Research and development ( R & D ) expenditures of top five stock - market listed domestic companies have increased significantly in the first quarter of this year . According to the financial reports submitted to the Financial Supervisory Service ( FSS ) by the affiliates of the five major groups -- Samsung group , Hyundai Motor Company , SK Holdings , LG Corp . and Lotte -- their 30 affiliates were revealed to have spent in the previous quarter aggregate R & D expenditures of 2 . 89931 trillion won , up 8 . 02 percent from 2 . 61389 trillion won during the same period of last year . Such increase in R & D expenditures was manifested by the major groups ’ promises of investment expansion for facilities as well as research and development in line with the induction of the Lee Myung - bak administration . Ten listed affiliates of Samsung Group including Samsung Electronics Co . appropriated the largest domestic scale of 1 . 81692 trillion won for R & D expenditures -- up 4 . 08 percent from 1 . 745485 trillion won during the same period of last year . Seven listed affiliates of Hyundai Motor Company spent 49 . 384 billion won which is 14 . 5 percent increase compared to the same period of last year . Six listed affiliates of LG Corp . have spent 53 . 375 billion won , a whopping 21 . 2 percent increased form the same period of last year -- the steepest increase among the top five groups . Meanwhile , two listed affiliated of SK Holdings have appropriated 74 . 38 billion won for R & D expenditures -- down 4 . 03 percent from the last year . [ Eun - jung Kim / KHS ] [ ⓒ Maeil Business Newspaper & mk . co . kr , All rights reserved ]