Industries increase calls for state support in pandemic

Representatives of South Korea’s key industries expressed concerns about the coronavirus pandemic and raised their calls for the government to expand support for the sectors reeling. On Thursday, the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry and associations of five industries, including automobiles, steel, petrochemicals, machinery and shipbuilding, jointly held a meeting to listen to the difficulties of the industries and discuss solutions. “The economic impact of coronavirus was

IndustryApril 16, 2020

[Monitor] E-commerce giant Coupang now bigger than offline retailer Lotte Mart

Coupang became the first Korean e-commerce company to surpass 7 trillion won ($5.75 billion) mark in annual sales, getting ahead of offline retailer Lotte Mart, one of the three biggest discount store chains in the country. According to Coupang’s audit report Tuesday, it recorded 7.15 trillion won in sales in 2019, a 64.2 percent surge from 4.35 trillion won in 2018, while operating loss decreased by more than 400 billion won, to 720 billion won from 1.12 trillion won. Meanwhile, Lott

ConsumerApril 16, 2020

S. Korea issues English brochure on ‘flattening the curve’

The South Korean government has issued a new brochure in English to share with the rest of the world its experiences of responding to the new coronavirus, the Ministry of Economy and Finance said Wednesday. The 90-page policy report -- titled “Flattening the curve on COVID-19” -- is the second on the topic that the country has published since receiving a request from the World Bank in late March. The latest brochure was drafted jointly by the Finance Ministry, the ICT Ministry, th

EconomyApril 16, 2020

[The Heirs (2)] Will Lotte heir follow his father’s path?

Despite public apathy and tougher shareholder censure, South Korea’s chaebol groups are preparing a generational shift in leadership. The Korea Herald looks at different conglomerates and succession scenarios. -- Ed. Satoshi Shigemitsu, 33, who goes by the Korean name Shin Yoo-yeol, is the only son of Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin. Being a Japanese citizen, he went to Keio University, got a management degree from Columbia University and currently works at Nomura Singapore. Alth

IndustryApril 16, 2020

Stocks open lower on Wall Street tumble

South Korean stocks opened lower Thursday, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) shed 12.68 points, or 0.68 percent, to 1,844.4 in the first 15 minutes of trading. On Wednesday (local time), US stocks closed lower as investors absorbed various data showing the COVID-19 outbreak has hurt the world's largest economy. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 1.86 percent, the S&P 500 was down 2.2 percent, and the Nasdaq Composite Inde

MarketApril 16, 2020

[Contribution] Country ownership in times of international assistance

The concept of “country ownership” is a key attribute of all investments and projects that multilateral and international organizations have incorporated into their objectives and constitutions. The concept emerged as a dominant way of thinking in the late 1990s, when the focus of the international aid architecture began to shift from donor-driven decision-making toward empowering recipient countries, building their capacities and greater partnership. In 2019, the Independent Evalua

EconomyApril 16, 2020

BC Card to acquire controlling stake in K-bank

BC Card, a credit card processing firm owned by telecom giant KT, said Wednesday in a regulatory filing that it will acquire a controlling stake in internet-only K-Bank in a bid to save the cash-strapped online bank. The announcement came a day after the card company held a board meeting, where the board decided to buy a 10 percent stake in the bank from the telecom firm for 36.3 billion won ($29.8 million) on April 17. With the planned stake purchase, the card company will become the seco

MarketApril 15, 2020

Homeplus members jump 153% to 300,000

South Korean discount chain Homeplus said Wednesday that the number of customers joining its membership programs has surpassed 300,000. The number of members reached 301,225 as of April 14, up 153 percent on-year from 119,127. Since 2018, Homeplus has been operating seven membership programs based on product categories such as wine and kids’ products. Each membership program regularly offers special discounts with events on a monthly basis. The jump in membership has led to an increa

IndustryApril 15, 2020

Samsung, Hyundai, LG donate funds, goods for India under COVID-19 lockdown

Korean companies are making various donations to Indian organizations to help them fight the novel coronavirus as the country is under heavy lockdown, according to the industry on Wednesday. Although Korean businesses that have manufacturing facilities in India have suspended their operations upon state order since last month, the firms are coming up with measures to support local governments in the states where they are running the plants. Samsung Electronics said its India branch made a p

IndustryApril 15, 2020

Opportunities arise as Chinese telecommuting market doubles

China’s telecommuting market is anticipated to double in size this year due to the spread of COVID-19, opening new possibilities for Korean tech firms, the Korea International Trade Association’s Beijing office said Wednesday through a report. The Chinese telecommuting market is expected to reach 44.9 billion yuan ($6.3 billion) in 2020, about double that of 2019’s estimated 22.9 billion yuan and nearly four times 2018’s 11.7 billion yuan. This is due to the increased

