Pantech says it’s not buying

Pantech Co., part of Korea’s third-largest mobile-phone vendor, denied that the company and its affiliates are considering buying Siemens AG’s handset unit. Pantech, affiliate Curitel Communications Inc. and Pantech C&I aren’t considering the purchase and haven’t received any written or official request from the German company, Pantech spokesman Chang Ki-jun said in Seoul yesterday. Siemens recently asked Pantech to buy its mobile-phone unit and Pantech is considering the request, the Korea Economic Daily reported earlier yesterday. The paper cited an unidentified Pantech official. Curitel earlier this week agreed to buy handset-maker SK Teletech Co. for 300 billion won ($296 million). Siemens, which has seen its global mobile-phone vendor ranking drop to sixth from fourth in less than a year, said this month it wants a partnership with other companies for its handset business.