Samsung Elec chief Lee meets all subsidiary CEOs in rare gathering

Samsung Elec chief Lee meets all subsidiary CEOs in rare gathering [Photo by MK DB]

Executive Chairman of Samsung Electronics Co. Jay Y. Lee met the heads of all Samsung Group business units on the first business of the new year, unlike his usual New Year’s business site visits, underscoring the urgency of coming up with emergency measures to cope with growing uncertainties in the global economy.

Chairman Lee had a dinner meeting with the presidents of Samsung Group subsidiaries including Samsung Electronics, Samsung C&T Corp., and Samsung Life Insurance on Jan. 2, according to sources on Monday.

They were said to have discussed various measures in an emergency mode to cope with softening consumer demand worldwide amid high interest rates and inflation, according to the sources.

At the turn of each year, Chairman Lee had visited each business site to encourage employees. In 2021, he attended the tool-in ceremony to bring in foundry production equipment for Pyeongtaek Line 2 located in Gyeonggi Province. In 2020, his first official move was to visit Samsung’s semiconductor research center in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province.

Lee’s latest meeting with the top executives of all Samsung Group business units comes as Korea’s largest business group is also bracing for a bumpy year ahead with signs of a slump at home and abroad this year.

Prior to yesterday’s dinner meeting, the chief executives (CEOs) of Samsung business units already had a rare presidential meeting on Dec. 26, the first of its kind since the dissolution of the Future Strategy Office, which acted as the command center for Samsung Group, in March 2017. They were briefed on domestic and foreign economic forecast as well as foreign exchange rate and oil price outlooks by Samsung Global Research at the meeting, according to sources.

Chairman Lee did not attend the meeting due to his business trip to Southeast Asia.