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To: limtex who wrote (117714)	4/30/2002 6:37:57 PM
From: Cooters	Respond to of 152472

Any idea when we might get the April Japanese handset sales Limmer, That's keeping your eye on the ball. Damn shame we only have one ball to watch, and it is Soon to be May of 2002. Pretty soon, Lim, we'll have more balls....lol Cooters

To: limtex who wrote (117714)	4/30/2002 7:31:05 PM
From: brian h	Respond to of 152472

L, I am not sure about April Japanese handset sales. But get this piece from Nikkei. Hope it is not posted here before. [China Special] LG Electronics Targets China's CDMA Handset Market LG Electronics (LGE), a Korean conglomerate actively investing in China, has taken a long-term and systematic approach to its business strategies for this market. This approach appears to have paid off, as the company now ranks among the top in terms of brand recognition and production in China's home electrical appliance market. It has also entered China's CDMA handset market following China Unicom's launch of CDMA mobile services in January. The company expects the China market to become more important to it in the near future than even the Korea domestic market. In China, LGE intends to set up a fully localized business, from product design to sales and customer services. The company now has 13 local production units, and each of these operates with some independence. In Tianjin, the company has established a research center within its factory to carry out joint research activities with local universities and research institutes. As with other large Korean companies, LGE does not limit its product offerings in China to low-value products. The Chinese government requires foreign companies to also transfer their high-value technology to Chinese companies. LGE plans to launch more high-end digital products in China such as PDP-TVs, LCD monitors, large-screen TVs, and DVD players. For the white goods market, the company plans to increase its local production, improve its price competitiveness, and localize the designs of its products. Since China's accession to the WTO (World Trade Organization), the country's investment environment has improved. LGE announced several new strategies following a recent visit to China by the company's president, Bon-mu Ku's. These include the setting up of a local design center, and plans to transfer some domestic production facilities and to solve the local supply problem of components and raw materials. In the past, LGE returned all profits from the China market to its headquarters in Korea, but now all such profits are to be reinvested locally. Partnerships LGE has entered into strategic partnerships in China with several local companies, including Changhong and Langchao. In its partnership with Changhong, in the electrical appliance business, LGE will support the Chinese company in software development, network technologies, and new material development. Changhong has already started working on several products under the partnership, including digital TVs, network products, information electric home appliances and infrastructure research. LGE has recently announced the inauguration of Langchao LG Digital Mobile Communication Co Ltd (See Photo), a CDMA handset joint venture in the city of Jinan in Shandong province, making it the first Korean company to establish a joint venture for the production of CDMA handsets in China. LGE plans to expand its production of CDMA handsets in China. "Our goal is to make LGE the leading handset provider in China's CDMA market," said Kihong Suh, executive vice president of LGE Mobile Handset Co. He also wants to make LG the top brand for high-end CDMA handsets in China. As part of its efforts to expand its CDMA handset business in China, LGE plans to invest a total of US$15 million in the joint venture this year, with an additional US$4.5 million for the construction of CDMA handset R&D, production/sales, and customer service facilities. Featuring WAP (Wireless Application Protocol) functions and support for the UIM (User Identity Module) card, the CDMA handsets made by LGE's joint venture in China are receiving a favorable response from Chinese consumers. LGE plans to add six or seven new models to its product line in the near future to cater to different customer needs. At the same time, it will diversify its product line in preparation for the upcoming color and cdma2000 1x handsets markets. Recently, the Chinese government lowered customs duties on certain CKD (complete knock-down) electronics products from 7% to 0%, and on certain SKD (semi-knockdown) products from 12% to 3%. It has been suggested that directly exporting products to China may be even more profitable than producing them locally. "Although with China's WTO entry, exports to China should be easier, there are still obstacles in the export of finished products to China," said an LG Electronics executive. by Luz Park, Seoul (April 2002 Issue, Nikkei Electronics Asia)