Medytox, Daewoong exchange fire once again

Korean botulinum toxin makers Medytox and Daewoong Pharmaceutical exchanged fire once again on Wednesday, both claiming to have the upper hand in winning the US International Trade Commission suit. Medytox issued a press release in the morning saying that during the hearing of the suit from Feb. 4-7, the USITC’s staff attorney sided with the allegations that Daewoong had indeed used Medytox’s trade secret BTX. If this is reflected in the final decision, Daewoong’s US partne

IndustryMarch 4, 2020

[Monitor] South Korea’s mask exports to China soar in January

South Korea’s mask exports to China soared in January when the Wuhan coronavirus began to spread, reaching the same level as annual total of last year, according to data by the Korea International Trade Association on Wednesday. Exports of miscellaneous textile products -- which mainly include masks -- in January amounted to $72.61 million. This is 8.8 times higher than the $82.96 million in exports in the same month last year and 89.7 percent of the $89.16 million, which was the annual

IndustryMarch 4, 2020

Airlines fly smaller, fewer planes amid coronavirus crisis

Following a sharp drop in the number of passengers and route suspensions due to spread of COVID-19, South Korean air carriers are flying smaller planes while parking their unused aircrafts within the airport facilities, according to industry sources Wednesday.  Full-service carrier Korean Air said that it would reduce the number of seats on its Incheon-Los Angeles route from 407 to 277 by switching from the A380-8 aircraft to the smaller B777-300 until March 14.  Asiana Airlines has

MobilityMarch 4, 2020

Woori, Hana face W36.5b fine, 6-month suspension for DLF fiasco

South Korea’s top financial regulator on Wednesday slapped a combined 36.5 billion won in ($30.8 million) fines on Woori Bank and Hana Bank, along with a six-month ban on attracting investors‘ money into privately pooled funds. The Financial Services Commission’s final decision indicates that the authorities held the banks responsible for their lack of internal control, as they failed to protect retail investors from potential risks implied in the structured products known as

MarketMarch 4, 2020

Korean panel makers’ transformation from LCD to OLED meets virus hurdle

Market figures on Wednesday showed Korean display makers are accelerating their plans to shift their focus from the money-losing liquid crystal display business to the growing organic light-emitting diode industry. But there are worries about those plans being carried out at a slower pace than initially expected due to the global outbreak of the novel coronavirus. According to data from IHS Markit, LG Display and Samsung Display came in fourth and fifth place in terms of market share for lar

TechnologyMarch 4, 2020

FSS to impose sanctions on KT&G over alleged accounting fraud

  South Korea’s financial watchdog is likely to slap sanctions on the tobacco giant KT&G over accounting fraud allegations, according to officials Wednesday.  The Financial Supervisory Service sent a preliminary notice to KT&G last month, concluding that the firm violated financial reporting standards by reporting its Indonesian affiliate Trisakti in its consolidated financial statements even though it exerts no actual influence. The notice, which recommends prosecuto

EconomyMarch 4, 2020

BOK hints at rate cut over Fed‘s emergency action

South Korea’s central bank on Wednesday decided to hold its base rate at 1.25 percent for the time being, but hinted at a possible rate cut following the US Federal Reserve’s emergency action on mounting COVID-19 fears. The US central bank cut its base rates to a target range of 1 percent to 1.25 percent earlier in the day, in a move prompted by risks stemming from the novel coronavirus outbreak. This marks the first such emergency move since the 2008 financial crisis. “The

EconomyMarch 4, 2020

Imported car sales rise in Feb. despite virus

Even as the new coronavirus outbreak is dampening consumer sentiment, imported car sales bucked the trend in South Korea rising 5.3 percent in February on-year, latest data showed Wednesday. According to Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association, the number of newly registered imported cars in the country recorded 16,725 units in February. For the first two months of this year, sales increased by 0.8 percent from the same period in 2019 -- from 34,083 units to 34,365 units.

MobilityMarch 4, 2020

Stock market turns bullish on stimulus package, Fed rate cut

Seoul stocks extended their gains Wednesday, as investors welcomed a new stimulus package of the government to stem the economic fallout from the new coronavirus outbreak and the US Fed’s latest rate cut. The benchmark Kospi headed north throughout the day and closed at 2,059.33 -- up 45.18 points, or 2.24 percent from the previous session -- as foreign investors purchased local stocks. Offshore investors net purchased 152.7 billion won stocks. Individual and institutional investors, ho

MarketMarch 4, 2020

HiteJinro rehires singer-actor IU as Chamisul model

South Korean liquor maker HiteJinro said Wednesday that it had once again chosen singer-actor IU as its model for prominent soju brand Chamisul. IU previously modeled for Chamisul for four years, from 2014 to 2018. “IU is popular and has considerable stature as a singer and actor, and her unique ‘clean’ image (presented as a TV personality), goes along well with the brand,” HiteJinro said. The brand’s IU ads differed from the industry norm when she was first c

