American Axle plans to expand in Asia

Even as Richard E. Dauch reaches a tentative agreement with the UAW after a bitter three-month strike, the CEO of American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc. is beefing up in Asia. American Axle is heavily dependent on the North American market. That has left the company sensitive to swings in volume here and to its 78 percent sales concentration with General Motors. So now it is aggressively building its global footprint and expanding production in low-cost areas.