Korea seeks carbon neutrality through LG, SK’s biodegradable plastic

South Korea has rolled up its sleeves to support the domestic biodegradable plastic industry to address carbon-intensive plastic products and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. According to the recent “White Biotechnology Industry Revitalization Strategy” released by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the government will create demand for biodegradable plastic products, which are two to three times more expensive than conventional plastic items. The fall in prices of oil a

IndustryDec. 9, 2020

S-Oil awards 8 heroic firefighters for 2020

S-Oil said Wednesday it had delivered 90 million won ($82,300) to eight firefighters for heroic actions. At an annual Hero Firefighters Award Ceremony held at its headquarters in Mapo-gu, western Seoul, the South Korean refinery and the Korea National Council for Social Welfare delivered award plaques of appreciation and cash awards to the eight awardees as part of its firefighter support campaign. Lee Sung-ha from Incheon Central Fire Station received the top award and 20 million won. Lee dis

IndustryDec. 9, 2020

New era for online ID certifications opens

The public online identification system, which has reigned as the single dominant security platform for online transactions here, will lose its legal, official status from Thursday, opening up a new market for private digital certificates providers, the government said Wednesday. “With the effectuation of the revised Electronic Signature Act on Dec. 10, the system will lose its official status given by the government,” the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Ministry of the Interi

TechnologyDec. 9, 2020

Expectations grow for Samsung’s expansion in US

Samsung Electronics may be considering ramping up its Austin, Texas-based semiconductor factory as part of efforts to strengthen its foothold in the foundry market, according to industry sources on Wednesday. Expectations are growing as Samsung seeks a zoning change for plots of land near its Austin campus it purchased in late October. Samsung Austin Semiconductor has filed a request with the Austin City Council for a rezoning of some 205 acres of the 258-acre land, which is about 104,089 sq

TechnologyDec. 9, 2020

Seoul stocks close at record high on vaccine hopes, US stimulus talks

South Korean stocks closed at an all-time high Wednesday, driven by progress of COVID-19 vaccines amid optimism over US stimulus talks. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 54.54 points, or 2.02 percent, to close at 2,755.47. Trading volume was high at about 1.2 billion shares worth some 16.8 trillion won ($15.5 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 658 to 192. Foreigners bought a net 162 billion won, while retail investo

MarketDec. 9, 2020

Posco Chemical to supply cathodes for LG-GM EV battery joint venture

Posco Chemical Co., an affiliate of South Korea's steel giant Posco Group, said Wednesday it will provide a key element for Ultium Cells' rechargeable batteries for electric vehicles (EVs). Posco Chemical said it will supply cathodes, one part of lithium-ion batteries used in EVs, to Ultium Cells, a battery joint venture of American automaker General Motors Co. and South Korean chemical firm LG Energy Solution Ltd. The two companies will separately negotiate a supply deal of anode, a key mater

IndustryDec. 9, 2020

Shinhan Financial to gain full ownership of Neoplux

South Korea’s financial behemoth Shinhan Financial Group is slated to gain full ownership of its newly-acquired subsidiary Neoplux -- a former venture capital arm under Doosan Group -- as soon as the two sides complete a small-scale stock exchange at the end of this month, a filing showed Wednesday.  According to DART, the Financial Supervisory Service’s electronic disclosure board, the banking giant will carry out the small-scale stock exchange with Neoplux on Dec. 30. Starti

MarketDec. 9, 2020

Chiefs of 20 conglomerates not registered as board members: regulator

The chiefs of 20 large business groups in South Korea, including top conglomerate Samsung Group, did not register themselves as board members of their affiliates, the antitrust regulator said Wednesday, a move widely seen as an attempt to avoid managerial responsibilities. As of May, the owners of Samsung, chemicals-to-construction conglomerate Hanwha, leading shipbuilder Hyundai Heavy Industries and 17 other conglomerates were not board members of the groups' affiliates, the Korea Fair Trade C

IndustryDec. 9, 2020

Samsung tops Russian smartphone market in Q3: report

Samsung Electronics Co. was the largest smartphone vendor in Russia in the third quarter of the year, beating its Chinese rival Huawei Technologies Co., a report showed Wednesday. Samsung accounted for 28.4 percent of smartphone sales in Russia in the July-September period, edging out Huawei by 2.9 percentage points, according to market researcher Counterpoint Research. China's Xiaomi Corp. came in third with a 22.6 percent share in the third quarter, followed by Apple Inc. with a 9.2 percent

IndustryDec. 9, 2020

[Herald Interview] Korea eyes how to revitalize aviation industry

The year 2020 has been one marred by a global pandemic. For the aviation industry, it was a time of unseen hardships. Countries around the world took a different approach to the virus crisis as some tried to maintain the flow of people while others were quick to close down the borders. South Korea‘s strategy was to balance the two apporaches, said Kim Sang-do, deputy minister for civil aviation at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. “We did a great job preemptive

