STX Group said Sunday that it will post 20 trillion won in sales in 2008 with active overseas operation and an aggressive acquisition drive abroad.
We are set to get 7.1 trillion won in sales from shipbuilding and machinery sectors, including performances from the Dalian Marine Equipment Park, which will be in operation from next year,’’ STX Group Chairman Kang Duk-soo told a group of executives at a two-day workshop over the weekend in Gyeong-ju, North Gyeongsang Province.
For the time being, the group is positive about achieving 10.4 trillion won in sales focusing on the shipping sector, up 45 percent from a year earlier, with an expected bullish market situation,’’ Kang said.
In order to prop up the realization of the revised target, the group will expand its business units to four sectors _ shipbuilding & machinery, shipping & trade, plant & construction, and energy _ from the current three in a pre-emptive measure to take a bigger stake in the challenging global market situation.
Such a strong confidence came a month after the group bought a controlling stake in Norway-based cruise ship company, Aker Yards, for $800 million as part of efforts to make inroads into the profitable industry in Europe amid increasing calls to find next growth engines.’’
The largest overseas acquisition ever booked by a South Korean shipbuilder will enable the fifth-biggest South Korean shipyard to begin building cruise liners, which are more profitable than mid-sized containers and chemicals carriers.
Orders for cruise liners reach over $13 billion annually, accounting for more than 12 percent of the global shipbuilding market, according to industry estimates.
Moreover, STX Pan Ocean, the nation’s biggest dry bulk shipping company, also received a boost after the Baltic dry index has scaled a new peak, brightening the sector's earnings outlook.
Its archrivals Samsung Heavy Industries and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering are also venturing into liners as Chinese shipyards are expected to double their production by 2015 to eventually overtake South Korean competitors.
Despite headaches for stealing core technical data in charge of the industrial plant business in the desalination facilities market at the group’s heavy industries, STX goes ahead with a goal of achieving 1.8 trillion won in ordinary income and $16 billion in exports in the sector.
We should not solely focus on a specific sector, meaning the aggressive exploration of other industries is urgently needed,’’ Kang said.
We still maintain a buy’ rating on affiliates of the group. However, detailed following-up measures should come soon,’’ said Sung Ki-jong, an analyst at Daewoo Securities.
The stock price of its shipbuilding arm has more than quadrupled this year, making it the fourth-best performer among 200 top companies trading on South Korea’s main stock market.
We are set to get 7.1 trillion won in sales from shipbuilding and machinery sectors, including performances from the Dalian Marine Equipment Park, which will be in operation from next year,’’ STX Group Chairman Kang Duk-soo told a group of executives at a two-day workshop over the weekend in Gyeong-ju, North Gyeongsang Province.
For the time being, the group is positive about achieving 10.4 trillion won in sales focusing on the shipping sector, up 45 percent from a year earlier, with an expected bullish market situation,’’ Kang said.
In order to prop up the realization of the revised target, the group will expand its business units to four sectors _ shipbuilding & machinery, shipping & trade, plant & construction, and energy _ from the current three in a pre-emptive measure to take a bigger stake in the challenging global market situation.
Such a strong confidence came a month after the group bought a controlling stake in Norway-based cruise ship company, Aker Yards, for $800 million as part of efforts to make inroads into the profitable industry in Europe amid increasing calls to find next growth engines.’’
The largest overseas acquisition ever booked by a South Korean shipbuilder will enable the fifth-biggest South Korean shipyard to begin building cruise liners, which are more profitable than mid-sized containers and chemicals carriers.
Orders for cruise liners reach over $13 billion annually, accounting for more than 12 percent of the global shipbuilding market, according to industry estimates.
Moreover, STX Pan Ocean, the nation’s biggest dry bulk shipping company, also received a boost after the Baltic dry index has scaled a new peak, brightening the sector's earnings outlook.
Its archrivals Samsung Heavy Industries and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering are also venturing into liners as Chinese shipyards are expected to double their production by 2015 to eventually overtake South Korean competitors.
Despite headaches for stealing core technical data in charge of the industrial plant business in the desalination facilities market at the group’s heavy industries, STX goes ahead with a goal of achieving 1.8 trillion won in ordinary income and $16 billion in exports in the sector.
We should not solely focus on a specific sector, meaning the aggressive exploration of other industries is urgently needed,’’ Kang said.
We still maintain a buy’ rating on affiliates of the group. However, detailed following-up measures should come soon,’’ said Sung Ki-jong, an analyst at Daewoo Securities.
The stock price of its shipbuilding arm has more than quadrupled this year, making it the fourth-best performer among 200 top companies trading on South Korea’s main stock market.