Samsung affiliates to beef up compliance teams under CEOs

  Samsung Group on Thursday announced follow-up measures to “effectively beef up” compliance monitoring teams across its affiliates, including placing them under chief executives, with the intention of displaying its efforts to improve governance. A total of 11 affiliates -- including Samsung Electronics, Samsung SDI, Samsung C&T, Samsung Life Insurance and Samsung Heavy industries -- will introduce in-house compliance units at CEOs’ offices away from the current leg

IndustryJan. 30, 2020

Seoul saw increase in eco-friendly vehicles

The total number of vehicles licensed in Seoul last year saw a decrease for the first time in seven years while the number of eco-friendly cars increased, government data showed Thursday.  The number of vehicles registered in Seoul stood at 3.12 million last year, down 0.02 percentage point from a year earlier, according to the statistics from the Seoul Metropolitan Government. The number of hybrid vehicles, electric vehicles and hydrogen vehicles in Seoul skyrocketed by 21 percent, 56

Social AffairsJan. 30, 2020

Top court orders review of 'artist blacklist' ruling

South Korea's top court ordered a review of an earlier ruling that handed down prison terms to senior aides of ousted former President Park Geun-hye, citing the need to scrutinize their alleged power abuse. The Seoul High Court in January 2018 handed down jail terms to Kim Ki-choon and Cho Yoon-sun for keeping a secret register and giving disadvantages to artists who were deemed critical of the conservative president. The court sentenced Kim, former chief of staff, to four years in prison, an

Social AffairsJan. 30, 2020

BOK not mulling further rate cut over coronavirus: official

The nation’s central bank is not considering additional rate cuts to counter the potential impact of the Wuhan coronavirus on the Korean economy, a senior official said Thursday. “We need to keep monitoring the outbreak. Although it is expected to affect sentiment and the market, including the country’s economic growth, consumer prices and current account, it’s too early to predict the extent of its impact,” Yoon Myun-shik, senior deputy governor of the Bank of K

EconomyJan. 30, 2020

Investments in Korean startups hit record high

The startup market here saw record investments of 4.28 trillion won ($3.61 billion) last year, according to the Ministry of SMEs and Startups on Thursday. The figure was up from 2.38 trillion won in 2017. Of the total, private funds invested 1.48 trillion won, or 35 percent, of money injected into the local startup industry. By segment, smart health care companies received 617.2 billion won, while sharing-economy businesses and financial technology firms attracted 276.1 billion won and 12

MarketJan. 30, 2020

[Photo News] Consumer agency compares UHD TVs of Samsung, LG

Korea Consumer Agency officials attend a press briefing on their review of the quality of UHD TVs at the government complex in Sejong on Thursday.  Their results showed LG’s organic light-emitting diode TV had better viewing angle and high-definition resolution than Samsung’s quantum-dot light-emitting diode TV. Both products met international standards of contrast modulation, the KCA said. (kaylalim@heraldcorp.com)

IndustryJan. 30, 2020

Naver’s sales surpass W6tr but profits down in 2019

Naver’s annual sales surpassed the 6 trillion won ($5.06 billion) mark for the first time in 2019, but its operating profit decreased due to the sluggish performance of Line and related platforms, according to a regulatory filing on Thursday. The South Korean internet giant’s annual sales totaled 6.59 trillion won, marking an 18 percent increase. The figure is four times greater than that of 2015, 3.25 trillion won. However, Naver’s operating profit fell to 710 billion won

IndustryJan. 30, 2020

Median apartment price in Seoul jumps 50% under Moon govt

The median price of apartments in Seoul surpassed the 900 million won ($760,000) threshold in January for the first time, according to commercial bank KB Kookmin Bank on Thursday. The bank’s monthly report on real estate prices showed that the median price of Seoul apartments reached 912.2 million won as of this month, a record high since comparable data started to be compiled in December 2008. A housing unit with a market value of 900 million won or more, categorized as an “exp

MarketJan. 30, 2020

SuperM to appear on 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' show next month

K-pop boy band SuperM will appear on American TV show "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" next month to promote its Billboard-topping album, according to the band's management agency on Thursday. The septet is scheduled to hit the late night talk show from US broadcaster ABC on Feb. 11 and perform "Jopping," a track from the band's first EP, "SuperM," according to SM Entertainment. The self-titled album topped the Billboard 200 chart in mid-October. This is the band's latest

K-popJan. 30, 2020

Hanmi’s hypertension drugs post 14% growth in revenue

Hanmi Pharmaceutical said Thursday its high blood pressure treatments notched 14 percent revenue growth in 2019, raking in 153 billion won ($129 million) and dominating the market in South Korea. The company said that its 15 types of combination molecules for treating hypertension, all independently developed, accounted for 8.3 percent of the entire Korean high blood pressure treatment market last year which amounted to 1.8 trillion won.  These treatments include the three Amozaltan drug

