Takata crisis gives Sweden's Autoliv the opportunity to expand in Japan

Stockholm

SWEDISH car safety equipment maker Autoliv could capitalise on the crisis engulfing its rival Takata Corp by finally extending its global leadership to the one major car hub it has been unable to dominate - Japan.

Autoliv is the world's top maker of equipment such as airbags and seat belts, but it has struggled to break the ties between Japanese carmakers and main supplier Takata in a country where the keiretsu corporate culture sees businesses closely bound together in relationships cultivated over decades.