(LEAD) HMM to relocate headquarters from Seoul to Busan

(LEAD) HMM-relocation

(LEAD) HMM to relocate headquarters from Seoul to Busan

(ATTN: ADDS more info in last 4 paras)

SEOUL, May 8 (Yonhap) -- HMM Co., South Korea's largest shipping company, said Friday its shareholders approved a plan to relocate the company's headquarters from Seoul to the southeastern port city of Busan.

The proposal was approved at an extraordinary shareholders' meeting after management and the labor union reached an agreement last week.

HMM said it plans to complete the necessary legal procedures within this month and move the chief executive office to Busan, about 330 kilometers southeast of Seoul, by the end of the year.

The relocation follows the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries' move from the administrative city of Sejong to Busan in December in line with President Lee Jae Myung's pledge to develop Busan into a major maritime hub in Northeast Asia.

Smaller shipping firms, including SK Shipping Co. and H-Line Shipping Co., have also decided to relocate their headquarters to Busan.

Lee has expressed hope that HMM's relocation would strengthen the competitiveness of South Korea's shipping industry and support balanced regional development, while pledging government support for the company's relocation plan.

Meanwhile, a special government team dispatched to Dubai to conduct a probe into the cause of the now-extinguished fire on HMM Namu, a Panama-flagged cargo ship operated by HMM, is expected to begin work shortly, according to Seoul government officials.

The ship arrived at Drydocks World Dubai, the largest ship repair yard in the Middle East, earlier in the day.

HMM Namu had suffered fire while it was stranded in the Strait of Hormuz Monday, the day the United States launched "Project Freedom" to help stranded vessels navigate through the strait amid the ongoing standoff between the U.S. and Iran. The incident raised conflicting claims about whether the fire was the result of an Iranian attack or an internal malfunction.

The investigation team plans to conduct on-site inspections, including an examination of the ship's voyage data recorder and closed-circuit television footage, as well as testimony from crew members, to figure out the exact cause of the incident, according to the officials.

HMM Co.'s headquarters office in western Seoul is seen in this photo taken May 6, 2026. (Yonhap)