLY, 005380.SE) said Tuesday that it will begin commercial production at its new Brazil factory in November. Hyundai is building a factory with annual capacity of 150,000 vehicles in hopes of overtaking Ford Motor Co. (F) as Brazil's fourth-largest car seller. Test production will begin in September, Hyundai's press office said, with commercial production starting in November. The Financial Times reported earlier Tuesday that production at the plant, located in Piracicaba, about 200 kilometers north of Sao Paulo, would start in September. When plant construction began early last year, executives at the company said they expected Hyundai market share to jump to 10% of sales by the end of next year, up from about 3% currently. Brazil last year raised taxes on foreign-made cars as part of an effort to combat a flood of imports. A strong Brazilian real, on top of already high labor and material costs, have eroded the competitiveness of Brazil's auto industry, while growing salaries led consumers to buy more elaborate and powerful cars than the basic models produced en masse in the country. While the tax hike was questioned by companies that planned on building factories here--claiming that the high local-content requirements would be impossible to meet during the first few years of a new factory's operation--the government has made allowances in recent months for new factories. -By Paulo Winterstein, Dow Jones Newswires; 55-11-3544-7073; paulo.winterstein@dowjones.com (END) Dow Jones Newswires May 08, 2012 09:26 ET (13:26 GMT)