FSC focuses on revitalizing shipping sector

[THE INVESTOR] The Financial Services Commission affirmed on Oct. 18 that the government will soon unveil a set of measures to help reinvigorate the nation’s shipping industry.

A sense of crisis is palpable here over the future of the sector, once hailed as a key business of the economy, as the country’s No. 1 shipper Hanjin Shipping has been placed under court receivership due to mounting debts.

“With regard to the Hanjin issue, the part in which the government should have more interest is not to let the competitiveness of the shipping industry be undermined,” FSC Chairman Yim Jong-yong told reporters.

FSC Chairman Yim Jong-yong

Related authorities are “comprehensively reviewing” ways to enhance its global competitiveness, he added.

“(The government) will wrap up the discussions within this month,” Yim said during a parliamentary audit session.

On the restructuring of the shipbuilding field, he pointed out it’s still premature to conclude any local shipyard should be liquidated.

(theinvestor@heraldcorp.com)