Civic group says concentration of economic power in chaebol deepening

A leading progressive civic group said Wednesday the concentration of economic power in chaebol, or large family-run conglomerates, has been deepening, saying the total assets held by the five largest conglomerates exceed 60 percent of the nation's gross domestic product (GDP). The Citizens' Coalition for Economic Justice (CCEJ) said in a news conference that the total assets of the big-five chaebol -- Samsung, SK, Hyundai Motor, LG and Lotte -- amounted to 1,324.8 trillion won (US$1 trillion) as of 2022, accounting for 61 percent of the nation's GDP, 2,161.7 trillion won. In 2007, the five conglomerates' total assets were 350.2 trillion won, or 32 percent of the nation's GDP, the CCEJ said, adding their assets have increased approximately 3.8 times over the past 15 years and their proportion compared to GDP had doubled. The civic group then urged the government to implement measures to prevent chaebol from increasing their assets through real estate investments and pursuing indiscriminate business expans ion. Source: Yonhap News Agency