Hite Jinro pushing to sell Japanese subsidiary

Hite Jinro Co., Korea's No. 1 beer and soju producer, said Monday it is seeking to sell its Japanese subsidiary in a bid to secure cash and put its balance sheets in better shape.

Hite Jinro is moving to sell its Japanese affiliate Jinro Inc. by issuing new shares and allocating them to a third party, the company said in a regulatory filing, adding no details, including the issue date, have been fixed yet.

It currently owns 100 percent of the Japanese subsidiary, or 4,000 shares.

"(The sell-off) will give more leeway for the company's Japanese businesses, and improve the parent company's financial health," an official from the company said.

Market watchers said Hite Jinro may sell off 49 percent of its stake in Jinro Inc. for an estimated 170 billion won ($156 million).

Hite Jinro takes up some 40 percent of South Korea's beer market and 50 percent of the local market for soju, the country's distilled liquor.

Its overseas shipments totaled $68.24 million in the first half of this year, up 2.7 percent from a year earlier. Sales in Japan reached $52.96 million in the first six months, Hite Jinro said in September. (Yonhap)