HDC appears to be on path to scrap Asiana deal

HDC Hyundai Development appears to be leaning toward scrapping its plan to acquire Asiana as it demanded another round of due diligence on the carrier amid the new coronavirus outbreak, industry sources said Monday. HDC said Sunday it has sent a letter to Kumho Industrial, which owns a 30.77% stake in Asiana, to demand the additional due diligence on the country's second-biggest carrier. "In the letter, we proposed (additional) due diligence on Asiana Airlines and its affiliates for 12 weeks from mid-August in order to review the acquisition terms amid worsening business environments due to the pandemic," a company official said over the phone. The proposal comes one month after HDC called for renegotiations with Asiana creditors over the acquisition terms, describing the ongoing virus crisis as a "never expected and very negative factor" that will affect its planned takeover of the debt-ridden carrier. HDC then cited Asiana's snowballing debts as another reason for renegotiations, noting that debts are "damaging the acquisition value of the carrier." In response to HDC's request, Asiana said it has made all-out efforts to help complete the MA deal and will continue to carry out what is necessary to finalize the deal.<br/>