THAAD tensions affect more South Korean companies in China: report

With E-mart’s looming exit from the Chinese mainland market, more South Korean companies in China are seeing side-effects caused by the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system, news site huanqiu.com reported on Friday.

After 20 years’ operation in China, shrinking from 26 branches into six chain shops, South Korea’s E-mart has announced an exit from Chinese market. The company has announced plans for its employees, domestic news site thepaper.cn reported on Saturday.

Thailand’s Charoen Pokphand Group (CP Group), the largest private company in Thailand, will acquire five of E-mart’s chain shops in Shanghai. CP Group intends to retain all the employees and put all branches back into business “as soon as possible,” the report said.

E-mart is not alone, Lotte Group, South Korea’s biggest operator of department stores and duty-free shops, is also having a tough time in China. There were 112 Lotte Mart shops, 87 of which have closed while others are winding down their business.

According to Lotte Mart’s estimate, its operations in China probably lost at least 500 billion Korean won ($440 million) in the past six months because of THAAD, the report noted.

Lotte Group is reported to be keen to sell the Lotte Mart business in China, but its status is making it difficult to reach a decent deal. The quotation has been lowered at least 30 percent,

according to a report on Beijingt.cn based haiwainet.cn on Sunday.

South Korea’s Yonhap news agency estimated on Friday that if the THAAD issue persists, direct losses could be as much as 18.1 trillion Korean won ($15.95 billion) and 402, ,000 jobs.

South Korean small and medium-sized enterprises believe that it is inevitable they will have to give up their business in China, according to huanqiu.com. Lock & Lock, a South Korea-based maker of plastics and housewares, has sold 63.5 percent of its shares to the AEP private equity funds in Hong Kong.