Defense stocks rally as gov’t re-evaluates Ukraine assistance

[Graphics by Song Ji-yoon]

South Korean ammunition maker Poongsan Corp. saw its stock price soar Friday morning after the South Korean government announced it would reevaluate supporting Ukraine with lethal weapons.

Poongsan‘s shares were trading at 68,200 won ($49.07) as of 9:19 a.m., up 6,800 won (10.75 percent) from a day earlier, after hitting the 71,000 won mark. The company develops and supplies all types of ammunition used by the military, ranging from 5.56mm small arms ammunition to 155mm artillery shells.

Shares of other defense companies such as Hanil Forging Industrial, Victek Co. and Speco were also up, rising 1.95 percent, 6.44 percent, and 2.96 percent respectively, along with Pungsan Group’s holding company Poongsan Holdings Corp.

The Korean government released a statement on Thursday condemning the mutual defense treaty between North Korea and Russia and stating its plan to re-evaluate arms assistance to Ukraine.

Meanwhile, Shinsung Tongsang Co. shares were also up on Friday morning, fueled by the news of a tender offer.

Shinsung Tongsang shares were trading at 2,285 won as of 9:27 a.m., up 12.56 percent from the previous day. The company’s largest shareholder, Kanaan Co. announced a tender offer for a 22.02 percent stake not held by major shareholders or related parties at a price of 2,300 won per share.

The company announced it will apply for voluntary delisting after fulfilling all legal and regulatory requirements.

For its part, semiconductor equipment maker Mirae Corp. also saw a surge in its shares after announcing deals with SK hynix Inc. and ChangXin Memory Technologies Inc. (CXMT).

Mirae Corp. was trading at 2,360 won as of 9:25 a.m., up 345 won (17.12 percent) from the previous day. The company said on Friday that the company’s deals with SK hynix and CXMT were worth 1.3 billion won and 1.5 billion won respectively.