For reasons that were not disclosed, TITANIUM METALS CORP. has decided not to buy 5 percent of the stock of new business partner TOHO TITANIUM CO., LTD. (see Japan-U.S. Business Report No. 350, November 1998, p. 19). Other details of their October 1998 alliance remain unchanged, however. For example, TIMET, a Denver-headquartered maker of titanium metal products, and the Kanagawa prefecture-based supplier of titanium sponge and ingot still plan to form a hearth-melting joint venture in Japan.
An exchange rate of ¥117=$1.00 was used in this report.aaaaaa