South Korea’s No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix is planning to spend 6 trillion won ($4.95 billion) this year on investments and other areas for boosting its competitive edge.

While the plans are line with the government’s calls for large companies to step up investments, the amount is roughly similar to its capital spending in 2015.

The chipmaker is currently facing a myriad of challenges, including declining demand for memory chips and the surge of Chinese rivals.

SK hynix earlier said its third-quarter net profits fell 4.3 percent from a year earlier to 1.05 trillion won, largely due to slowing demand of memory chips for personal computers.

The investment plan announcement comes after reports saying Chey Tae-won, the head of its parent SK Group, is back at the helm after confessing to having a child out of wedlock.

Chey had been serving a prison sentence since 2013 for embezzlement but was released last year in a special presidential pardon marking Liberation Day in August. Since then, SK Group has been actively responding to government calls to create more jobs and increase spending.

(khnews@heraldcorp.com)