Kim Hyun-bin began his journalism career at Arirang TV from 2012 to 2017, specializing in defense, foreign affairs and the economy. In 2018, he joined The Korea Times, covering society and business, and is currently responsible for embassy affairs.
POSCO Holdings surpasses Hyundai Motor in market cap on battery boom
POSCO Holdings' brine lithium demo plant located in Olaroz, Argentina. Courtesy of POSCO Holdings
By Kim Hyun-bin
By Kim Hyun-bin
POSCO Holdings stock prices surged more than 10 percent, Friday, surpassing Hyundai Motor's market capitalization of 42.3 trillion won ($32.85 billion) backed by its secondary battery material business growth expectations, according to analysts and industry officials.
POSCO Holdings stock prices soared 10.75 percent to 551,000 won per share, sending its market capitalization to 46.5 trillion won, becoming the eighth-largest company on the main bourse KOSPI. The market capitalization of the seventh-ranked Samsung SDI stands at 47.1 trillion won.
Analysts attribute the surge to POSCO Holdings' focus on generating new growth momentum in the secondary battery material sector, as it shifts away from its traditional steel business and seeks overall business improvements.
“UBS raised its target price to 625,000 won, while Macquarie Securities and other leading overseas securities firms also raised their target prices, which looks to have contributed to the rise in POSCO Holdings stock prices," a financial analyst said.
On July 11, the POSCO Group unveiled plans to build an entire value chain from battery raw materials to core materials excluding completed batteries during the "Secondary Battery Material Business Value Day." As a result, it is expected that the secondary battery material business alone will achieve 62 trillion won in revenue growth by 2030.
“The announcement of POSCO Group's business goal to achieve sales of 62 trillion won with a production capacity of 420,000 tons of lithium, 240,000 tons of nickel, 1 million tons of cathode materials and 370,000 tons of anode materials during the secondary battery material business Value Day seems to have had a positive impact,” an industry official familiar with the matter said.
POSCO Group's key subsidiary in the secondary battery business, POSCO FutureM, also experienced a strong performance. POSCO FutureM rose 5.6 percent to 490,500 won from the previous day. Its market capitalization reached 37.9 trillion won, ranking 10th in the KOSPI, after Hyundai Motor.