By Yeliz Candemir
ISTANBUL--Tofas Turk Otomobil Fabrikasi AS (TOASO.IS),
manufacturer of Fiat, Citroën, Peugeot, Opel and Vauxhall vehicles,
said Friday it has resumed production after a suspension began at
the start of the week due to a labor strike.
"In accordance with the risk management policies of our
corporation and as necessary conditions are occurred, production
activities have started as of 22.05.2015. Our company also has no
problem or difficulty in procurement process from suppliers," said
Tofas in a statement to the stock exchange.
Tofas' statement came shortly after Ford Otomotiv Sanayi AS, the
Turkish unit of Ford Motor Co. (F) in partnership with Koc Holding
AS (KCHOL), said Friday it has restarted manufacturing operations
at its two plants after a labor protest.
The protests at the plants in Bursa, south of Istanbul, began at
Renault SA's biggest plant outside Western Europe when workers on
the first shift Friday downed tools and demanded higher wages. On
Monday, Tofas said it was also affected by labor action and decided
to stop production until the dispute was resolved.
While Turkey's car makers Ford Otosan and Tofas have restarted
production, tractor manufacturer Turk Traktor ve Ziraat Makineleri
AS, a joint venture of Koc Holding and CNH Global NV, said late
Thursday it will halt production at its two plants due to a labor
strike.
"Labor actions that have occurred in a couple of companies
operating in the automotive sector, has been effective on some
workers in our Ankara and Erenler Factories. Therefore, in
accordance with the risk management policies of our corporation, to
ensure the continuity of effective and healthy manufacturing
activities of the factory and as a precautionary measure, company
management has decided to discontinue the production in Ankara and
Erenler Factories until dissolution," Turk Traktor said in a
statement to the stock exchange.
At 0745 GMT, Tofas shares were down 0.3% at TRY18.25, Ford
Otosan shares were trading 0.14% higher at TRY36.10, while Turk
Traktor shares were up 0.2% at TRY76.45 amid a 0.5% drop in
BIST-100 main stock index.
Write to Yeliz Candemir at yeliz.candemir@wsj.com