Creditors agree to sell Hynix by Sept.

SEOUL, Jan. 13 (Yonhap) -- Creditors of Hynix Semiconductor Inc. have agreed to complete the sale of the world's second-largest chip maker by September this year, creditor bank officials said Tuesday.

Korea Exchange Bank (KEB), the main creditor of Hynix Semiconductor Inc., said
that co-lead managers for the sale of the chip maker met with each other last
Thursday and agreed on the plan to sell a combined 36-percent stake held by a
group of nine creditors by September.
Credit Suisse and a consortium led by state-run Korea Development Bank were
picked last November as sale arrangers.
October this year will mark the eighth year after Hynix was bailed out.
According to local reports Tuesday, the list of potential buyers include some of
South Korea's conglomerates, including LG, GS and SK, top shipbuilder Hyundai
Heavy Industries and KT, the country's top fixed-line and broadband operator.
A KEB official did not comment on the report.
Hynix is projected to have reported a record operating loss in the fourth quarter
as a global glut is driving down prices amid a global recession, according to
market watchers.
The company logged a 1.65 trillion won ($1.22 billion) net loss in the
July-September period, compared with a profit of 168 billion won a year earlier.
Creditors of Hynix have agreed to provide the company with 800 billion won in
financial support.
Kim Jong-kap, the head of Hynix Semiconductor Inc., said to reporters on Monday
that there are some South Korean potential buyers who would be interested in
buying the company.
"(When the creditors are set to) seek the sale of the company, I expect that a
number of potential buyers will show up within South Korea."