Chinese firm YFS to open fuel-tank plant in Detroit

YFS Automotive Systems Inc, a Chinese-owned maker of automotive fuel tanks, will open a plant in Detroit in early 2017 that is expected to eventually employ 174 people.

The nearly $27 million investment, announced on Wednesday, comes despite some problems with China's economy. Growth has slowed more than anticipated and recently the country's stock market has taken a tumble. Despite the current economic headwinds, Brian Connors, China business development manager for the Michigan Economic Development Corp, which helped lure YPF to the Motor City, said the state will remain an attractive place for Chinese auto companies.

"Tighter economic conditions in China are making the market increasingly competitive for Chinese suppliers and auto companies. This heightens the urgency for them of partnering with the most innovative automotive tech companies in the world, the world's largest concentration of which can be found in Michigan," Connors wrote in an e-mail.