IndustryJan. 30, 2020

S. Korea enjoys trade surplus of $71.5b with FTA partners

South Korea enjoyed a surplus of $71.5 billion in trade with free trade agreement partners in 2019, data showed Thursday. The country suffered a deficit of $32.4 billion from trade with non-FTA partners, according to the data compiled by the Korea Customs Service. Last year, South Korea posted a trade surplus for the 11th consecutive year at $39.1 billion. Outbound shipments to FTA partners also decreased at a slower pace of 9.2 percent on-year to $398.4 billion in 2019, compared with the de

EconomyJan. 30, 2020

Korean firms help to fight coronavirus outbreak

South Korean companies said Thursday they are lending a helping hand to fight the outbreak of new coronavirus in China, the nation’s top export destination. The nation’s largest automaker Hyundai Motor Group was one of the first firms to decide on delivering donations to Wuhan, the epicenter of the new coronavirus outbreak in Hubei province. The firm said it would deliver medical goods and donations totaling 15 million yuan ($2.2 million) to help Chinese people affected by the ep

IndustryJan. 30, 2020

Koreas to temporarily close inter-Korean liaison office over virus

South Korea and the North will temporarily suspend the operation of the inter-Korean liaison office in the border town of Kaesong, amid concerns about the rapid spread of Wuhan coronavirus. 　 The shutdown decision was made after negotiations between the representatives of both countries earlier Thursday morning, the Unification Ministry here said. The office will close down for an unspecified time, until the threat of the spread of the newly identified virus disappears. 　 Fifty-eight South Ko

North KoreaJan. 30, 2020

Samsung maintains No. 1 smartphone vendor status in 2019: data

Samsung Electronics Co. maintained its status as the world's top smartphone vendor last year, industry data showed Thursday, although its fourth-quarter shipments were behind Apple Inc. Samsung shipped 295.1 million smartphones around the globe in 2019, taking a 20.9 percent market share, according to data from market researcher Strategy Analytics. In 2018, Samsung claimed the No. 1 position with a 20.3 percent market share after shipping 291.3 million smartphones. "Samsung continues

IndustryJan. 30, 2020

Banks' lending rates slightly up in Dec.

Lending rates on fresh loans extended by banks in South Korea slightly rebounded in December from a month earlier, central bank data showed Thursday. The average interest rate on all new loans extended by banks on households in the month came to 2.98 percent, up 0.02 percentage point from the month before, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea. The rate on all outstanding loans averaged 3.4 percent last month, down 0.02 percentage point from November. The average rate on fresh

EconomyJan. 30, 2020

Rice consumption dips to all-time low in 2019

South Korea's per capita annual rice consumption fell to a record low in 2019 amid changes in diet and eating habits, data showed Thursday. Per capita average annual rice consumption hit a fresh low of 59.2 kilograms last year, down 3 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. It marked the first time for the amount to fall below the 60-kilogram threshold. Rice is a key staple food for Koreans, but its consumption has been on a steady decline since 1980,

IndustryJan. 30, 2020

Korean Air chief to accompany chartered flight to Wuhan

Hanjin Group Chairman and Korean Air CEO Cho Won-tae will be onboard the chartered flight that the government has arranged to bring back South Korean citizens from Wuhan, China, industry sources said Thursday. The government plans to send chartered flights of Korean Air’s A330 and B747 which can seat around 300 and 400 people, respectively, on Thursday and Friday, to bring back some 700 Koreans from Wuhan, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak. The first of the four flights was set

MobilityJan. 30, 2020

Moon vows all-out efforts against new coronavirus, warns against fake news

President Moon Jae-in assured South Korean people Thursday that his government will take every necessary measure to contain the outbreak of a new deadly coronavirus and threatened strict steps against related fake news. "There can be no compromise on the safety of the people," he said in televised remarks, presiding over an inter-agency meeting in Seoul on the country's response to the virus, which originated in China. He urged the authorities here to be fully prepared for all scena

Social AffairsJan. 30, 2020

Samsung’s earnings nosedive on weak chip, display markets in 2019

Samsung Electronics posted a 52.84 percent on-year decline in operating profit in 2019 due to the sluggish memory and display panel markets, according to its earnings report released Thursday. However, prospects for the largest South Korean tech giant this year are bright going by its better-than-expected performance in the fourth quarter, company officials said during an earnings conference call. Overall, the company recorded 230.4 trillion won ($194.85 billion) in sales last year, down 5.

TechnologyJan. 30, 2020

[News Focus] North Korean defectors see household debt surge

SEJONG -- The number of defectors from North Korea over the past decades came to 33,300 in the South -- 9,300 men and 24,000 women -- as of December. The Ministry of Unification’s data showed that the number of North Korean defectors has increased since 2002, while the prior combined figure was 1,990. A noteworthy point is that the number of female refugees is far outstripping men’s tally at the current stage -- it was below 50 percent before 2002. The percentage of women poste

EconomyJan. 30, 2020