Posco receives dividends worth W50b from Roy Hill

Posco, a South Korean steelmaker, said Thursday it received dividends of about 50 billion won ($42.6 million) from Roy Hill Holdings, which operates an iron ore mine in Australia. According to Posco, the Roy Hill Holdings board of directors agreed to start profit-sharing for the first time, seeing the improved financial solvency and profit. Hancock Prospecting owns 70 percent of Roy Hill Holdings, and the remainder of the shares is held through a consortium, in which Posco is included along w

IndustrySept. 24, 2020

Proptech startup Kasa Korea attracts W9.2b in pre-series B funding

Kasa Korea, a property technology startup, said Thursday it has raised some 9.2 billion won ($7.8 million) in a pre-series B funding round. The latest funding was led by the state-run Korea Development Bank. Silicon Valley venture capitals and domestic investment firms, including Northern Light Venture Capital, and Kona I Partners, participated in the fundraising round as financial investors and interior firm Kukbo Design was involved as a strategic partner. The proptech startup has so far

MarketSept. 24, 2020

Seoul stocks tumble to over 1-month low on withering global

South Korean shares plunged to a more than one-month low on Thursday, as investors turned risk-averse following overnight Wall Street decline over withering hopes of a quick economic recovery. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 60.54 points, or 2.59 percent, to close at 2,272.7. Trading volume was moderate at about 706 million shares worth some 12.3 trillion won ($10.5 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 831 to 68. Fo

MarketSept. 24, 2020

Asiana Airlines launches ‘hotel-like’ flights to nowhere

Asiana Airlines will offer a special two-hour flight to nowhere next month, becoming the first among local airliners to provide the service to ordinary customers. Known as the “hotel in the sky,” the airline’s A380 aircraft will fly out of Incheon Airport and travel over Gangneung in Gangwon Province, Pohang in North Gyeongsang Province, Gimhae in South Gyeongsang Province and Jeju Island, before coming back after a flight of one hour and 20 minutes on Oct. 24 and 25. Seats be

MobilitySept. 24, 2020

Ssangyong E&C chief travels to Dubai to oversee $1b hotel project

Chairman and CEO of Ssangyong Engineering & Construction Co. Kim Seok-joon is visiting Dubai in the midst of a pandemic to supervise the details of the company’s $1 billion Royal Atlantis Hotel project, the company said Thursday. Kim, who left for the United Arab Emirates city earlier this week, will visit the construction site of the hotel whose work is set to be complete by June next year. He will also meet with the project owners during his trip. “Videoconferencing has had

IndustrySept. 24, 2020

Renault Samsung to suspend plant operations amid pandemic

Renault Samsung Motors Corp. said Thursday it will suspend its sole plant in South Korea until mid-October to control inventories amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Renault Samsung will halt the operation of the Busan plant, 450 kilometers southeast of Seoul, from Friday through Oct. 18, a company spokesman said over the phone. "The plant will be suspended for 11 working days as the Chuseok holiday falls on Sept. 30 and lasts through Oct. 5 for carmakers," he said. The company and its l

EconomySept. 24, 2020

Companies on pandemic alert ahead of holiday

As daily confirmed coronavirus cases in South Korea returned to three-digit figures ahead of the Chuseok holiday, tensions are mounting at large companies, which recall painful memories of shutting down their factories during the first wave of the pandemic early this year. The nation’s largest automaker Hyundai Motor said it sent letters of cooperation to all of its employees at its Ulsan plant twice in an effort to prevent the spread of COVID-19. In the letter, the carmaker asked emplo

IndustrySept. 24, 2020

Merck gives $29,000 to Ansan multicultural children care center

Merck has donated 25,000 euros ($29,000) to an Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, multicultural children care center, the Merck Korea said Thursday. The fund will be used, among other things, for a Korean-language tutor, a computer room and a multimedia facility, according to nonprofit organization Loving Neighbors. This was the first official activity undertaken by Kim Woo-kyu, the new managing director of Merck Korea, since taking post. Kim emphasized the importance

IndustrySept. 24, 2020

Samsung Biologics to develop Kanaph Therapeutics' retinal disease treatment

Samsung Biologics will contract develop Kanaph Therapeutics’ retinal disease treatment, the company announced Thursday. Kanaph’s KNP-301 is a C3bg Inhibitor-VEGF binder novel drug candidate that treats dry and wet macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy and diabetic macular edema. Samsung Biologics will undertake all steps of the drug development, spanning cell line development, development process optimization and preclinical and clinical sample manufacturing. “For a b

IndustrySept. 24, 2020

K-Sure, LH join hands to secure overseas development projects

The Korea Trade Insurance Corporation said Thursday that it had signed a memorandum of understanding with the Korea Land and Housing Corporation to help South Korean companies secure more overseas construction projects. Under the deal, the state-run trade insurance firm will provide overseas business financing insurance and various trade insurance products to LH and partner companies bidding for overseas construction orders, which will help the builders minimize losses from offshore investments

