Suzuki Motor Corp has purchased an additional 0.8% of Maruti Suzuki India Ltd., increasing its holding in the company to 55%. Maruti Suzuki is India’s largest automaker, accounting for half the country’s new passenger vehicle sales.

The Indian venture now sells more vehicles than Suzuki sells worldwide on its own. It also accounts for nearly 80% of Suzuki’s profits. Last month, Maruti Suzuki sold 96,700 cars, up 22% from February 2009.

Analysts suggest the increase signals an even bigger presence for Suzuki in India in the future. Under the country’s laws, companies can accumulate up to 5% of another firm per year until a 55% stake is achieved. At that time, additional purchases must be accompanied by an open offer of another 20%.

Malaysia’s Proton Holdings Bhd says it plans to begin selling an extended-range plug-in hybrid hatchback in Europe by late 2012. A conventionally powered version of the vehicle will follow later.

Proton showed three versions of the upcoming Emas city car last week at the Geneva auto show, including three- and five-door variants. Design house Italdesign Giugiaro worked with Proton on all the models.

Proton plans to build 150,000 Emas cars annually in Malaysia. The company hasn’t said how many of these are earmarked for Europe.

General Motors Co.’s GM Daewoo Auto & Technology Corp. unit is considering pulling the plug on its Daewoo brand, Bloomberg News reports. Currently, the venture uses the Daewoo nameplate only in South Korea.

China’s BYD Co. and Daimler AG have signed a memorandum of understanding to co-develop and market an all-electric vehicle under a new yet-to-be-named brand in China. The plan also calls for opening a new technology center in China to develop, design and test vehicles.

BYD, which has been supplying lithium-ion batteries for cell phones since its formation in 1995, will provide battery and electric-drive technology. Daimler will contribute its EV architecture expertise. No other details have been announced.

Both companies have been working separately on their own hybrids and EVs. BYD introduced its F3DM hybrid-electric vehicle in China in late 2008 and plans to launch the all-electric e6 this year in various global countries, including the U.S. The company has produced 450,000 cars, most of them conventionally powered, since its inception.

Daimler recently launched an electric version of its Smart city car, and it will add an EV variant of the Mercedes-Benz A-Class this year. The German automaker also owns a stake in California’s Tesla Motors Inc., which will supply lithium-ion batteries for the electric Smart car. Last year Daimler founded Deutsche Accumotive GmbH, a joint venture with Evonik Industries AG, to develop and produce automotive-grade lithium-ion battery systems.

Japanese parts supplier Tokai Rika Co.’s Asian expansion is underway again, reports The Nikkei. The company, which is affiliated with Toyota Motor Corp., put many previously announced expansion plans for the region on hold during the recent global economic downturn.

In India, a new plant near Bangalore is set to open in November. Tokai Rika will make seatbelts, key locks and immobilizers at the facility for the locally built Toyota Etios small car. Annual sales for the parts plant are estimated at about $25 million.

The company also has resumed plans for a plant in China’s Guangdong Province and now intends to open the facility in about a year. The facility is expected to make a variety of switches and other components. The Nikkei says work on the facility was temporarily suspended due to a relative slowdown of Toyota’s expansion in the country.

Tokai Rika also has purchased land for a plant in Thailand. The facility will support the new small car Toyota plans to build in a new assembly plant in the country.

Martin Apfel has been appointed executive director for General Motors Co.’s GM southeast Asia Operations. He also now heads the company’s business in Thailand.

The German-born Apfel replaces Steve Carlisle in both positions and will report to Tim Lee, president of GM International Operations. Carlisle becomes vice president, U.S. sales operations as part of GM’s latest restructuring in the U.S., which now is separating sales and marketing responsibilities for its various divisions.

Apfel began his GM career with the automaker’s Adam Opel unit in Europe, where he held several high-level jobs. Most recently he served as GM’s executive director of global manufacturing and planning.

China is expected to begin offering subsidies of between $7,300 and $8,800 to buyers of all-electric vehicle in coming months. The plan will be rolled out in Beijing and other test cities, according to a report in the Beijing Youth Daily.

The newspaper, which cites Miao Wei, vice-minister of Industry and Information Technology and deputy to the National People’s Congress, says the subsidies will come from a combination of local and national government programs. Details are expected to be announced later this month.

Yulon Motor Co., Taiwan’s largest vehicle maker, says its new range of Luxgen cars will include an onboard computer system that combines a Windows CE Automotive Interface with the latest “smart” technology from phone maker HTC smart technology.

The automaker says the system, dubbed “Think +,” highlights Taiwan’s strength in information technology with its growing auto industry. The standard system manages in-vehicle infotainment systems, GP navigation, telecommunications, safety alerts and other car-specific features. Options will include several forward, rearward, side and panoramic cameras, night vision and lane departure warning.

Founded in 1949, Yulon is involved in textiles, real estate, financial services and publishing in addition to autos and information technology. It launched its automotive operation in 1953 and has since produced some 2 million vehicles for Chrysler, General Motors, Mercedes-Benz, Mitsubishi and Nissan in Taiwan, mainland China and the Philippines.

In addition to the domestic market, Yulong hopes to sell its own Luxgen-brand models in a variety of emerging markets, including China, southeast Asia, Russia, Central America and the Middle East. The company says it has signed letters of intent with a number of dealers in some markets.

Several Japanese companies are shifting their investment strategies in southeast Asia from larger markets such as Malaysia and Thailand to less established ones such as Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar, The Nikkei observes. It says the shift is being driven by lower labor costs and the opportunity to get in on the ground floor in new markets as growth spreads throughout the region.

The minimum monthly salaries in Laos and Cambodia are roughly $50, which the Japanese newspaper says is less than one-fourth the rate in China’s Guangdong Province. Wages in Myanmar are even lower, with monthly rates starting at about $30.

Yazaki Corp. already has increased wire harness output in Laos and may soon expand into Cambodia and Myanmar, The Nikkei says. Yamaha Motor Co. and Toyota Tsusho Corp. plan to open a motorcycle joint venture plant in the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh later this year. Japan’s External Trade Organization also plans to open an office in Phnom Penh.

China Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi says building already strong relations with Russia is one of the country’s top diplomatic priorities. He spoke to Chinese and Russian reporters yesterday during the National People’s Congress in Beijing.

The two giant communist countries signed a series of agreements last year, including ones involving the oil, natural gas and coal industries. One of the first projects to come to fruition will be a huge oil pipeline, which is expected to go into operation early next year.