Fridge plan

MATSUSHITA Electric Industrial and Matsushita Refrigeration will form a joint venture in China with a mainland company to make refrigerators, according to the Nihon Keizai newspaper.

The company will be capitalised at 2.4 billion yen (about HK$2.18 billion), and owned 80 per cent by the Matsushita group.

Demand for refrigerators is rising fast in China.

Matsushita is one of many Japanese companies stepping up direct investment in China to take advantage of growing affluence.