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Samsung Corp., the trading and construction arm of Samsung Group, said Tuesday it will enter Asia's freight security market by investing US$15 million in CommerceGuard AB, a global cargo security provider.

To that end, Samsung said it signed a contract with CommerceGuard, jointly owned by GE Security, a unit of General Electric Co., Japan's Mitsubishi Corp. and Germany's Siemens Building Technologies.

The contract gives the South Korean company CommerceGuard's business rights in 12 Asian nations, including South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia.

CommerceGuard provides a comprehensive security system that tracks international cargo, keeps out intrusions and enables automated customs clearance services, Samsung said.

"As the world increasingly braces for anti-terrorism and anti-smuggling measures, the outlook of the business is bright," Samsung said in a statement. "The security system will be initially introduced for freight shipping but is likely to be applied to air and ground transportation services." The global freight security market is estimated at $3 billion, including that of Asia, which makes up $600 million of the total.

The Asian market is expected to grow at a 10 percent annual rate, the company said.

Samsung is shooting for $10 billion or more in operating profit annually in the cargo security business beginning in 2010, it said.

The company predicted that it will soon be inevitable to have to provide enhanced protection for cargo headed to the United States since a new port security bill was signed into law recently that calls for greater security measures for containers entering U.S. ports.
Seoul, Oct. 31 (Yonhap News)