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Shinsegae affiliate shares rise after group chair meets Trump, Musk

Published: 23 Dec. 2024, 16:53 Updated: 23 Dec. 2024, 17:27

KIM JU-YEON
[email protected]

Shinsegae Group Chairman Chung Yong-jin talks to reporters at Incheon International Airport on Dec. 22 after returning from his trip to the United States, where he met with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump and Tesla and X CEO Elon Musk. [YONHAP]

Shinsegae affiliate shares shot up Monday as investor sentiment was boosted after group chairman Chung Yong-jin met with President-elect Donald Trump and reportedly talked with Elon Musk about potential collaborative projects with X, formerly Twitter, during his stay at Mar-a-Lago.

Major Shinsegae affiliate shares jumped after markets opened on Monday. As of 9:10 a.m., software company Shinsegae I&C shares rose 30 percent from the previous trading session to trade at 14,040 won ($9.67). The company offers services in cloud infrastructure, AI chatbots and self-service retail, among others.

Shinsegae International was trading at 22.46 percent, Shinsegae Food gained 28.28 percent, Shinsegae increased 2.49 percent and Emart was up 3.8 percent.

Shinsegae I&C remained up 30 percent as markets closed at 3:30 p.m. Shinsegae International closed up 2.94 percent to 10,860 won; Shinsegae Food jumped 23.59 percent to 39,550 won; Shinsegae rose 1.13 percent to 134,000 won and Emart shot up 5.78 percent to 69,600 won.

The chairman said he had a short chat with Tesla and X CEO Musk during his visit to the Florida resort while talking to reporters at Incheon International Airport on Sunday upon his return from the United States. Local newspaper DongA Ilbo reported early Monday morning that Chung discussed X’s future business plans and potential projects with Shinsegae with a person close to Musk.

Chung said he stayed six days at Mar-a-Lago from Dec. 16 on an invitation from Donald Trump Jr. and talked with many people there through Trump Jr.’s introductions.

He added that he said "Korea was a powerful country" and to “believe and wait” in the nation in response to people who showed interest in Korea's current situation.

“I told them that we will quickly return to normalcy,” he told reporters.

The chairman did not answer questions about Trump's potential influence on Korea's economy and businesses as well as Shinsegae's plans to expand in the United States.

BY KIM JU-YEON, KIM KYUNG-MI [[email protected]]