The world's largest photographic equipment producer, Eastman Kodak, opened its first disposable camera plant in Asia yesterday in this port city in east China's Fujian Province.

The US$20 million plant is a joint venture, with Kodak holding 95 percent of the shares. Its products will be sold both in China and for exports.

Daniel A. Carp, chairman and chief executive of Kodak, presided over the inauguration ceremony for the plant in Xiamen today.

He said that Kodak is confident about the China market, and his company will continue to invest in China while introducing new photographic technology and managerial experience.

Kodak's plants in China have been expanding their variety of photographic products to cover film, photographic paper, film cameras, digital cameras, color enlarging printing equipment and fast printing equipment. Meanwhile, China has become Kodak's second-largest market after America.

So far, Kodak has three disposable camera production bases. The other two are in Mexico and France. Kodak plans to recover used disposable cameras in China for recycled production.

By this summer, Kodak's output of recycled disposable cameras worldwide will come to 500 million units, Carp revealed.

(Eastday.com.cn 06/09/2001)