A deal between the creditors of South Korean tyre brand Kumho Tire and Doublestar, a Chinese brand could be in jeopardy as workers in Korea threaten a general strike.
Problems at Kumho go back to 2010 when the company made a number of acquisitions, including the heavy engineering business of Daewoo. However, the losses quickly started to mount and a sale of the company was mooted, with various tyre and parts brands rumoured to be interested. Doublestar was confirmed as the buyer in May.
In a press conference, the joint committee against the sale of Kumho Tire to an overseas company told the Yonhap news agency they will stop all production lines at the tyre maker’s local plants and stage a general strike.
“The ongoing process to sell Kumho Tire to Qingdao Doublestar Co. will result in the transfer of some production volume to China from South Korea and lead to massive redundancies of local workers” Kang Jeong-ho who represents the committee told the agency.
Kumho employs 2,900 people at its tyre plants in the Korean peninsula.
Go to comments