Siemens taps Kim as Korean unit head

Siemens Korea will next month appoint Kim Jong-kap, former head of Hynix Semiconductor, to become the first Korean chief executive in its 60-year history, the company said on Thursday. 

Kim, 59, was most recently chief of Hynix, the world’s No. 2 memory-chip manufacturer. He completed a three-year term that started in 2007 and is currently head of the board of directors. Prior to Hynix, Kim was vice minister of the Knowledge Economy Ministry.

The former minister is to be officially appointed on June 1, Siemens said.

Siemens is based in Germany and has 405,000 employees in 190 countries around the world. It specializes in electrical engineering and offers products and services in the areas of industry, energy and healthcare.

(jemmie@heraldcorp.com)