In a bid to accelerate joint production in the United States and develop electric vehicles in a world moving away from fossil fuels, Toyota Motor Corp. and Mazda Motor Corp. agreed Friday to form a capital alliance.
The move by the nation's biggest automaker and Mazda is seen as a hedge against intensifying global competition to build cars that meet stricter emissions and environmental standards while reining in growing costs.
"With the future of the industry in mind, in addition to leveraging their individual strengths to further improve technologies and reinforce their business foundations, Toyota and Mazda aim to deepen collaboration and achieve sustainable growth through their partnership, rising to face and overcome these pressing challenges," Toyota said in a statement.