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Korea copper: Poongsan's 2000 sales seen up 9.8 pct

SEOUL: South Korea's largest copper and copper alloy producer, Poongsan Corp, said on Tuesday that it aimed to sell 232,000 tonnes of copper and copper alloy products this year, up 9.8 percent from a year ago.

"Along with domestic and world economic recovery, we plan more sales this year compared with last year," an official with Poongsan told Reuters.

The official said its total sales during January, a low-demand season, reached 18,000 tonnes, up 28.6 percent from a year earlier.

"High sales figure in the low-demand season is encouraging to us," he said.

Last year Poongsan sold 211,300 tonnes of copper and copper alloy products in total, while its US subsidiary, PMX Industry Inc, sold 101,000 tonnes.

The Poongsan official said it had not yet confirmed the total sales by PMX this year.

"Poongsan plans to sell 152,000 tonnes of its targeting total sales on the domestic market," the official said, indicating that the domestic sales would rise 8.6 percent from 140,000 tonnes last year.

The official said Poongsan's export this year was also expected to reach 80,000 tonnes of the total targeted sales of 232,000 tonnes, up 12.2 percent from 71,300 tonnes last year.

As the world's third largest copper and copper alloy producer, Poongsan has an annual output capacity of 400,000 tonnes -- 250,000 tonnes at home and another 150,000 tonnes in the U.S.-based PMX.

Poongsan produces sheets, strips, stainless steel strips, pipes, tubes, bars, rods, wires, military and commercial ammunition, leadframes, leadframe alloys and blank coins.

It said it aimed to become the world's largest copper and copper alloy producer, with consistent facility investment and new material development.

Poongsan plans to complete its new shaft furnace with 9,000 tonnes of monthly casting capacity in the first half of this year and the company would then boost production with facility expansion.

BLANK COIN SALES SEEN UNCHANGED

Poongsan's total blank coin sales on the domestic and overseas markets this year are seen to be 20,000 tonnes, or similar to last year, the company official said.

"We are operating (production lines) at almost full capacity," the official said, meaning its output and sales amount this year would be unchanged from last year.

Last year the company hit another record-high, exceeding 20,000 tonnes from over 19,000 tonnes in 1998, spurred by bullish demand.

Poongsan sold 3,500 tonnes of blank coins in the local market last year, five times more than 1998, as South Korea's economic recovery boosted demand.

This year the company with 24,000 tonnes of annual production capacity for blank coins plans to sell about one billion units or 5,000 tonnes on the local market.-Reuters