Weichai Power takes stake in German truck maker

Weichai Power, an automotive and equipment manufacturing firm under Shandong Heavy Industry (SHIG) on Monday clinched a deal to buy a one-quarter stake in German forklift truck maker Kion Group.

The 738 million-euro (922 million U.S. dollars) deal was signed in Jinan, capital of east China's Shandong Province, and marked the greatest direct investment in a German firm made by a Chinese company to date.

Under the deal, Weichai Power will invest 467 million euro to acquire a 25-percent stake in Kion Group, and another 271 million euro for a 70-percent majority stake in Kion's hydraulics business.

Kion Group is the world's second-largest forklift truck maker and holds 15 percent of the global market share in the business. The purchase is expected to offer Kion debt-refinancing relief.