South Korea’s financial watchdog on Sunday said 32 big local firms should carry out restructuring, a move that could be aimed at keeping financially troubled companies from further hurting Asia’s fourth-largest economy, Yonhap reported. The Financial Supervisory Service made the announcement after conducting a credit risk analysis on 602 companies, which were selected out of 1,973 owing over 50 billion won ($44 million) to banks and showed signs of financial health problems. The FSS rated the 602 firms in a category ranging from A to D, with A and B being considered financially healthy. It put 19 companies in group D, meaning they should be placed on court receivership. Still, the FSS said it put the country’s three big shipyards—Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering, Samsung Heavy Industries and Hyundai Heavy Industries—in category B, citing their self-rescue plans and their largest shareholders’ commitments to normalizing their businesses. The three shipyards have been implementing massive restructuring programs to tide over mounting losses.
