Esprit to buy goods from Korea

CLOTHING retailer Esprit Asia Holdings is to buy equipment and inventories worth $5.3 million from a South Korean-based sister company currently under liquidation.

In an announcement yesterday, Esprit Asia said it had agreed to the purchase from EDC (Korea), a 75-per cent-owned indirect subsidiary of its substantial shareholder Esprit Far East.

The retailer is buying the Korean company through a wholly owned subsidiary, Red Earth (Korea), which is Esprit's retailing arm in South Korea.

The directors ''consider that the equipment and inventories are useful to Red Earth and that they are reasonably priced''.

The announcement said a further agreement was also struck among the two Korean companies and Pickering International, the immediate holding company of EDC.

Under the agreement, the benefit of certain claims against Mr S. J. Kim, a former employee and 25 per cent minority shareholder of EDC, were assigned by EDC to Red Earth for 100 won (about 96 HK cents).