Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin is visiting the United States to meet executives of global partners to discuss ways to enhance cooperation and investments.

According to the group on Sunday, Shin left for the U.S. last Saturday as his overseas travel ban had been lifted in April 17. He was banned from leaving Korea for about ten months since July last year due to a series of prosecution investigations on charges of embezzlement and breach of trust, and possible involvement in the corruption scandal of former president Park Geun-hye and her friend Choi Soon-sil.

Shin plans to meet Hershey Co.’s chief executive officer John Bilbrey during the business trip, according to sources, in order to discuss the issue of Chinese authority’s suspension of a manufacturing facility of Lotte Shanghai Foods Corp., a joint venture of Lotte Confectionary Co. and Hershey Chocolate & Confectionery Corp., as part of the country’s retaliatory actions against Korea over its deployment of U.S. antimissile battery. Lotte imports and retails Hershey’s chocolate products in Korea and Japan.

Shin is also expected to meet IBM Corp.’s senior vice president Bruno Di Leo to talk about the so-called fourth industrial revolution and discuss ways to enhance partnership. Lotte signed a business agreement with the global tech giant to introduce Watson, a cognitive computing system, to incorporate artificial intelligence (AI) technology to its wide range of businesses.

He plans to meet executives of Axiall Corp. to discuss the joint project to construct an ethane cracker facility in Louisiana by 2018. He will also meet senior officials of global financial companies including Credit Swiss, JP Morgan and City Bank to come up with ways to increase investments.

He will visit Lotte New York Palace Hotel, a hotel the group acquired in August 2015 for $805 million, to examine sales and operation status quo.

By Park Eun-jin

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