[THE INVESTOR] Labor unions of Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. and the company’s contractors announced on June 14 that they will resist the shipbuilder’s restructuring plans.Speaking at a press conference in Ulsan, the unions’ leaders said that the two bodies will work together and that the company is being unfair.“Hyundai Heavy, which is said to have the strongest finances of the big three shipbuilders, is pushing the toughest plans,” the union leaders said. “The despair of laborers in the area is

[THE INVESTOR] The possibility of merging Korea’s two top money-losing shipping firms is growing after the financial regulator revealed the government’s plan for their restructuring program early this week.  The Financial Services Commission on Monday said it would consider the merger of Hanjin Shipping Co. and Hyundai Merchant Marine Co. once they complete their separate restructuring programs. (Yonhap)“If Hanjin succeeds in normalizing its business, (the agency) will evaluate whether the merge

[THE INVESTOR] Korea’s biggest steelmaker POSCO retained its title as the world’s most competitive steelmaker for the seventh consecutive year since 2010, the company announced on Tuesday.Evaluating 37 steelmakers from around the world in 23 different categories, global steel information service provider World Steel Dynamics awarded POSCO the highest score of 8.02 points out of 10. POSCO CEO Kwon Oh-joon (Yonhap)Despite the setbacks POSCO saw this year with the sluggish economy and reinforcement

 [THE INVESTOR] English online business news service The Investor (www.theinvestor.co.kr) kicked off on June 14 with the aim of providing global investors with timely, accurate and influential information on Korea’s dynamic business landscape.Korean media and lifestyle company Herald Corp. unveiled The Investor at a launching event held at Four Seasons Hotel Seoul. More than 130 senior officials from major Korean companies and banks, including Samsung Group, Hyundai Motor Group, SK Group, LG Cor

[THE INVESTOR] LG Chem, one of Korea’s leading chemical companies, has been picked as the exclusive supplier of seawater filters for a desalination plant in Oman, the company said Monday. The LG Group affiliate said it would supply by the end of this year about 20,000 reverse osmosis desalination filters, which can process 250,000 tons of seawater a day, to the plant being built by water desalination plant operator Sohar SWRO in Sohar, Oman.The head office of LG Group in Seoul. (Yonhap)Reverse o

English online business news service The Investor opened Monday, with the aim of providing investors with timely, accurate and influential information on Korea’s business scene. Founded by Korean media and lifestyle company Herald Corp., The Investor delivers expert analysis, breaking stories and in-depth market coverage in English for people who make decisions around the globe. 　Foreign investments currently make up around 50 percent of ownership in major conglomerates in Korea. Despite signifi

[THE INVESTOR] Prosecutors have found evidence that embattled Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering illegally raised money amounting to 10 trillion won ($8.6 billion) through accounting fraud, according to local news reports on Thursday. The prosecutors have placed travel bans on two former chief executives Nam Sang-tae and Koh Jae-ho of the world’s second-largest shipbuilder. The prosecution’s special force for anticorruption had secured evidence after raiding 10 organizations on Wednesday i

Lotte Chemical, the petrochemicals unit of South Korea’s Lotte Group, said Tuesday that it has made an offer to buy U.S.-based chemicals producer Axiall Corp. with aims to expand its business portfolio and strengthen its footing in North America.The company said it submitted its bid to take over Axiall Corp. last Saturday. No further details were disclosed, including its offering price.Axiall Corp. is an Atlanta-based chemicals firm that specializes in producing integrated chlorovinyls and vinyl

Korea’s three major shipyards, which once swept 70 percent of global orders, are to take wide-scale restructuring and downsizing steps, the impact of which may alter their global market standing amid a worldwide industry shakeup. Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering and Samsung Heavy Industries, the second and third largest of the three, are considering selling “floating docks,” which in boom times allowed them to increase production capacity beyond the physical limit of onshore facility, lo

The shipbuilder will push for spin-off of its profitable marine defense-related business to raise funds

Management consultancy advises merger of state-run oil and gas companies to restructure overseas oil development business

Hyundai Merchant Marine is putting all its efforts in last-ditch negotiations with foreign shipowners to cut leasing fees as the heavily indebted shipper is desperate to avoid court receivership.Korea’s second-largest shipping operator is facing a tentative deadline Friday set by the government, which has threatened to put the firm under court receivership unless it successfully completes negotiations with shipowners to cut charter rates by 28-30 percent.HMM’s conference call with bulk charterer

Financially embattled Hyundai Merchant Marine and the owners of ships that it leases are set to hold final talks here for cutting charter rates, industry sources said Wednesday. The talks come as creditors of the country’s No. 2 shipper is putting pressure on Hyundai Merchant to place it under court receivership should they fail to get “meaningful” results from the negotiations. Hyundai Merchant and high-ranking officials from five major shipowners will discuss the charter rate cut in downtown S

SMBA will help small and medium-sized companies’ exports reach $200 billion this year