[THE INVESTOR] Air Busan, one of Korea’s low-cost carriers, has applied for a preliminary screening of its planned initial public offering, an official of the country’s bourse operator said on Sept. 13.

The budget unit of Asiana Airlines, the country’s second-biggest full-service carrier, could win approval from the Korea Exchange by November if there are no problems, the source said.

The carrier, if approved, could debut on the main KOSPI market either in December or early next year, he said.

Details on the price band were not immediately available.

Last year, Air Busan’s net profit came to 28.5 billion won (US$25.30 million) on sales of 561.7 billion won.

The two lead managers, Mirae Asset Daewoo and NH Investment & Securities, have entered the process to list shares of the budget carrier on the Korea Exchange, according to Air Busan.

By Song Seung-hyun and newswires (ssh@heraldcorp.com)