Comprehensive paper company Hankuk Paper(027970) said on the 14th that operating profit in the second quarter rose 132% year over year to 4.7 billion won. Revenue for the period increased 15% to 220.4 billion won.
The improvement was driven by a rebound in the printing paper institutional sector and a turnaround to profit in the packaging institutional sector. Printing paper recovered on strong exports to North America, and the packaging institutional sector returned to the black in the second quarter on rising demand for packaging materials.
Profit-focused operations, improved price competitiveness, and internal efficiency also supported the results. The company strengthened customer service and quality and expanded after-sales support, while shortening delivery times through better supply chain management (SCM) and boosting production responsiveness through process efficiencies. In particular, as the effect of spreading fixed costs on increased export volume took hold, it led to an improvement in operating profit.
A Hankuk Paper official said, "We are strengthening quality and continuing process innovation to enhance market responsiveness," adding, "In the second half, we will move to expand sales centered on eco-friendly and high value-added products."