Concentrate Fire on Lotte
Lotte under massive attacks by Chinese authorities and consumers for its provision of a site for the THAAD System in South Korea is seeing a sharp rise in its damage incurred by such attacks.
According to the Korean distribution industry on March 6, stores of Lotte Mart which were ordered to close down in China spiked to 23 in total. Considering that there are 99 Lotte Mart stores in China, one quarter of them were shut down. Most of the reasons for the suspension were violations of the Fire Fighting Act and the Facility Act.
"This month, Chinese authorities ordered the suspension of business in the form of official documents after checking shops," a Lotte official said.
The business suspension periods differ from store to store, but it is said that they are mostly about one month. Even though their business operations are suspended, it is possible to resume them by correcting their problems. But since the mood in China does not sit with Lotte, it is difficult to predict when to restart.
The Lotte Group’s distribution affiliates are operating conservatively 120 stores -- five department stores, 99 marts, and 16 supermarkets in China.