ID :
40026
Sun, 01/11/2009 - 16:03
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/40026
The shortlink copeid
Conglomerates begin to feel pinch of economic crisis
SEOUL, Jan. 11 (Yonhap) -- The global financial crisis has begun to take its toll
on South Korea's large industrial conglomerates, with major listed companies
reporting a dive of around 50 percent in net profits in the last quarter of 2008,
a report showed Sunday.
According to the report issued by private stock market tracker FNGuide Inc., the
combined October-December bottom line of 128 major businesses listed on the main
bourse was estimated to have dropped 50.5 percent from the previous quarter.
Their operating profits were also estimated to have decreased 27.6 percent in the
same period, said the report, noting the nation's major listed companies are
expected to suffer a further 5.4 percent drop in annual operating profits to
61.87 trillion won (US$46.3 billion) this year.
In the meantime, the debt ratio of the nation's top 30 conglomerates swelled 18.8
percentage points from the previous year to 108.5 percent as of the end of last
September, with nine of them reporting a debt ratio of over 200 percent, the
report said.
"Damage from the global economic crisis was believed to be restricted to smaller
firms thus far. But large conglomerates finally began to feel the pinch as the
global credit crunch worsened," said the report.
According to the Bank of Korea, the business survey index for major
manufacturers, which measures their business confidence for the coming month,
fell last month to its lowest level since 1998, when the country resorted to the
International Monetary Fund for a bailout amid the Asian financial crisis.
In a related development, local lenders are keeping a close eye on the financial
health of large enterprises, as the world's second-biggest chipmaker, Hynix
Semiconductor Inc., sought an 800 billion won bailout from its creditors last
month, citing a fall in chip prices. Ssangyong Motor Co., a local unit of China's
Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp., also filed for court protection on Friday
after plunging car sales led to a credit freeze-up.
"Conglomerates are also vulnerable to unforeseen debt and foreign exchange
risks," said an analyst at Goodmorning Shinhan Securities Co. "Further worsening
of the capital market circumstances could threaten the survival of some
conglomerates."
pbr@yna.co.kr
(END)
on South Korea's large industrial conglomerates, with major listed companies
reporting a dive of around 50 percent in net profits in the last quarter of 2008,
a report showed Sunday.
According to the report issued by private stock market tracker FNGuide Inc., the
combined October-December bottom line of 128 major businesses listed on the main
bourse was estimated to have dropped 50.5 percent from the previous quarter.
Their operating profits were also estimated to have decreased 27.6 percent in the
same period, said the report, noting the nation's major listed companies are
expected to suffer a further 5.4 percent drop in annual operating profits to
61.87 trillion won (US$46.3 billion) this year.
In the meantime, the debt ratio of the nation's top 30 conglomerates swelled 18.8
percentage points from the previous year to 108.5 percent as of the end of last
September, with nine of them reporting a debt ratio of over 200 percent, the
report said.
"Damage from the global economic crisis was believed to be restricted to smaller
firms thus far. But large conglomerates finally began to feel the pinch as the
global credit crunch worsened," said the report.
According to the Bank of Korea, the business survey index for major
manufacturers, which measures their business confidence for the coming month,
fell last month to its lowest level since 1998, when the country resorted to the
International Monetary Fund for a bailout amid the Asian financial crisis.
In a related development, local lenders are keeping a close eye on the financial
health of large enterprises, as the world's second-biggest chipmaker, Hynix
Semiconductor Inc., sought an 800 billion won bailout from its creditors last
month, citing a fall in chip prices. Ssangyong Motor Co., a local unit of China's
Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp., also filed for court protection on Friday
after plunging car sales led to a credit freeze-up.
"Conglomerates are also vulnerable to unforeseen debt and foreign exchange
risks," said an analyst at Goodmorning Shinhan Securities Co. "Further worsening
of the capital market circumstances could threaten the survival of some
conglomerates."
pbr@yna.co.kr
(END)
