KT&G is set to strengthen its global leadership by diversifying beyond its traditional cigarette business into the heat-not-burn tobacco sector and e-cigarettes, in response to the rapidly changing market landscape.
"By fully leveraging our capabilities to develop overseas markets last year, the global cigarette division played a key role in driving the company’s overall profit growth," KT&G CEO Bang Kyung-man said during the general shareholders' meeting held Wednesday at the company’s Daejeon Talent Development Center.
"This year will be pivotal in securing long-term growth momentum. We will maximize profitability by reinforcing our core competitiveness, particularly in high-growth overseas markets."
In his first year as CEO, Bang led KT&G to achieve a record-high revenue of 5.9 trillion won ($4.04 billion) in 2023, marking a 0.8 percent increase from the previous year. Operating profit also rose 1.8 percent to 1.18 trillion won, marking the first time in four years that both revenue and operating profit grew simultaneously.
While acknowledging the challenges posed by the global economic slowdown and persistent inflation, Bang emphasized KT&G’s commitment to developing precise strategies and ensuring swift execution across all business sectors.
To further enhance shareholder value, the CEO pledged to actively implement a shareholder return policy, focusing on dividends as well as the repurchase and cancellation of treasury shares.
Meanwhile, KT&G has amended its articles of incorporation to eliminate the cumulative voting system for CEO appointments. Under the previous system, shareholders had voting rights proportional to the number of directors being elected, allowing them to concentrate votes on specific candidates.
“With this amendment, we expect shareholder opinions on CEO appointments to be more accurately reflected in the decision-making process,” a KT&G official said.
hykim@heraldcorp.com
