(image: KobizMedia/ Korea Bizwire)
SEOUL, Nov. 18 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s No. 1 conglomerate, Samsung, saw its market capitalization fall nearly 12 percent this year due to losses in tech and bio shares, a corporate tracker said Sunday.
The combined market value of its 16 listed companies came to 418.33 trillion won (US$369.5 billion) as of Wednesday, down 11.95 percent from the end of last year, according to FnGuide.
Samsung Electronics Co., the largest firm in terms of market capitalization, dropped 13.94 percent to 283.92 trillion won, amid concerns over an expected slowdown in semiconductor sales.
Samsung Biologics Co.’s market cap dropped 9.84 percent to 22.13 trillion won during the period. The financial regulator suspended the trading of the biopharmaceutical company’s stocks, announcing it violated accounting rules ahead of its initial public offering in 2016.
The market caps of Samsung Life Insurance Co., Samsung Securities Co., and Samsung C&T Corp. dropped 26.35 percent, 20.49 percent and 16.27 percent, respectively, FnGuide said.
The comparable figure for Samsung Heavy Industries Co., the world’s third-biggest shipbuilder by sales, jumped 56.69 percent during the cited period.
The South Korean stock market has been in the doldrums this year due to external negatives and a slowing economy. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index closed at 2,092.4 on Friday, down 15.6 percent from 2,479.65 on Jan. 2.
(Yonhap)
