LG Electronics eyes IPO in India to spur growth

Korean firms flock to India to diversify supply chains, de-risk from China

LG Electronics CEO Cho Joo-wan (right) inspects the company's key production facility for home appliances in India in June last year. (LG Electronics)

LG Electronics is mulling a stock debut in India, a burgeoning market where the Korean tech giant has made efforts to secure a firmer footing for almost two decades.

In a recent interview with Bloomberg Television, LG Electronics CEO Cho Joo-wan hinted at the possibility of an initial public offering of the company’s Indian unit, saying the company is closely monitoring the Indian market to meet its sales target of 100 trillion won ($74.6 billion) by 2030.

“(An IPO) is one of many options we can consider,” Cho said in last week’s interview, without further elaborating on more details. It was the first time that LG revealed its intention to go public in India.

The CEO’s comments come as Korean firms are increasingly pouring resources into India in response to evolving supply chains amid the growing US-China rivalry. Hyundai Motor’s Indian unit has already applied for an IPO, intending to raise up to 4 trillion won -- the biggest listing in India -- by the end of this year.

LG first entered the Indian market in 1997 by setting up a factory in Noida. Another plant in Pune was added in 2006. Currently, the company operates a “locally adapted business structure” encompassing sales, production, and research and development centers nationwide.

Upon his visit to India last year, Cho reaffirmed the company’s commitment to the fast-growing market, the fifth largest globally, saying “In India, a market with a large scale and significant growth potential, we aim to expand LG Electronics' dominant position as the market leader and strategically grow and further develop our business in the future.”

Industry sources say that if LG's Indian unit successfully goes public, it could enhance its corporate competitiveness and raise funds amounting to over $500 million for business expansion.

During the second-quarter earnings conference call, an LG executive said, “From the perspective of enhancing the company's corporate value, growth strategy, and securing the necessary funds, various approaches are being considered. The operational direction of the Indian unit could be one of the considerations.”

The Indian unit surpassed 2 trillion in sales on a half-year basis for the first time in the first half of this year, the company’s semi-annual report showed. The sales figure increased 15 percent on-year to 2.09 trillion won, while net profit grew 27 percent to 198.2 billion won.

While its crosstown rival Samsung Electronics is also upping the ante in India’s fast-growing market for smartphones and home appliances, LG topped sales of air conditioners and OLED TVs, the two segments with higher profitability, there last year, according to market researcher Omdia.

Additionally, LG invested 2 billion rupees ($23.8 million) last year to expand the production line for side-by-side refrigerators at its Pune factory in India. The new line has an annual production capacity of over 100,000 units.

The company also established a new business-to-business sales hub, called Business Innovation Center, in Chennai this year. This is the company's fourth hub in India, following Noida, Mumbai and Bengaluru.

By Jie Ye-eun(yeeun@heraldcorp.com)