Under the agreement, PPG (Pittsburgh) and Kansai Paint (Osaka, Japan) would initially set up marketing and sales operations in North America and Europe for Japanese automotive OEMs, PPG says. PPG and Kansai would later set up marketing and sales operations in Shanghai, China, and then in other Asian countries to serve all of the region's automotive OEM customers.

Recently, DuPont Co. and Kansai Paint agreed to terminate their automotive-coatings joint-venture relationships, citing "incompatible global strategies." The joint ventures were formed to supply automotive coatings to Japan-based auto companies for their operations in the U.K. and North America and will continue to service customers for a transition period of a year or more, the companies say. The joint ventures are in Troy, MI; Mexico City; and Hemel Hempstead, England.

PPG, a major global producer of transportation coatings, offered no further details of the agreement. Kansai Paint manufactures a range of paints and coatings products and is a major supplier of automotive coatings in Japan and Asia.