MobilityDec. 9, 2020

Mirae Asset’s ETF listed on Vietnamese stock market

An exchange-traded fund operated by the Vietnam branch of South Korea‘s leading asset management firm Mirae Asset Global made a market debut in the Southeast Asian country‘s stock market, the company said Wednesday. The so-called Mirae Asset VN30 Exchange Traded Fund is designed to invest in 30 blue-chip Vietnamese companies, including Vingroup Joint Stock Company, Vietcombank and Vinamilk. Its shares account 76 percent of the total market capitalization of the nation’s public

MarketDec. 9, 2020

Kia Motors workers to strike again for three days

Kia Motors’ labor union on Wednesday began a partial strike, its third collective action this year, following the collapse of negotiations over wages and other issues a day earlier. Lost production from strikes this year is expected to exceed 30,000 vehicles. Representatives of the management and the union held talks for two days, but failed to reach a compromise. Following the talks’ collapse at midnight Tuesday, the union decided to cut work short by four hours per day for three

MobilityDec. 9, 2020

Conglomerates spent more on R&D this year despite pandemic

Faced with growing market uncertainties stemming from the pandemic, large companies in South Korea expanded their research and development investment to secure future growth engines. Samsung Electronics and Naver led the way, data showed Wednesday. According to an analysis conducted by Seoul-based corporate tracker CEO Score of 217 of the nation’s top 500 companies by revenue, the companies’ total aggregate R&D spending came to 40 trillion won ($36 billion) from January to Sept

IndustryDec. 9, 2020

Samsung ranks fourth in Q3 wearables market: report

Samsung Electronics Co. was the fourth-largest vendor of wearable devices in the third quarter of the year, a market report showed Wednesday, amid soaring global demand for wearables. Samsung shipped 11.2 million units of wearable devices in the July-September period, up 32.2 percent from a year earlier, for a market share of 9 percent, according to the latest report from market tracker International Data Corp. (IDC). "Samsung's strategy to attack the earwear market with multiple brands

IndustryDec. 9, 2020

Korean Air completes first cold-chain delivery of COVID-19 vaccine materials

In a country first, Korean Air transported raw materials used to make COVID-19 vaccine from Korea to the Netherlands on Tuesday, the company said Wednesday. The South Korean flag carrier used a cold-chain system to deliver the packages weighing 800 kilograms, including containers and dry ice. Of the 800 kilograms, 208 kilograms is dry ice in special containers to keep temperatures below minus 60 degrees Celsius for some 120 hours – a threshold required to safely transport raw materials f

MobilityDec. 9, 2020

Banks' household loan growth accelerates in November on home-backed lending

South Korean banks' household loans continued to grow at a faster clip in November, fueled by the strong growth of non-mortgage loans, central bank data showed Wednesday. The value of outstanding bank loans to local households came to 982.1 trillion won ($905.3 billion) as of end-November, up 13.6 trillion won from the previous month, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). The November reading, which is compared with a 10.6 trillion-won gain in October, marked the highest monthly

EconomyDec. 9, 2020

No. of newly established firms rises by most in 5 years in 2019

The number of newly establishment companies in South Korea increased by the most in five years in 2019, with one in four new entities engaged in the real estate business, data showed Wednesday. Last year, the number of newly created firms reached a record 997,000, up 77,000 or 8.4 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. It marked the largest on-year increase since 2014, when such firms grew by 94,000, according to the statistics agency. Of the newly cr

IndustryDec. 9, 2020

Samsung accounts for 10% of global feature phone market in Q3: report

Samsung Electronics Co. accounted for 10 percent of the global feature phone market in the third quarter of the year, a report showed Wednesday, amid the decline of the sector. Global feature phone shipments declined 17 percent on-year to 74 million units in the July-September period, according to market researcher Counterpoint Research. Samsung had a 10 percent share in the feature phone market in the third quarter, sharing third place with China's Tecno Mobile, a subsidiary of Transsion Gr

IndustryDec. 9, 2020

Steel, autos among beneficiaries of mega trade pact

South Korea said Wednesday it will make efforts to help local exporters utilize a mega trade pact accounting for one-third of the world's gross domestic product, hinting the deal could give a boost to the steel and automobile segments. "Amid the growing uncertainties stemming from COVID-19 and protectionism, the RCEP will grant exporters access to new markets, along with unified trade rules," the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said in a statement. In November, members of ASEA

EconomyDec. 9, 2020

S. Korea's agricultural exports up 7% through Nov.: data

South Korea's agricultural exports rose nearly 7 percent on-year over the January-November period, data showed Wednesday, setting a fresh high despite the new coronavirus pandemic. Outbound shipments of agricultural products came to $6.8 billion over the first 11 months of 2020, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. The segment was among a handful of winners in South Korean exports, which suffered from the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pand

EconomyDec. 9, 2020