Seoul, Feb 3 LG Chem Ltd., South Korea's leading chemical firm, said on Monday that it shifted to a net loss in the fourth quarter from a year earlier due to lower demand for petrochemical and battery materials products.
LG Chem swung to a net loss of 899.2 billion won ($613.3 million) in the three months ended in December from a net profit of 128.5 billion won a year ago, the company said in a regulatory filing.
"A down cycle in the mainstay petrochemical industry and a lower demand for battery materials amid the electric vehicle (EV) chasm cut into the quarterly bottom line," a company spokesperson said over the phone.
LG Chem has an 81.84 per cent stake in LG Energy Solution Ltd., the country's leading battery maker, reports Yonhap news agency.
The company also shifted to an operating loss of 252 billion won in the December quarter from an operating profit of 247.4 billion won a year ago.
Sales fell 6.1 per cent to 12.33 trillion won from 13.13 trillion won over the cited period.
For all of 2024, net income plunged 74.9 per cent to 515 billion won from 2.05 trillion won a year ago.
Operating profit plummeted 63.8 per cent on-year to 916.79 billion won from 2.52 trillion won. Sales fell 11.5 per cent to 48.9 trillion won from 55.2 trillion won, said the report.
To ride out a market downturn, LG Chem plans to spend 2 to 3 trillion won in capital expenditure this year, far lower than the 4 trillion-won level announced earlier.
Last September, LG Chem said it plans to supply cathode materials to Prime Planet Energy and Solutions (PPES), a Japanese battery joint venture established between Toyota Motor and Panasonic.
LG Chem said it has secured PPES as a new customer as part of its global expansion strategy, and it plans to supply cathode materials to the Japanese firm starting in 2026.
In line with PPES' low-carbon vision, LG Chem said it will focus on developing innovative materials and process technologies that minimise environmental impact.
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