Reports: Little new in latest Hanjin finance plan

However, Hanjin’s creditors plan to decide whether to put the liner carrier under receivership by Tuesday, Yonhap news agency reported.    Korean media outlets on Friday reported a new financial improvement plan submitted Thursday to creditors from ocean carrier Hanjin Shipping fell short of expectations.
   “There was not much change from previously submitted self-rescue plans,” Korea Develoment Bank (KDB) Vice Governor of Restructuring Jeong Yong-seok said, according to the Korea Herald. Yong-seok said that Hanjin needs between 1 trillion won and 1.3 trillion won (U.S. $902 million- $1.17 billion, based on today’s current exchange rate) to pay back debt and run its business, which means creditors need to inject at least 600 billion won to make it stay afloat.
   Yonhap News Agency had a similar statement from the KDB that said, “There are no differences between the previous self-rescue plan and the new one.” However, the bank did say, “The new scheme includes sales of more assets and a capital infusion by its major shareholders.”
   A Hanjin spokeswoman said Korean media reports should be treated with caution, noting that some reported Thursday that the plan was “rejected” by the KDB when Hanjin in fact had not yet received any comment or feedback from the bank.
   Hanjin’s creditors plan to decide whether to put the liner carrier under receivership by Tuesday, Yonhap reported.
   Meanwhile, Korea Herald quoted Cho Bong-ki, a senior official at the Korea Shipowners Association, as saying Hanjin was “the backbone of international trade, which export-driven South Korea relies on heavily.”