Samsung Group to shake up executive ranks

SEOUL, Jan. 16 (Yonhap) -- Samsung Group said Friday it will replace as many as
15 chief executives at its affiliates as the leading South Korean conglomerate
reels from the deepening global economic crisis.
At the same time, Samsung Electronics Co., the group's crown jewel, plans to
combine its semiconductor and liquid crystal display divisions into a parts
business. The company's home appliance and mobile phone divisions will also be
consolidated into a product business, group officials said.
Samsung Electronics, the world's largest maker of memory chips and LCD panels,
has been hurt by sinking demand for semiconductors and flat-panel televisions.
The reshuffle would mark the first restructuring effort since the group's former
chairman, Lee Kun-hee, stepped down in April last year in the wake of a
parliament-ordered corruption probe that led to his indictment for tax evasion
and other charges.
In October last year, an appellate court upheld a lower court's decision to give
Lee a three-year suspended jail term.
Samsung consists of 59 affiliates, including Samsung Electronics, which is also
the world's No. 2 maker of mobile phones, and Samsung Heavy Industries Co., the
world's No. 2 shipyard. The conglomerate accounts for about 20 percent of South
Korea's annual exports.
(END)