Seoul: Lotte Chemical Corp. announced the sale of its entire stake in its Pakistani subsidiary, Lotte Chemical Pakistan Ltd., for 98 billion won (US$67 million) as part of its business reorganization efforts. According to Yonhap News Agency, the company divested its 75.01 percent stake in the subsidiary, a producer of purified terephthalic acid, to PTA Global Holdings Ltd. This entity is a special purpose vehicle created by AsiaPak Investments Ltd., a Pakistani private equity fund, and Montage Commodities FZCO, a UAE-based petrochemical trading firm. Lotte Chemical, part of South Korea's Lotte Group, reported securing a total of 127.6 billion won from the subsidiary, including dividend income over the past three years. The sale aligns with the company's strategy to streamline its business portfolio, boost competitiveness in accordance with government-led industrial restructuring, and enhance financial stability by selling non-core assets. The company specializes in producing basic materials such as polyeth ylene and ethylene, which are essential in plastics and industrial chemicals used in sectors like construction and automotive. A company spokesperson stated that Lotte Chemical plans to focus on expanding its share of value-added materials, like high-performance engineering plastics, to improve profitability. For the January-September period, Lotte Chemical's net loss was reduced to 681.36 billion won from 881.14 billion won the previous year, aided by increased sales of high-end products.