- The Seoul High Court has sentenced Jay Y. Lee, the de facto leader of Samsung Group, to 2.5 years in prison in a retrial of a case involving former President Park Geun-hye.
- Lee was found guilty of bribery, embezzlement and concealment of criminal proceeds (he was unexpectedly freed from jail in 2018 after a South Korean appeals court suspended his prior sentence).
- The risks of more prison time are casting a cloud over the sprawling conglomerate and its crown jewel, Samsung Electronics (OTC:SSNLF), whose annual revenue alone is equivalent to 12% of South Korea's GDP.
- The industry heavyweight closed the session down 3.4% in Korea, while related shares saw heavy losses. Samsung C&T sunk 6.8%, Samsung SDI (OTC:SSDIY) fell 4.2%, Samsung Heavy Industries declined 2.7% and Samsung Life Insurance (OTCPK:SSMMF) tumbled 5%.
- Reports recently have Intel talking with TSMC and Samsung as it decides how much production to outsource, a decision that is due when the company reports earnings on Jan. 21.