SEOUL :South Korean battery maker Samsung SDI, said on Wednesday it would cut the pricing of new shares to raise 2 trillion won ($1.4 billion) by 14 per cent, after its stock tumbled in the global markets’ selloff triggered by U.S. tariff fears.
Samsung SDI indicated it plans to sell its new shares at 146,200 Korean won ($98.41) each, down from the 169,200 won announced last month. The final price will be set on May 19.
Its shares have fallen 5 per cent in the past week as U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs created turmoil in international equities markets as investors feared a global economic slowdown could occur. The stock is down 29.5 per cent year to date.
The company said in March it would issue 11,821,000 new shares to raise capital to fund a U.S. joint venture with General Motors and to expand factory capacity in Hungary, among other investments.
The South Korean won tumbled to a more than 16-year low on Wednesday.
A Samsung official said on Wednesday the final price and size of the capital raising could change depending on market conditions.
Samsung SDI shares were down 1 per cent on Wednesday while South Korea’s Kospi index was trading off 0.5 per cent.
($1 = 1,485.60 won)