IndustryApril 15, 2020

Sale process of KDB Life insurer gains traction

The state-owned Korea Development Bank will soon pick a preferred bidder for KDB Life Insurance, which it recently put up for sale after acquiring it a decade ago, according to news reports Wednesday. Private equity fund JC Partners is widely believed to have been shortlisted. “JC Partners is the only interested party that has completed due diligence so far,” an official from the policy bank was quoted as saying by Yonhap News Agency. The private equity firm reportedly plans to

MarketApril 15, 2020

Gold zooms to 6-year high on new monetary measures

Gold prices are hitting the roof in South Korea -- highest level in six years -- as investors are flocking to safe-haven assets amid escalating fears given market uncertainties, latest data showed Wednesday.  According to the Korea Exchange Gold Market, the price stood at 66,740 won ($54.90) per gram at Tuesday’s close, surging 2.4 percent from the previous session. The price had surged to 68,240 won the same day, the highest since March 2014 when the gold market first opened. 

MarketApril 15, 2020

Hyundai, Kia, Mercedes-Benz, Toyota recalling some 45,000 vehicles: ministry

Hyundai Motor Co. and three other companies are recalling about 45,000 vehicles to fix faulty components, the transport ministry said Wednesday. This is the latest in a series of recalls by carmakers operating in South Korea due to problems in components of vehicles they sell here. Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors Corp., the Korean units of Mercedes-Benz and Toyota Motor are recalling a total of 44,967 vehicles, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said in a statement. The potential

MobilityApril 15, 2020

Which firms will survive virus?

Although the continued spread of coronavirus has disrupted many industries in South Korea, those related to “untact” services -- referring to no-contact interaction, which have become an integral part of life -- have fared well and are expected to grow even further, according to industry sources Wednesday. E-commerce companies appear to be the biggest beneficiaries of the prolonged pandemic. Online shopping transactions in Korea amounted to 11.9 trillion won ($9.7 billion) in F

IndustryApril 15, 2020

Dark clouds loom over credit ratings of Korean firms

South Korean companies are bracing for a massive credit rating downgrade as the novel coronavirus spillover threatens their business outlook, according to industry sources Wednesday. The weakening prospect of retailers, petrochemical firms and manufacturers in the wake of the coronavirus spread appears to be putting pressure on their liquidity. On Tuesday, the credit outlook of three companies for straight bonds was revised to “negative,” according to three credit rating agencies -

MarketApril 15, 2020

[News Focus] Renault Samsung, GM Korea conclude wage deals, but hurdles remain

Renault Samsung Motors and GM Korea have concluded wage deals with unionized workers -- a positive sign for the struggling automotive industry amid the COVID-19 outbreak -- but there are still hurdles, considering the ongoing global economic downturn and unstable management-labor union ties, industry sources said Wednesday.  According to Renault Samsung, 70.2 percent of the unionized workers voted to accept a wage freeze and cash bonuses of 8.88 million won ($7,320) per person for 2019. T

MobilityApril 15, 2020

Caremile sees surge in quarantine goods orders from foreign governments

Korean safety solution company Caremile said Tuesday it is seeing a rapid surge in orders of Korean-made diagnostic kits and quarantine goods from various countries, including Ukraine, Poland, Turkey, Uzbekistan, Mexico, Iraq and Malaysia, amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Caremile, which has rights for Solgent’s global special sale, for instance, exported the “Solgent COVID-19 DiaPlexQ Detection Kit” that can be used for 100,000 people on March 27 upon an emergency request from Uk

ConsumerApril 15, 2020

Global economy to face biggest setback since Great Depression: IMF

The COVID-19 pandemic will lead to an extensive slump in the global economy, much more than that of the Great Depression in 1930, according to the International Monetary Fund on Tuesday. However, South Korea is likely to suffer fewer economic damages, due to its extensive quarantine measures and preemptive policy actions to counter the blow of the pandemic. In its revised World Economic Outlook report, the IMF forecast that the global economy this year will contract 3 percent on-year. The upda

EconomyApril 14, 2020

In coronavirus pandemic, ‘lipstick effect’ gives way to ‘eyeliner effect’

Ever heard of the lipstick effect? Some say lipstick acts as the barometer of an economy -- lipstick sales go up when consumer sentiment weakens during economic recessions as people tend to treat themselves with lower-cost indulgences. When the US economy slumped in 2001 after the Sept. 11 attacks, lipstick sales increased by about 11 percent in the second half of the year compared to the first half. This led Estee Lauder Chairman Leonard Lauder to coin the term “lipstick index.” &

ConsumerApril 14, 2020

Renault Samsung union votes to accept 2019 wage deal

Unionized workers at Renault Samsung Motors Corp. voted Wednesday to accept an agreement with the company over wages for last year as the automobile industry is struggling to cope with the impact of the coronavirus outbreak. The company said 70 percent of the 1,700-member union voted to accept a wage freeze and cash bonuses of 8.88 million won ($7,320) per person for 2019.  The wage deal represents a consensus between the company and the union to make joint efforts to weather the impact

MobilityApril 14, 2020