WORLD BUSINESS BRIEFINGS: ASIA; TOYOTA BUYS INTO YAMAHA (Published 2000) (2024)

Japan's largest automaker, the Toyota Motor Corporation, will buy a 5 percent stake in the Yamaha Motor Company, the world's second-largest motorcycle maker. Toyota and Yamaha Motor plan to work together to develop their motor sports businesses as well as to design and build automobile engines. Toyota, which plans to enter Formula One racing as early as 2001, has worked with Yamaha on high- performance engines since the 1960's. Toyota will pay the Yamaha Corporation, a music instrument maker that is now the top shareholder in Yamaha Motor, about $97.6 million for the stake. In return, Yamaha and Yamaha Motor will each buy 500,000 Toyota shares.