The heads of South Korea's largest conglomerates are visiting business sites at home and abroad during the Chuseok holiday to review this year's operations and shape plans for next year. With third-quarter earnings reports due soon after the holiday, followed by next year's business plans, investment and budget allocations, chief executive evaluations, executive reshuffles and organizational changes, the chairmen are keeping busier schedules than usual during the break. The corporate sector's clock for 2027 is expected to run faster as a result.
Samsung Electronics Executive Chairman Jay Y. Lee will stay overseas during the Chuseok holiday for on-site management, according to business sources on the 23rd. Lee has typically visited overseas operations during holidays to encourage employees and review local businesses. During Chuseok in 2023, he visited Saudi Arabia, Israel and Egypt. For Chuseok in 2024, he went to a Samsung home appliance plant in Poland, and earlier that year during the Lunar New Year holiday he visited a Samsung SDI battery plant in Malaysia. He also stayed abroad for site visits during last year's Chuseok.
Lee plans to attend the Korea Society Gala Dinner in New York on the 28th, where Nvidia Chief Executive Jensen Huang will receive the Van Fleet Award for contributions to Korea-U.S. relations. Around the event, Lee is expected to meet with representatives of U.S. operations and client companies to review the expansion of the company's semiconductor and artificial intelligence businesses.
SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won will also attend the same event on the 28th and meet Huang, reviving their "AI partnership" gathering in New York. Before that, Chey will accompany President Lee Jae-myung on his visit to Mexico on the 24th in his capacity as chairman of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, discussing ways to expand economic cooperation with Mexican companies. LG Group Chairman Kwang-mo Koo will also join the economic delegation to Mexico. On the 21st, Koo held a meeting with top executives including Chief Executive Satya Nadella at Microsoft's headquarters in Redmond, Washington, where the two sides signed a strategic partnership.
LS Group Chairman Koo Ja-eun is also traveling to Mexico. With LS Group expanding investment in cables, power equipment and electric vehicle components there, he is expected to visit local sites to refine the group's North American business strategy.
Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chairman Euisun Chung will remain in Korea without overseas engagements during the holiday to review second-half earnings and business strategy for next year. Hyundai Motor Group is accelerating its future mobility strategy spanning autonomous driving, robotics and hydrogen, along with a global business realignment. He is also expected to examine responses to U.S. tariffs and a plan to invest 125 trillion won in Korea by 2030.
Hanwha Group Chairman Seung-youn Kim and Vice Chairman Kim Dong-kwan will work on management plans from home. Hanwha is stepping up efforts to combine defense, shipbuilding and space into a single growth pillar. The group has become the second-largest shareholder in Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) as it diversifies its aerospace business, and is seeking to expand its U.S. foothold through the modernization of the Philly Shipyard and a planned acquisition of Austal USA. Kim, who has taken a leading management role, is expected to review strategy for building a "Korean version of SpaceX" during the holiday.
HD Hyundai Chairman Chung Ki-sun will also focus on management planning in Korea. Having personally overseen business restructuring and future strategy since taking the chairmanship last October, he is likely to review the group's next investment targets, including the acquisition of and equity investment in U.S. shipyards, following its recently announced investment in small modular reactors (SMRs), according to sources.
POSCO Group Chairman Chang In-hwa plans to take a short break while reviewing key group issues and its business portfolio. Lotte Group Chairman Dong-bin Shin will spend time with family in Korea and Japan while working on second-half operations and next year's strategy. Shinsegae Group Chairman Chung Yong-jin also plans to review pending management issues in Korea.
"For the group chiefs, the Chuseok holiday is a time when rest overlaps with year-end management reviews and planning for next year," a business source said. "Work will begin in earnest on separating growth businesses from non-growth businesses this year and allocating year-end personnel decisions and next year's investment and budget accordingly."
