(image: SK Hynix)
SEOUL, Feb. 13 (Korea Bizwire) — Major South Korean tech companies will keep their assembly lines up and running during this week’s Lunar New Year holiday due to rising demand at home and abroad, industry sources said Tuesday.
Samsung Electronics, the world’s largest maker of chips said it plans to maintain normal operations at its semiconductor production clusters in Pyeongtaek, Giheung and Hwaseong in Gyeonggi Province, near Seoul during the holiday period.
The Lunar New year, or “Seol,” is one of Korea’s most important traditional holidays and is marked by family gatherings. It is celebrated according to the lunar calendar and falls on Friday this year, although people will get Thursday off, as well.
SK hynix Inc., South Korea’s second-largest chipmaker, also plans to operate its chip-making production lines in Icheon and Cheongju without suspension during the Seol holiday.
Outbound shipments of semiconductors, a key export item for South Korea, surged 37 percent in the first 10 days of February from a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service.
Samsung Display and LG Display — the two major flat panel makers in South Korea — confirmed they will operate their plants 24 hours a day during the holiday, as they need to meet orders.
Samsung SDI Co., a South Korean manufacturer of electric vehicle and smartphone batteries, is also set to operate its plants as normal over Seol.
Meanwhile, Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics Inc. plan to suspend operation of their plants producing home appliances during the holiday.
(Yonhap)
