Invest KOREA

South Korean firms are seeking to tap the market of the western part of China in the wake of tech giant Samsung Electronics Co.'s recent entry to the region, a Seoul official said Thursday.

The South Korean consulate general in Xi'an said a growing number of South Korean companies have shown interest in investing in the city, following Samsung Electronics' groundbreaking for a factory there.

Xi'an is the capital of the Shaanxi province, which is officially part of the Northwest China region.

"With the partner firms of Samsung Electronics Co. taking the lead, equipment manufacturers and logistics companies as well as legal and tax service providers have been inquiring about the business environment here," said Kim Yong-deok, an economic and trade attache to the consulate general.

Samsung Electronics, the world's largest memory chipmaker, started work last month on a semiconductor plant in Xi'an in a move to diversify its production lines.

The company said it will initially inject US$2.3 billion to build the plant. Total spending will reach up to $7 billion in the coming years, making the project Samsung Electronics' single largest overseas investment for a chipmaking plant.

Some 160 companies will accompany Samsung Electronics in its move to western China, creating 10,000 jobs in the region, the South Korean consulate general predicted.

That could contribute to generating 12-15 billion yuan (US$1.9-2.4 billion) worth of gross domestic product in China, the consulate general added.

The city government of Xi'an said the completion of the Samsung project will bring the city's information technology (IT) industry scale up to 300 billion yuan by 2015.

"With the Samsung project, Xi'an will make great strides in the development of its IT industry," said Dong Jun, mayor of Xi'an.

"Samsung's selection of the project site in Xi'an will make the urban competitiveness of Xi'an and the bearing capacity of high-end industries stronger and stronger."

The South Korean consulate general in Xi'an is scheduled to hold a presentation meeting next Wednesday to introduce business opportunities in the city.

Local government officials in the region will also take part in the presentation, said officials at the consulate general.

Meanwhile, Shanghai Greenland Group, a leading real estate developer in China, is waiting approval from the Xi'an government to build a Korean town aimed at serving as a commercial, residential and leisure area for the expected rising number of Koreans in the city.

Source Text

Source: Yonhap News (Oct. 25, 2012)