41.   During the campaign, Kim attacked the IMF agreement, in part because it would lead to takeovers of Korean companies.

42.   Even big Korean companies.

43.   Even in semiconductors, the Korean companies need to expand beyond memory chips.

44.   Few Korean companies have set up United States factories in the way that Japanese companies like Honda and Sony have.

45.   For example, Seoul is to lift the restrictions on foreign acquisition of Korean companies, if the takeovers are friendly mergers.

46.   GE and ABB-CENP are major clients of the Korean company.

47.   Government officials say the regulations will make Korean companies more financially sound by preventing them from aggressively investing overseas using borrowed money.

48.   GM has spent nearly two years negotiating to buy parts of the Korean company.

49.   He declined to comment further, saying that the matter pertained to individual Korean companies.

50.   He said a number of Korean companies were establishing manufacturing plants in its northern region.