BTS agency listed amid fanfare on stock market

Big Hit Entertainment, the management agency of K-pop superstars BTS, debuted on South Korea's main bourse on Thursday, building a valuation higher than the country's next three largest entertainment companies combined. Big Hit shares opened at 270,000 won ($236) on Thursday on the Korea Exchange and jumped by the daily upper limit of 30 percent to 351,000 won three minutes after market opening. The stocks closed at 258,000 won, down 4.4 percent from the starting price. Still, the closing pr

MarketOct. 15, 2020

Bentley Motors Korea unveils revamped Flying Spur V8 in Korea

Bentley Motors Korea unveiled Wednesday the revamped luxury sports sedan Flying Spur with the popular V8 powertrain, for the first time in South Korea. 　 In a media preview event held at a hotel in Gangnam, southern Seoul on Oct. 8, the head of Bentley Motors Korea Warren Clarke presented the Flying Spur V8 and also revealed the company’s brand strategy for the upcoming years. Prior to the global launch this week, Bentley Motors Korea ran a private preview event to allow a peek for pros

MobilityOct. 14, 2020

Mercedes-Benz Korea launches best-selling revamped E-Class

The game is back on between import vehicle archrivals, intensified by Mercedes-Benz Korea’s release of the newest E-Class this week. To drive away the enthusiastic runner up BMW and to maintain its position as Korea’s favorite imported car brand, Mercedes-Benz has returned with a revamped version of the best-selling model Tuesday. The new E-Class is a revamped version of the 10th-generation model, which the automaker hailed for having achieved a “monumental milestone”

MobilityOct. 14, 2020

Hyundai Motor stocks unmoved by leadership change

Stock prices of Hyundai Motor Group’s affiliates remained largely unfazed by the announcement of the South Korean conglomerate welcoming Chung Euisun as its new chairman on Wednesday, except for Hyundai Glovis, a subsidiary controlled by the new leader. Stock in the group’s crown jewel, Hyundai Motor Company, ended 0.56 percent lower at 178,000 won ($155.16) while that of Hyundai Mobis, an automotive parts company, ended 1.7 percent lower at 231,500 won. The conglomerate’s oth

MarketOct. 14, 2020

[News Focus] Chung Mong-koo: The man who made Hyundai Motor global

Chung Mong-koo led Hyundai Motor Group for two decades as chairman and CEO before stepping down Wednesday. As his only son, Chung Euisun, takes over the world’s fifth-largest automaker, the elder Chung, who has now become an honorary chairman of the automotive company, is leaving behind a legacy. As the son of the late Hyundai Group founder Chung Ju-yung, Chung Mong-koo joined Hyundai Motor Company in 1970 as an auto parts manager at its Seoul office. He became the chairman of Hyundai M

IndustryOct. 14, 2020

[News Focus] Chung Euisun moving Hyundai Motor Group toward future mobility

Chung Euisun, who took the helm of the country’s No. 1 automotive company, Hyundai Motor Group, Wednesday, has shown strong and progressive leadership over the past two years. Born in 1970 as the only son of Hyundai Group leader Chung Mong-koo, who is now honorary chairman, Chung Euisun majored in business administration at Korea University before entering group affiliate Hyundai Precision and Industries, now Hyundai Mobis, in 1994. Chung Euisun has since accumulated experience in vari

MobilityOct. 14, 2020

LG Chem to offer cash dividends to soothe retail investors

LG Chem said Wednesday it will offer cash dividends of at least 10,000 won ($8.70) per common share over the next three years as part of an effort to promote shareholder value. The South Korean battery giant last month decided to split off its promising battery business division as a wholly-owned subsidiary LG Energy Solution. The decision triggered fierce resistance from retail investors, many of whom invested in LG Chem for its battery business. “To apply the same dividend criteria af

IndustryOct. 14, 2020

S. Korea to lower market threshold for newlyweds, first-time homebuyers

South Korea will alleviate the requirements to qualify for housing subscriptions, in a move to lower the market entry barrier for young non-homeowners, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Wednesday. The government expects that the revised set of rules will allow up to 92 percent of newlyweds and first-time homebuyers to apply for newly built houses. “(The government) will seek to further alleviate the income rule in the special housing supply for first-time bu

EconomyOct. 14, 2020

Hyundai Motor’s journey from 1940s to 2020

Though founded in 1967, Hyundai Motor’s origins date back to 1940s, when entrepreneur named Chung Ju-yung established Hyundai Auto Service in Seoul after Korea was liberated from Japanese colonial rule in 1946. Along with the Hyundai Auto Service, Chung established Hyundai Engineering and Construction in 1947 to help South Korea rebuild and industrialize after the liberation. However, the Korean War broke out in 1950, forcing Chung to abandon his businesses in Seoul and evacuate to B

IndustryOct. 14, 2020

Korean Air extends paid leave until December on pandemic

Korean Air Lines Co., South Korea's biggest carrier, said Wednesday it will have 70 percent of its employees go on unpaid leave until December due to the prolonged coronavirus impact on the airline industry. In April, the national flag carrier had 70 percent of its 18,000-strong workforce take paid leave for six months through Oct. 15 as part of self-help measures to overcome the unprecedented virus crisis.  With no end in sight for the COVID-19 pandemic, Korean Air has decided to exten

