LG Electronics seeks new business opportunities in India, Middle East

LG Electronics Inc. Chief Executive Officer Cho Joo-wan visits the exhibition hall of Neom in Riyadh on June. 1. [Photo provided by LG Electronics]

LG Electronics Inc., an electronics giant under South Korea’s LG Group, is moving proactively to seek new business opportunities and growth drivers in emerging markets, in addition to existing ones in North America and Europe.

According to LG Electronics on Wednesday, Chief Executive Officer Cho Joo-wan visited Saudi Arabia and India on June 1 to 7. On June 1, he visited the exhibition hall of a mega-scale smart city project Neom in Riyadh and discussed business opportunities related to the project with local subsidiaries. Neom City is a mega-scale futuristic new city that Saudi Arabia is investing more than 600 trillion won ($458.48 billion) to build.

Cho then held an online and offline management meeting with the heads of overseas subsidiaries in the Middle East and Africa, including Saudi Arabia and Egypt, to review mid- and long-term business strategies for the region. He asked local employees to “secure various business opportunities in a wide range of fields, including mobility and robotics as well as home appliances, TVs, and information technology (IT) products optimized for the Neom City project,” according to the company.

He also toured an air conditioner plant in Riyadh, which produces premium air conditioners equipped with energy-efficient components to suit Saudi Arabia’s hot climate throughout the year.

The Middle East, including Saudi Arabia, is an important market for LG Electronics. The company’s sales in the Middle East and Africa amounted to 3.36 trillion at the end of last year. It is the region with the largest sales after Korea, North America, Europe and Asia.

After moving to India, Cho visited its sales subsidiary in New Delhi and looked over household appliance factories and progress on its eco-friendly smart factory project in Noida. LG Electronics, now in its 26th year in the Indian market, has established a localized integrated business structure with sales subsidiaries, production facilities and research and development (R&D) centers. The electronics giant produces household appliances such as refrigerators and washing machines in Noida and TVs and monitors in Pune.

In New Delhi, Cho discussed various expansion plans for new businesses, such as mobility and educational technology utilizing IT solutions. He asked local employees to “expand our overwhelming position as the number one market leader in India, a market with significant size and substantial growth potential,” according to the company.

India recently overtook China as the world’s most populous country and is considered a key market for LG Electronics. The company holds a dominant market share in the sector of major home appliances in the country, such as air conditioners.