Samyang Foods' growth is in the US and Europe. Its biggest new plant is in China.

Samyang Foods makes Buldak ramen. The instant noodle turned into a global export story. The financials have started to look like a different kind of company.

Capital spending on plant and equipment was ₩449.0 billion in 2025. Two years earlier it was ₩45.0 billion. Free cash flow was negative ₩139.7 billion in 2025, in the most profitable year the company has ever had. Financing inflows of ₩170.2 billion covered the gap.

The single largest project is a ₩201.4 billion plant in Jiaxing, China, opening January 2027. Its capacity of 840 million units a year is for Chinese shoppers.

That is the part worth arguing about. The demand story investors pay for is Western. The largest capital commitment is aimed at a market where local instant noodle competition is entrenched. A Korean brand has no structural advantage there.

Dividends paid in 2025 were ₩29.8 billion, or 7.7% of net income, against a market capitalisation of ₩10.7 trillion.

Two readings are available. Either management sees Chinese volume the export numbers do not yet show. Or a company that got rich on Western demand is building for the market it already knows how to reach.

Figures are from the company's DART filings.

(Written with AI assistance. No position, no rating, no price target.)