Hanjin poised for aggressive overseas expansion in 2024

A promotional image shows Hanjin's global logistics business. Courtesy of Hanjin

Hanjin announced a strategic initiative on Friday to enhance global expansion by increasing the number of its overseas logistics bases to 42 across 22 countries this year. The move is aimed at establishing more robust distribution networks, particularly strengthening connections between Asia and Europe.

The company’s global business accounts for about 15 percent of its annual sales. Hanjin identifies the overseas expansion as its next key growth engine amid growing logistics demand abroad.

In December last year, Hanjin set up a Japanese subsidiary and plans to complete the establishment of a new branch in Thailand in March to strengthen its footing in the Southeast Asian transportation market. The company said it collaborated with Sagawa, a distribution solutions provider in Japan, seeking to attract transportation demand from Europe and Asia.

“Our subsidiary in Thailand will play a pivotal role in completing our logistics chain in Indochina by connecting networks from Myanmar, Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam,” an official at the company said.

Hanjin opened its much-touted Container Freight Station in Thailand’s port city of Laem Chabang in June 2023, and has since placed a strategic focus on the country to widen its presence in Southeast Asia.

The firm is also scheduled to build more overseas branches in countries such as Bangladesh, Morocco and Hungary this year to establish more robust logistics channels between Asia and Europe.

Hanjin is strategically expanding its presence in the transportation sector to capitalize on Korea's key export and import items, such as semiconductors, auto parts and core materials for electric vehicle batteries, as their demand is forecast to rise further down the road.

“The ongoing global drive is aimed at propelling our quantitative growth,” the official said. “Hanjin will also keep clinching close partnerships with overseas firms that secure solid fulfillment capabilities, so we can rapidly stabilize the operation of our new subsidiaries and offices abroad.”

Hanjin achieved an operating profit of 120.4 billion won ($90 million) in 2023, up 5.2 percent from the previous year. Its parcel business accounts for more than 40 percent of earnings, but as the industry is faced with a structural slowdown, Hanjin identifies the global business as its next revenue generator.