AFP, Tokyo :
The head of Japan’s Kobe Steel warned Thursday that a quality control scandal engulfing his firm was likely to widen at home and abroad, as he acknowledged that trust in the steelmaker has “fallen to zero”.
The comments came as a growing list of customers, including major automakers Toyota, Nissan and Honda, scramble to assess the safety of vehicles containing products supplied by the company, which has admitted falsifying quality data for products sold to some 200 clients.
The head of Japan’s number three steelmaker said Thursday that his firm was checking with more Japanese clients as well as foreign buyers including General Motors.
“We deeply apologise,” Hiroya Kawasaki told a press briefing as he bowed deeply-a common act of contrition for Japanese executives.
“Trust in Kobe Steel has fallen to zero.” There were more “suspicious cases” that could hike the number of affected products, he added. “There’s a possibility that there will be new cases of wrongdoing,” Kawasaki said.
Kobe Steel’s stock plunged by about 40 percent this week after the manufacturer on Sunday first admitted falsifying data linked to the strength and quality of products, a practice that may have started a decade ago.
The head of Japan’s Kobe Steel warned Thursday that a quality control scandal engulfing his firm was likely to widen at home and abroad, as he acknowledged that trust in the steelmaker has “fallen to zero”.
The comments came as a growing list of customers, including major automakers Toyota, Nissan and Honda, scramble to assess the safety of vehicles containing products supplied by the company, which has admitted falsifying quality data for products sold to some 200 clients.
The head of Japan’s number three steelmaker said Thursday that his firm was checking with more Japanese clients as well as foreign buyers including General Motors.
“We deeply apologise,” Hiroya Kawasaki told a press briefing as he bowed deeply-a common act of contrition for Japanese executives.
“Trust in Kobe Steel has fallen to zero.” There were more “suspicious cases” that could hike the number of affected products, he added. “There’s a possibility that there will be new cases of wrongdoing,” Kawasaki said.
Kobe Steel’s stock plunged by about 40 percent this week after the manufacturer on Sunday first admitted falsifying data linked to the strength and quality of products, a practice that may have started a decade ago.
