Of 677 Kospi members, 79 or 12 percent, earned more in profit from operation in the first half than the full 2021, with winners mostly in oil refining and full-services airline segment benefiting from post-pandemic business reopening.

Backed by surges in crude prices and refining margins, Korean oil refineries achieved remarkable performances. SK innovation reported an operating profit of 3.97 trillion won ($3.02 billion) in the first half, more than doubling 1.75 trillion it had earned for full 2021.

Its parent SK Inc. recorded 6.63 trillion won in operating profit during the same period, exceeding the previous year’s 4.93 trillion won. Its record-breaking earnings came from the strong performances of its subsidiaries, such as SK innovation and SK E&S.

SK’s first-half results beat past record annual earnings, but the winning streak would not be as hot as in the first half in the latter half due to softening in refining margin, said Kim Dong-yang, a researcher at NH Investment & Securities.

Hyundai Oilbank, an unlisted subsidiary of HD Hyundai, drove up the parent’s earnings, while GS Caltex bolstered is parent GS. HD Hyundai reported an operating profit of 2.40 trillion won, twice the full-year number of 2021, while GS posted 2.77 trillion won, above the last year’s 2.64 trillion won. SK discovery earned 146.9 billion won, also doubling full-year profit of last year, helped by the excellent performance of its subsidiary SK gas.

Full-services airliners Korean Air Lines reported 1.51 trillion won in operating profit and Asiana Airlines 283 billion won in the first half, exceeding their respective full-year profits of 1.4 trillion won and 98.2 billion won.

Samsung C&T, the 13th in market capitalization on the Kospi index, reported 1.97 trillion won in operating profit, almost 1.2 trillion won it had earned for full 2021, backed by good performances in its construction and fashion units.

By Park Yoon-ye and Jenny Lee

[ⓒ Pulse by Maeil Business Newspaper & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]