According to Yonhap News,

(SEOUL = Yonhap News) South Korea's biggest companies plan to invest 132.9 trillion (US$124 billion) won in research and development (R&D) and facility upgrades in 2014, a poll showed Thursday.

The total represents a 6.1 percent increase from 125.3 trillion won in 2013, the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI) said.

The survey was conducted on the 600 largest companies in terms of sales as of late 2012, with 450 companies responding.

The FKI said that of those that replied, 225 said they planned to increase investments this year compared to 145 that planned to cut back on spending. The remaining 50 companies said their investments will be roughly on par with the previous year.

"The numbers show that despite uncertainties triggered by the U.S. Federal Reserve's decision to scale back its expansionary monetary policy and weaker-than-expected domestic market conditions, companies are committed to taking measures that can raise their competitiveness down the line," the federation said in a press release.

The poll showed 24.4 percent intend to make investments to strengthen their competitiveness vis-a-vis rivals and give them an edge in the market, with 23.5 percent seeking to make new products and develop new technologies.

A further 22.5 percent said they are planning to invest resources to enter new business sectors that promise growth potential, with 17.4 percent saying they will update old facilities.

The federation said manufacturing companies want to invest 86 trillion won this year, up 6.5 percent from last year, with petroleum refining, autos and car parts, electronics and telecommunications leading the increase.

In the non-manufacturing business sector, where businesses said they plan to invest 46.9 trillion won, companies engaged in utilities, wholesale and retail and information service areas are expected to fuel investment growth. The total to be invested by non-manufacturing companies represents a 5.4 percent on-year gain from 2013.

The FKI said the latest poll showed 24.6 percent of the companies want the government to offer more tax incentives so that they can make more investments, while 22.2 percent said more financial support will help funnel more money into R&D and facility upgrades. It said a solid 16.4 percent said Seoul needs to relax various administrative restrictions holding up investments.

"The poll clearly shows that red tape is one of the leading obstacles to business investment," said FKI vice chairman Lee Seung-cheol. He said that government agencies should have quotas for regulations in order to bring about deregulation that can be felt by local companies.