[NewsSpace=JeongYoung Kim] The combined stock value of the top executives from 33 major domestic conglomerates increased by more than 1.4 trillion KRW in the first half of the year. Lee Jae-Yong, Chairman of Samsung Electronics, secured the top position with a stock wealth approaching 13 trillion KRW.

According to a survey conducted by the Korean CXO Research Institute on "Stock Valuation Changes among Major Group Executives as of June 2023, compared to early January," the survey covered 33 executives from conglomerates regulated by the Fair Trade Commission, whose stock valuation exceeded 100 billion KRW as of the end of June this year.

According to the survey results, the stock valuation of the 33 group executives was evaluated at 46.4 trillion KRW in early January and increased to 47.9 trillion KRW by the end of June. In terms of amount, it increased by more than 1.45 trillion KRW, representing a growth rate of around 3.1%. Among the 33 executives, 19 experienced an increase in stock valuation, while 14 saw a decrease.

The executive with the highest increase in stock valuation in the first half of the year was identified as Chairman Lee Woo-hyun of OCI. Chairman Lee held shares in only one company, OCI, during the first quarter, but after a corporate split, he currently holds shares in both OCI Holdings and OCI. His stock valuation increased by 48.3% from around 93.9 billion KRW in January to over 139.2 billion KRW by the end of June.

DB Founder and Chairman Kim Jun-Ki also saw a significant increase of 40.4% in his stock valuation. Kim holds shares in DB, DB HiTek, DB Insurance, and DB Financial Investment as of the end of June. His stock valuation rose from over 353.2 billion KRW in January to more than 496.1 billion KRW by the end of June. The significant increase in DB HiTek's stock price, which rose by over 70%, and the 17% increase in DB Insurance's stock price had a significant impact.

Chairman Lee Soo-Hyung of SeAH Steel also experienced a substantial increase of approximately 32.3% in his stock wealth during the first half of the year. His stock valuation rose from around 140.1 billion KRW in January to over 185.3 billion KRW by the end of June, an increase of over 45.2 billion KRW in just six months. Chairman Lee holds shares in SeAH Holdings, SeAH Steel, SeAH Besteel Holdings, and SeAH Besteel.

Chairman Cho Won-Tae of Hanjin Group also saw his stock wealth increase by around 31% during the first half of the year. His stock valuation rose from 138.5 billion KRW in January to 181.5 billion KRW by the end of June, an increase of more than 43 billion KRW. Chairman Cho holds shares in Hanjin Kal, Hanjin Kal Preferred Stock, Korean Air, Korean Air Preferred Stock, and other Hanjin stocks.

Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Eui-Sun's stock valuation also experienced a significant increase of 29.5% during the first half of the year. His stock valuation rose from around 2.82 trillion KRW in January to over 3.65 trillion KRW by the end of June. Chairman Chung holds shares in Hyundai Glovis, Hyundai Motor, Kia, and eight other stocks.

HL Chairman Jung Mong-Won also experienced a stock wealth increase of 21%, rising from 926 billion KRW in January to 1.121 trillion KRW by the end of June. HDC Chairman Jung Mong-Kyu also saw a significant increase of 20.7%, with his stock wealth rising from 1.576 trillion KRW to 1.902 trillion KRW.

The executive with the largest increase in stock wealth in the first quarter was Chairman Lee Jae-yong of Samsung Electronics. His stock wealth surged by over 1.401 trillion KRW in the past six months, increasing from 11.5969 trillion KRW in early January to 12.9984 trillion KRW by the end of June.

On the other hand, some executives experienced a decrease in stock wealth. Among the 33 group executives, 14 saw a decline in stock valuation from early January to the end of June. The group executive with the largest decrease was former Chairman Kim Ik-Rae of Daou Kiwoom. Kim's stock wealth plummeted by 61.5% within six months, from 354.3 billion KRW to 136.5 billion KRW.

Amorepacific Chairman Suh Kyung-Bae's stock valuation also experienced a significant decline of 25.7%, decreasing from 2.4362 trillion KRW to 1.8109 trillion KRW during the first half of the year. This was mainly due to the significant decrease in stock valuation of Amorepacific Group (down by 24.4%) and Amorepacific (down by 27.7%) shares held by Chairman Suh. Among the surveyed group executives, Suh's decreased stock wealth of over 625.3 billion KRW was the largest in terms of amount.

CJ Chairman Lee Jae-Hyun's stock valuation also dropped by 20.3%. His stock wealth decreased from 1.1102 trillion KRW in January to 884.5 billion KRW by the end of June, a decrease of over 220 billion KRW within six months. Chairman Lee holds shares in CJ, CJ CheilJedang, CJ ENM, CJ Freshway, and other stock companies, all of which experienced a decline in stock valuation during the first half of the year.

Lotte Chairman Shin Dong-Bin (down by 19.7%) and SK Chairman Chey Tae-Won (down by 19.6%) also saw their stock wealth decrease by around 19% during the first half of the year. Chairman Shin's stock valuation decreased from 711.9 billion KRW in January to 571.6 billion KRW by the end of June, with over 140 billion KRW lost in six months. Chairman Chey also experienced a decrease from 2.4022 trillion KRW to 1.9314 trillion KRW, a decrease of over 470 billion KRW during the same period.

Among the surveyed executives, there were 10 individuals who belonged to the "1 trillion KRW club" in terms of stock wealth as of the end of June. This number decreased by one compared to the 11 individuals at the beginning of the year.

Chairman Lee Jae-Yong of Samsung Electronics (12.9984 trillion KRW) took the top spot in terms of stock wealth, followed by Chairman Seo Jung-jin (8.7788 trillion KRW) and Co-Chairman of Celltrion, and Kim Beom-su (5.2226 trillion KRW), the Future Initiatives Center Director of Kakao, who ranked second and third, respectively.

In the 4th to 6th positions, it was ▲ Chairman Chung Eui-Sun of Hyundai Motor Group (3.6533 trillion KRW), ▲ Chairman Koo Kwang-Mo of LG (2.2085 trillion KRW), and ▲ Chairman Chey Tae-Won of SK Group (1.9314 trillion KRW). Following them were ▲ Chairman Suh Kyung-Bae of Amorepacific (1.8109 trillion KRW) in 7th place, ▲ Chairman Chung Mong-Joon of HDH (Hyundai Development Holdings) Foundation (1.2585 trillion KRW) in 8th place, ▲ Han Seong-Jin, the GIO (Global Investment Officer) of Naver (1.1205 trillion KRW) in 9th place, and ▲ Chairman Bang Joon-Hyuk of Netmarble (1.1178 trillion KRW) in 10th place.

It was confirmed that CJ Chairman Lee Jae-Hyun, whose stock wealth exceeded 1 trillion KRW until the end of March, dropped out of the "1 trillion KRW club" by the end of June.

According to this survey, the 33 group executives held around 110 individual stocks. Among them, it was found that the stock with the largest increase in share price from January 3rd to June 30th was 'DB' (up by 182.4%). Additionally, ▲ DB HiTek (up by 72.4%, from 36,600 KRW to 63,100 KRW), ▲ SeAH Besteel (up by 67.2%, from 15,400 KRW to 25,750 KRW), and ▲ Hyosung Heavy Industries (up by 54.6%, from 74,300 KRW to 114,900 KRW) also experienced an increase of over 50% in stock value per share in the past six months.