EconomyOct. 14, 2020

LG Innotek develops advanced ferrite for slimmer TVs, lighter EVs

LG Innotek, the high-tech parts making unit of LG Group, said Wednesday the company has developed a “highly efficient” ferrite material to be used for ultra slim TVs and vehicles. Ferrite, made of iron oxide power, is used to change voltage in power modules for TVs and on board chargers in vehicles. As home appliances including TVs and electric vehicles go slimmer and lighter, the ferrite has become a viable material. LG’s ferrite can make power modules for TVs as thin as

TechnologyOct. 14, 2020

Samsung heir meets ASML head to enhance cooperation

Samsung Electronic Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong met top executives of Dutch semiconductor equipment provider ASML, the company said Wednesday. Lee held a meeting with Peter Wennink, ASML’s chief executive officer, and Martin van den Brink, chief technology officer, in which they discussed supply and operation plans for extreme ultraviolet equipment that is needed for production of chips on 7-nanometer processes and below. They also talked about increasing cooperation on next-generation

TechnologyOct. 14, 2020

Korea’s trend expert defines 2021 as ‘Cowboy Hero’

Kim Ran-do, renowned scholar on fast-emerging trends in South Korea, has defined the year 2021 as “Cowboy Hero” as he announced 10 key words for next year that would continue to be affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Through an online lecture live-streamed on YouTube to mark publication of his latest publication Trend Korea 2021 late Tuesday, the professor from Seoul National University created the term “Cowboy Hero” from the initial letters of 10 key phrases. “W

IndustryOct. 14, 2020

Seoul stocks tumble almost 1% over virus scare

South Korean shares dipped nearly 1 percent Wednesday as a new coronavirus cluster infection threatened hopes for quick economic recovery. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 22.67 points, or 0.94 percent, to close at 2,380.48. Trading volume was moderate at about 880 million shares worth some 10.5 trillion won ($9.2 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 638 to 227. Foreigners sold a net 38 billion won and institutions o

MarketOct. 14, 2020

Starbucks Korea kicks off 2nd round of support for middle-aged entrepreneurs

Starbucks Coffee Korea is accepting applications for the second round of its program to support people in their 40s or older who are looking for opportunities to reopen their stores. Starbucks Coffee Korea‘s support program is a joint project with the Ministry of Startups and SMEs and the Small Enterprise And Market Service, dedicated to supporting troubled small business owners who have recently closed their businesses. Applicants accepted to the program will go through 16 hours of b

IndustryOct. 14, 2020

High-income earners dodge national pension subscription

The amount of national pension premiums unpaid by high income-earners in South Korea totaled nearly 1 trillion won ($871 million) as of June this year, data showed Wednesday. According to a report from the National Pension Service submitted to the ruling Democratic Party Rep. Jung Choun-sook, a total of 198,399 high earners left their subscription fees to the state-run pension program unpaid, up around 20,000 from six months earlier. Of the accumulated amount, only 6.5 percent, or 71.33 billi

EconomyOct. 14, 2020

BOK keeps interest rate unchanged

South Korea’s central bank on Wednesday kept its benchmark interest rate anchored near 0.5 percent, hinting that it is treading cautious steps not to further aggravate the nation’s loan and housing markets, amid the coronavirus pandemic. The Bank of Korea’s seven-member monetary policy board unanimously voted to hold the base rate at a record low rate, maintaining the decision it had made in late May. The board slashed the rate by a whopping 0.5 of a percentage point to 0.75

EconomyOct. 14, 2020

Air quality improves in Korea during China lockdown: lawmaker

South Korea saw a 25 percent decline in airborne nitrogen dioxide levels between January and May from the previous three-year average, a lawmaker said Wednesday, attributing the decline to coronavirus lockdowns in China. Rep. Jang Chul-min of the Democratic Party cited Korea Environment Corp. data available on AirKorea that showed Korea’s average concentrations of nitrogen dioxide, a key air pollutant, during the first five months of this year reached 0.017 parts per million, 25.4 percen

TechnologyOct. 14, 2020

KB, SC Bank, Mirae Asset Daewoo get top grades in governance, ESG

    Standard Chartered Bank Korea, KB Financial Group and Mirae Asset Daewoo were recognized for their best practices in corporate governance and ESG management, respectively, the companies said Wednesday.  SC Bank Korea, wholly owned by London-based Standard Chartered Bank, received the “A+” rating for a second consecutive year in the Korea Corporate Governance Service‘s corporate governance evaluation on companies‘ shareholder-friendly approach an

MarketOct. 14, 2020

S. Korea continues efforts to stabilize FX markets

SEJONG -- South Korea's vice finance minister said Wednesday that the government has continued efforts to stabilize foreign exchange markets, citing the "relatively speedy" strength of the Korean currency against the US dollar. Vice Finance Minister Kim Yong-beom made the remarks at a policy meeting, as the won has been recently trading at a level of 1,140 won against the US dollar, compared with a level of 1,180 won in mid-September. "The won's strength appears to be relative

EconomyOct. 14, 2020