Minth Group Limited Business Report FY ended Dec. 2017
Financial overview
| (in million yuan) | FY ended Dec. 31, 2017 | FY ended Dec. 31, 2016 | Rate of Change (%) | Factors |
| Sales | 11,384.50 | 9,399.99 | 21.11 | -Increased sales of Japanese, German and American OEM in the Chinese market; -Business growth for overseas European customers. |
| Gross profit | 3,849.47 | 3,250.45 | 18.43 | -Promote lean production; -Optimize production allocation; -Conduct technological innovation. |
| Profit before tax | 2,488.30 | 2,118.60 | 17.45 | |
| Profit for the year | 2,092.73 | 1,799.43 | 17.61 |
Company News
-Minth Group Limited will invest USD 400 million to construct new headquarters in the Anji Economic Development Zone. The company signed an agreement on this project with the authorities of the development zone on March 30, 2017. With this establishment, the company will reorganize and move its sales subsidiaries, R&D center, and administration divisions to the development zone as well. It also plans to invest in projects related to mining, trading and agricultural development. (From news releases issued by multiple sources on April 4, 2017)
New Plant
-The Minth Group announced that it will invest USD 13.2 million over the next five years to establish a manufacturing facility in Lewisburg, Tennessee, creating approximately 200 new jobs. The new plant, renovated from an existing 125,000-square-foot facility, will have full manufacturing capabilities and also act as a distribution warehouse for parts manufactured at Minth facilities abroad. Minth has 40 production plants that support automotive markets in 29 countries with structural body, trim and decorative parts. Minth’s customer base represents 80% of the global auto market. (From a press release on June 13, 2017)
-Martin Orozco Sandoval, governor of Aguascalientes, announced that Minth Group, a Chinese auto parts manufacturer, will expand their facilities in the State, with a USD 350 million investment and the creation of over 270 jobs. Additionally, there are ongoing expropriation processes for several plots of land at the Gigante de los Arellano Industrial Park, where the new plant will be set up, and the construction is planned to start in the third trimester this year. The pieces produced here, will be shipped out to the Renault and Daimler plants in Aguascalientes and BMW in San Luis Potosi. (From a Mexico-Now article on April 18, 2017)
Share transfer
-Minth Group Limited announced that Cheerplan (China) Investment Co., Ltd., which is its wholly owned subsidiary, Huai'an Development Holdings Co., Ltd., and Shiyi (China) Co., Ltd. have reached an agreement on a capital expansion plan for Jiangsu Min'an Electric Vehicle Co., Ltd. Jiangsu Min'an Electric Vehicle is a developer and manufacturer of electric vehicles and is indirectly owned by Minth Group Limited. The three companies agreed that Huai'an Development and Shiyi (China) will invest an additional USD 49.7 million each in Jiangsu Min'an Electric Vehicle, which will increase the EV manufacturer’s capital to approximately USD 130 million from the current USD 33 million. After the transaction, Jiangsu Min'an Electric Vehicle will be owned 12.7% by Cheerplan (China) Investment, 50% by Huai'an Development, and 37.3% by Shiyi (China). It will no longer be an indirect subsidiary of the Minth Group. (From an announcement by the company on March 3, 2017）
Awards
-On March 7, 2018, MINTH Group Ltd. announced the company received a 2017 Best Supplier Global Partnership Award from Daimler AG. The Garman automaker also awarded Hubei Tri-ring, Hitachi Automotive Systems, Denso, and other suppliers. (From a press release on March 9, 2018)
R&D activities
-The Group has R & D centers in China, Japan, North America and Germany.
R&D facilities
| Company Name | R&D activities | Location | Shareholding (%) |
| Shanghai Cogen Research and Design Co., Ltd. | Design of automobile exterior and interior decorative parts | Shanghai | 100 |
| Ningbo Minth Automotive Parts Research & Development Co., Ltd. | Design consulting on stamping dies and auto parts | Ningbo Zhejiang |
100 |
R&D Expenditure
| FY ended Dec. 31, 2017 (million RMB) |
FY ended Dec. 31, 2016 (million RMB) |
FY ended Dec. 31, 2015 |
|
| R&D Expenditure | 463.68 | 390.51 | 330.57 |
| Ratio of R&D expenses to | 4.07% | 4.15% | 4.32% |
Technical alliance
| Partner | Agreement |
| Sankei Giken Holdings Co.,Ltd. | To provide technology, technological support, and expertise on certain types of auto-parts to the Group and to grant non-exclusive rights to use the technological expertise to manufacture auto-parts for Guangzhou Honda and Dongfeng Honda (Wuhan ). |
| AAPICO Hitech Public Company Limited | To provide technical services and activities related to the design, manufacture, sale, import, export and after-sales services of automobile components in Thailand. |
| Tokai Kogyo Co., Ltd. | To provide technological support. |