(LEAD) POSCO picked as prime bidder for Daewoo International

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SEOUL, May 14 (Yonhap) -- POSCO, South Korea's top steelmaker, has been picked as
the preferred bidder for a controlling stake in Daewoo International Co., the
Public Fund Oversight Committee said Friday.
POSCO beat retail titan Lotte Group in the bidding race for Daewoo International,
whose business line ranges from trading to overseas energy development. The two
submitted their final bids a week earlier
POSCO will study Daewoo International's books in following weeks, and hold
negotiations on the stake sale with the trading firm's creditors.
POSCO is believed to have offered a bidding price between 3.4 trillion (US$3
billion) and 3.5 trillion won to buy a 68.1 percent stake in the trading company
held by its creditors, industry sources said.
Shares of Daewoo International fell 1.58 percent to 34,250 won as of 2:35 a.m. on
the Seoul bourse, while those of POSCO gained 1.64 percent to 464,500 won.
The state-run Korea Asset Management Corp. (KAMCO) holds a 35.5 percent stake in
Daewoo International. Other creditors, including the Export-Import Bank of Korea,
have a combined 32.65 percent interest in the trading company.
POSCO expects the proposed acquisition of Daewoo International will help the
steelmaker procure raw materials due to the trading firm's energy exploration
business and global distribution network.
If POSCO takes over Daewoo International, the steelmaker is likely to sell the
trading company's 24 percent stake in Kyobo Life Insurance Co., the third-largest
local insurer, in a bid to focus on the steel business, industry sources said.
ksnam@yna.co.kr
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