MarketSept. 24, 2020

Biz community anxious about 'anti-corporate' regulations

South Korean business lobby groups said Thursday a series of bills that they claim would hurt corporate activities should be further discussed as they will have a far-reaching impact on their business operations and the economy as well. The government is pushing to pass a package of bills to prevent power abuse by large conglomerates, help improve corporate governance structures and strengthen the financial health of financial companies. Also, the government is seeking to expand class-action

EconomySept. 24, 2020

Samsung Display receives highest UL grade for zero waste

Samsung Display said Thursday the company has received the highest level of certification for its efforts to produce no industrial waste from Underwriters Laboratories as the first Korean manufacturer. The Korean panel maker’s production site (line No.1) in Asan, South Chungcheong Province, obtained a platinum grade in the zero waste to landfill segment. Underwriters Laboratories grants the platinum level for manufacturing sites that recycle all of their industrial waste, while givin

TechnologySept. 24, 2020

LG, Hyundai Motor co-work on homelike future car interior

LG Electronics unveiled a collaboration on future car interiors with Hyundai Motor Company, the tech giant said Thursday. Dubbed the “Ioniq Concept Cabin,” the model offers a glimpse of the inside of how future vehicles could look like if they go fully electrified. The two companies focused on maximizing the benefit of greater space inside of future electric vehicles than conventional combustion engine cars, aiming to make passengers feel at home. The Ioniq Concept Cabin feat

TechnologySept. 24, 2020

Kakao Bank makes IPO plans official

South Korea’s leading internet-only bank, Kakao Bank, made its market debut plans official as it decided to apply for auditor designation and select an underwriter by the end of this year, the company said Thursday. But the company has not yet decided when or where to list its shares -- on the main bourse, Kospi, or the tech-heavy Kosdaq -- or on the size of the offering. The company is expected to become the first online-only bank to be listed in the local stock market, and the second

MarketSept. 24, 2020

Dolby Labs signs cinema solutions supply deal with S. Korean multiplex operator

Dolby Laboratories Inc., a US-based audio and imaging technology giant, said Thursday it has signed a deal to supply its advanced cinema solutions to local multiplex operator Megabox for the next five years. Under the deal, Dolby Labs will provide its auditorium package to Megabox, starting with its movie theaters in Gyeonggi Province. The value of the contract was not revealed. The auditorium package consists of Dolby Labs' speakers, integrated media servers, cinema processors, and multicha

IndustrySept. 24, 2020

S. Korean economy to worsen in H2 on virus impact: KERI

South Korea's economy is expected to deteriorate further in the second half of the year due to the prolonged coronavirus pandemic, a leading private think tank said Thursday. Asia's fourth-largest economy is likely to contract 3.8 percent on-year in the July-December period, worse than a 2.9 percent contraction projected in the second quarter, according to the Korea Economic Research Institute (KERI). After posting a negative growth rate of 0.7 percent in the first half, the economy is project

EconomySept. 24, 2020

Over 2 in 10 S. Korean firms unlikely to service their debts

More than two in every 10 South Korean listed companies are unlikely to service their debts with earnings this year due to the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic, South Korea's central bank said Thursday. The Bank of Korea estimated that 21.4 percent of the listed companies will have an interest coverage ratio below 1 this year. Last year, the proportion of marginal companies hit a record high of 14.8 percent since the central bank began compiling related data in 2010. The interest coverag

EconomySept. 24, 2020

LG expands budget smartphone lineup with 3 new models

LG Electronics Inc. on Thursday added three new models to its budget smartphone lineup as the South Korean tech firm targets to expand its mobile sales. The K62, the K52 and the K42 have been added to LG's K series family and will be launched next month starting in Europe. LG did not reveal prices of the new smartphones. All three models have a 6.6-inch punch-hole display with a 20:9 aspect ratio, and a quad-rear camera setup. They all pack a 4,000-mAh battery. The K42 sports a 13-megapixe

IndustrySept. 24, 2020

Samsung launches new charging devices for mobile gadgets

Samsung Electronics Co. on Thursday launched two new charging accessories for mobile devices in South Korea. Samsung's new Wireless Charger Trio can charge up to three mobile devices, such as smartphones, wireless earbuds and smartwatches, at the same time. The pad has six charging coils, offering better charging surface coverage. The multi-device charging station comes in two colors, white and black, and has a price tag of 99,000 won ($85). Samsung also released a power bank that boasts 2

IndustrySept. 24, 2020

Caris wins NET certificate for guardrail tech that utilizes waste plastics

Caris Co. has won the New Excellent Technology certificate for its guardrail manufacturing technology that utilizes waste plastics. At the 2020 NET certificate award ceremony, CEO Yu Cheol received the NET certificate for the company’s five-layer ribbed structure guardrail manufacturing technology that uses a triple compression method incorporating waste plastics. NET-certified products are selected by the Korean Agency for Technology and Standards under the Ministry of Trade, Industry

IndustrySept. 24, 2020