Lotte Chemical, an ambitious South Korean company, is counting on mergers and acquisitions to help them expand during the coronavirus outbreak.

Lotte Group chairman Shin Dong-bin had been pursuing an ambitious plan to triple the conglomerate's revenue from its chemicals business over a 10-year period, putting it in competition with the likes of Dow and ExxonMobil Chemical, after years of turmoil punctuated by a family feud and a brie...