Hyosung mulls building new ATM factory in China

HONG KONG (Yonhap News) -- South Korea’s Nautilus Hyosung Inc. is considering building a new plant in China as part of efforts to strengthen its status as a leading provider of automatic teller machines in the neighboring country, industry sources said Wednesday.

The company’s Chinese subsidiary, Beijing Hyosung Computer Technology Co., is considering building the plant in an industrial zone in Weihai, a city in eastern Shandong Province, according to the sources.

Nautilus Hyosung accounts for 40 percent of South Korea’s ATM market and produces hardware, software and services for the machines.

Moon Ji-hyuk, head of the Beijing operations, visited earlier this week Weihai Torch Hi-Tech Science Park, one of the three industrial zones in the city, along with the Weihai Economic and Technological Development Zone and the Weihai Export Processing Zone, the sources said.

The purpose of his visit was to conduct a preliminary study on the business environment there, they said.

Beijing Hyosung Computer Technology Co. was set up in January 1997, providing banking equipment in China. It has been operating an ATM manufacturing plant in Beijing since 2001.







Cargo handling at seaports rises 8%



The amount of cargo handled at South Korea’s seaports in the first nine months of the year rose over 8 percent from a year earlier amid a big gain in both trade and transshipment cargo, the government said Wednesday.

The volume of cargo processed at the country’s seaports in the January-September period came to some 962.18 million tons, according to the Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs.

The figure represents an 8.1 percent increase from 890.15 million tons during the same period last year.

The number of container cargo handled at the seaports also rose 10.8 percent on-year to over 15.93 million 20-foot-equivalent units.

The ministry said the volume of container cargo will likely reach 20 million TEUs for the first time in the country‘s history this year.

The amount of import-export cargo rose 8.8 percent on-year to over 9.9 million TEUs with the amount of transshipment cargo, or cargo processed here while en route to a different final destination, surging 13.5 percent to nearly 5.7 million TEUs.

The country’s largest port in Busan, some 450 kilometers southeast of Seoul, safely defended its place as the world’s fifth largest port with the amount of container cargo handled there rising 13.6 percent on-year to over 12 million TEUs. (Yonhap News)









Moody’s upgrades Samsung Mobile Display’s bonds to A3





The global credit appraiser Moody’s Investors Service said Tuesday it has upgraded its rating for bonds issued by Samsung Mobile Display Co., a South Korean display maker, by three notches to A3.

Moody’s said the upgrade is based on the high willingness and financial capability of its parent company Samsung Electronics Co. to render financial support to the company in case of need.

The credit rating agency said the company has high strategic importance within Samsung Group’s value chain.

Samsung Electronics’ track record of providing equity injection to SMD as well as the parent‘s strong financial capability, is reflected in its A1 rating and its materially larger scale than SMD, it said.

It expected that the company will make steady progress in improving cost and technological competitiveness and maintain a strong market position in its business in Active Matrix Organic light emitting diode. (Yonhap News)









Sasmung Techwin Q3 net drops 42 percent



Samsung Techwin Co., Samsung Group’s defense and precision machinery unit, said Tuesday that its third-quarter net profit dropped 42 percent from one year ago mainly due to weak demand and higher raw material costs.

Net profit reached 41.4 billion won ($36.8 million) in the July-September period, compared with 70.8 billion won a year earlier, it said in a regulatory filing.

Sales fell 14 percent on-year to 693.5 billion won over the cited period and operating profit also plummeted 60 percent to 34.8 billion won, it said.

The weak third-quarter bottom line took a blow from weak demand for personal computers and flat-screen TVs, the company said. Costs of silver, copper and other raw materials also rose sharply, eating into its profit.

Electronics firms slashed down their investments as they anticipate the global economy potentially slowing down. The reduced spending squeezed Samsung’s revenues from semiconductor equipment, it added.













GS Engineering‘s Q3 net falls 24%



GS Engineering & Construction Corp., South Korea’s third-largest builder, said Wednesday that its third-quarter earnings fell 24 percent from a year earlier due to unfavorable exchange rates.

Net income came to 79.4 billion won ($70.3 million) in the July-September period, compared with 102 billion won a year earlier, the builder said in a regulatory filing.

Sales increased 13 percent on-year to slightly over 2 trillion won in the three-month period, with operating income skyrocketing 61 percent to 181 billion won.

Shares of GS Engineering traded at 95,700 won on the Seoul bourse as of 11:37 a.m., up 1.59 percent from the previous session.

“The third-quarter bottom line suffered a setback because of exchange losses brought on by global financial sector concerns and market volatility,” the company said.

The company also said that despite general uncertainties, fresh orders won in the third quarter reached 3.38 trillion won, up 1 percent from the same period a year earlier.

GS Engineering & Construction said it will be able to easily achieve its annual operating profit target of 639.6 billion won. (Yonhap News)