Large biz delegation to join Moon on his trip to China

SEOUL, Dec. 11 (Yonhap) -- Leaders and high-ranking officials of South Korea's large conglomerates will join President Moon Jae-in on his state visit to China this week, a business lobby group and company officials said Monday.

Moon is scheduled to make a state visit to China from Wednesday to Saturday, during which he plans to have a summit with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.

He will be accompanied by a large-scale delegation composed of heads and high-ranking officials of 35 large conglomerates, 29 mid-sized companies, about 160 small and medium-sized enterprises and 40 associations, according to the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI).

They include the heads of SK, Hanwha, Doosan, LS and AmorePacific, with some others such as Samsung and Hyundai Motor sending vice chairman-level officials, as their heads either stand trial or have health problems.

The delegation is the largest ever that has accompanied a South Korean president on an overseas trip. In particular, the number of SME representatives has increased sharply.

A KCCI official said that the delegation has increased in size because many companies wanted to participate in the various events to be held on the sidelines of the president's trip.

He added that the KCCI formed a screening committee composed of representatives of relevant business groups, associations and think tanks, as well as private-sector experts, to select who will be included in the delegation in a "fair" manner.
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