Seoul, Oct 22 (IANS) Samsung Group’s entire market capitalisation surpassed 900 trillion won ($634.4 billion) for the first time on Wednesday, driven by semiconductor maker Samsung Electronics’ bullish run, data showed.

Samsung Group’s total market capitalisation stood at 907.9 trillion won ($634.4 billion), up 67 percent from 543.3 trillion won at the end of last year, according to the data from the Korea Exchange, reports Yonhap news agency.

The increase was largely attributed to a sharp increase in the share price of Samsung Electronics, which swelled 85.3 per cent from 53,200 won on Dec. 31 to 98,600 won on Wednesday.

Samsung Electronics’ share price rose sharply in recent weeks, boosted by a tech rally on Wall Street and a positive outlook for the chip sector amid a boom in the artificial intelligence (AI) market.

Meanwhile, Samsung SDI has partnered with the Korea Electrical Safety Corp. (KESCO) to cooperate in strengthening the safety of energy storage system (ESS) infrastructure amid an expected increase in demand for such equipment in the near future.

Under a memorandum of understanding (MOU), the two sides will cooperate on developing safety management policies and safety improvement measures for ESS and uninterruptible power supply (UPS) systems. They will also collaborate on accident prevention manuals and coordinated emergency response systems, while also working to encourage voluntary participation of users to install fire suppression and remote monitoring systems.

Samsung SDI and KESCO plan to form a working-level task force to produce specific implementation plans and establish a long-term cooperation framework.

The partnership comes as South Korea expects a rapid growth of its ESS market, in line with the government’s energy transition policy. “This agreement is an opportunity to extend our technological leadership to a broader social responsibility,” said Choi Joo-sun, chief executive officer (CEO) of Samsung SDI.

–IANS

na/