GS plans record investment in 2012 to bolster core business

Korea’s energy and retail conglomerate GS Group said yesterday that it will invest a record 3.1 trillion won ($2.7 billion) in 2012 to reinforce its mainstream businesses. Next year’s earmarked spending is up 48 percent from this year, the group said.

With the record-high investment, the nation’s seventh-largest business conglomerate has also set a target of 75 trillion won in sales next year, compared with this year’s estimate of 68 trillion won.

In the energy business, GS Caltex, the group’s flagship affiliate, and GS Global will spend 1.8 trillion won to build its heavy oil processing facility and expand its presence in oil exploration and fuel cells. The group will also invest 700 billion won in the construction sector and 600 billion won in the retail sector to strengthen overseas business next year, it added.