S. KOREA PLANS TO HELP AILING CONSTRUCTION FIRMS
South Korea is considering providing
special loans and tax benefits to ailing construction firms on
condition they stop competing with each other for overseas
contracts, government officials said.
    They told Reuters, in order to benefit under the plan
companies would be obliged to give up their licences to bid for
foreign projects.
    Sources at the construction ministry said the ministry
plans to slash the number of building firms operating overseas
to between 20 and 25, from the current 41.
    The construction ministry sources said the construction
industry had begun to adapt to drastically reduced orders from
the Middle East.
    They said the government wanted to prevent further hardship
by reducing competion between South Korean firms. Already this
year 15 firms had relinquished their licences.
    Other government officials said new foreign construction
orders fell to 2.3 billion dlrs last year, from 4.6 billion in
1985. About 30,000 building workers were laid off in 1986, one
third of the total force.
    No further details of the proposed plan were available.
 REUTER
