SEOUL -- Hyundai Motor said on Tuesday it has signed a preliminary deal to build a new factory in Indonesia, which would be its first car plant in Southeast Asia and a crack at Japanese rivals that dominate the market.
The deal comes as Hyundai and affiliate Kia Motors struggle with a prolonged sales downturn in China, where they suspended two factories this year.
Also on Tuesday the Seoul city government said it has approved the long-delayed construction of Hyundai's new headquarters in the affluent district of Gangnam, which is set to be South Korea's tallest skyscraper when completed in 2026.
The approval came more than four years after Hyundai Motor Group, South Korea's second-largest conglomerate, offered to purchase the site with $10 billion in 2014, more than triple its market price, outbidding Samsung Electronics and sparking a stock sell-off.