▲ This image, provided by Yonhap News TV, shows the Korea Fair Trade Commission in the central administrative city of Sejong. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

conglomerates-affiliates

Number of firms on antitrust watch list unchanged in May-July period

SEOUL, Aug. 2 (Yonhap) -- The number of South Korean companies affiliated with large business groups under tight supervision remained unchanged in the May-July period from three months earlier, the antitrust regulator said Tuesday.

The total number of affiliates on the Fair Trade Commission watch list had reached 2,886 as of end-July, unchanged from three months earlier, according to the watchdog.

Major business groups newly launched or acquired 71 units but also offloaded the same number of affiliates in the cited period.

Kakao Corp., the operator of the country's most-used mobile messenger KakaoTalk, added the largest number of affiliates with eight during the three months.

South Korea's largest family-run conglomerate, Samsung Group, had held 61 affiliates as of Monday. Energy-to-telecom giant SK Group had 185 units, and automaking giant Hyundai Motor Group held 58 affiliates under its wing.

Under fair trade law, affiliates of conglomerates with assets exceeding 10 trillion won (US$7.6 billion) are restricted from making equity investments in their affiliated companies or offering loan guarantees to each other.

Large business groups with assets of 5 trillion won or more are also required to publicly file details on inter-affiliate transactions, their ownership structure and key information on non-affiliates.

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