The chairman of South Korean conglomerate LG Group has died, company officials said Sunday. He was 73.

 

Koo Bon-moo is credited with expanding the business empire -- centered around consumer electronics, displays and chemicals -- founded by his grandfather in 1947.

 

During Koo's more than 20 years as top executive, sales increased dramatically, with LG Group posting 160 trillion won (US$148 billion) in sales last year, up from around 30 trillion won in 1994.

 

The entrepreneur was hospitalized last week after earlier undergoing brain surgery, but rejected life-prolonging treatments, Yonhap news agency cited company officials as saying.

 

Koo reportedly requested his adopted son, Koo Kwang-mo, succeed him to lead the family-controlled conglomerate.

 

The 40-year-old is the eldest son of Koo's younger brother but was adopted by the entrepreneur in 2004 after he lost his own son in a car accident in the 1990s.