The overseas subsidiaries of the nation’s top three shipbuilders were found to have debts of nearly five-point-four trillion won.
 
The online Korean portal Chaebol-dot-com announced on Sunday that 34 overseas subsidiaries of Hyundai Heavy Industries, Samsung Heavy Industries and Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering were estimated to have debts of nearly five-point-36 trillion won. That's up nearly 29 percent compared to 2010 when South Korean shipbuilders were thriving.
 
The debt ratio of the three companies’ overseas subsidiaries was found to stand at nearly 549 percent on average, or double the ratio posted five years ago.
 
As of last year, 16, or 47 percent of the three firms’ overseas subsidiaries were found to have impaired capital or a debt ratio of more than 200 percent.
 
The three shipbuilders are currently subject to corporate restructuring after suffering record losses.