Rising interest rates reshuffle Korean market cap list

Rising interest rates amid a slowing global economy rattled South Korean companies’ market capitalization rankings, bumping online players such as leading online platform operator Naver Corp. off the top 10 list.

On the other hand, biopharmaceutical giant Celltrion Inc. returned to the list for the first time since December of last year amid hopes of strong quarterly earnings.

Naver’s market capitalization totaled 26.4 trillion won ($18.6 billion) on Thursday, becoming the 11th largest company in the country. The online behemoth, once the third most valuable firm in South Korea, has lost some 36 trillion won in its market cap so far this year.

Its domestic rival Kakao Corp., ranked the 13th biggest domestic company as its market cap has been shaved by some 60% to 21.7 trillion won from the end-2021 level.

Celltrion’s shares rose for a fifth straight session, raising its market cap to 26.8 trillion won, taking the No. 10 position from Naver in the ranking.

The biopharmaceutical company was forecast to report an operating profit of 207.2 billion won, up 26% from a year earlier, easing concerns over weak earnings and sluggish sales of its COVID-19 treatment.

Write to Eui-Myung Park at euimyung@hankyung.com
Jongwoo Cheon edited this article.