ConsumerMarch 4, 2020

Two-thirds of foreign firms expect weaker sales on virus: poll

Nearly two-thirds of foreign firms in South Korea expect their sales to drop due to the spread of the novel coronavirus, a poll showed Wednesday. The survey of 150 foreign-invested corporations showed 67.3 percent of the respondents anticipating a decline in their shipments due to the fast-spreading epidemic. The survey was conducted on foreign firms with a workforce of 100 or more between Feb. 17 and 21 by the Korea Economic Research Institute (KERI), the research arm of the Federation of Ko

IndustryMarch 4, 2020

[Newsmaker] Plastic surgery clinics endure drop in Chinese customers over coronavirus

South Korea’s 5-trillion-won ($4.2 billion) plastic surgery industry is bleeding Chinese demand amidst the worsening coronavirus outbreak. The Korea Health Industry Development Institute said that Chinese patients are canceling plastic surgeries while the Ministry of Health and Welfare is recommending hospitals to delay their medical services to foreigners after February to curb the COVID-19 outbreak. “After monitoring whether major hospitals and plastic surgery clinics are foll

IndustryMarch 4, 2020

S. Korea drafts W11.7tr extra budget plan to fight coronavirus

South Korea’s government on Wednesday unveiled a supplementary budget bill amounting to 11.7 trillion won ($9.9 billion) to counter the prolonged economic fallout from the rapid spread of COVID-19. The bill, approved by the Cabinet on Wednesday, is set to be handed over to the National Assembly on Thursday for immediate effectuation. “The scale of the extra budget stands at 11.7 trillion won, of which revenue accounts for 3.2 trillion won and expenditure for 8.5 trillion won,&rdqu

EconomyMarch 4, 2020

Korea's household debt growth faster than peers in 2019

  The debt owed by households and small businesses in South Korea rose at one of the world's fastest rates in 2019 in terms of its ratio to the country's gross domestic product (GDP), data showed Wednesday. According to the data from the Bank for International Settlement, outstanding debt extended to households and small businesses here came to 1,790.5 trillion won ($1.5 trillion) as of the end of September, up 4.5 percent from a year earlier. The rate of increase was the 25th-highest am

EconomyMarch 4, 2020

Seoul FX reserves slightly drop in Feb.

South Korea's foreign exchange (FX) reserves dropped slightly from a month earlier in February, central bank data showed Wednesday, largely on the strengthening of the US dollar that reduced the dollar value of the country's reserves held in other currencies. The country's FX reserves came to $409.17 billion as of end-February, down $480 million from the record high of $409.65 billion tallied a month before, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). The BOK attributed the drop to the

MarketMarch 4, 2020

[News Analysis] Breakdown of drugs currently used to treat coronavirus

With experts suggesting that it will take one to five years for a vaccine for the new coronavirus to be developed from scratch, researchers are redirecting existing drugs and pipelines in an effort to control the outbreak. On Tuesday, Gilead Sciences’ Ebola treatment remdesivir was approved for a phase 3 clinical trial in South Korea by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. According to the clinical trial designed by Gilead Sciences, the efficacy of remdesivir on COVID-19 patients will

IndustryMarch 3, 2020

Samsung heir visits smartphone plant in Gumi

Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong on Tuesday visited the company’s smartphone plant in Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province, to encourage employees who are working despite the coronavirus risks in the region. The plant produces Samsung’s latest premium smartphones, including the Galaxy S20 and Galaxy Z Flip. But with a total of four confirmed cases of coronavirus infections among its employees, it had to shut down twice as of Monday.  Lee, with a face mask, checked

TechnologyMarch 3, 2020

McDonald’s Korea donates burger sets for firefighters in virus-hit Daegu

McDonald’s Korea said Tuesday it donated 4,200 burger sets to firefighters in Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province, as the region struggles in handling COVID-19. According to the company, it delivered 4,200 coupons that can trade for 1955 Burger set menu to Daegu Fire Department and Gyeongbuk Fire Service Headquarters on Monday. With the number of patients increasing in the region that is hit hardest by the epidemic in South Korea, firefighters have been taking the role to transport the

ConsumerMarch 3, 2020

LS C&S wins $85m contract for submarine cables in Middle East

LS Cable and System said Tuesday it has won a contract worth about $85 million for a subway cable project to connect Bahrain’s islands. The company said it clinched the deal on a turnkey basis, to supply the submarine cables needed to connect 25 kilometers between the Bahrain’s main island and its Hawar Islands in the southeast. The contract was finalized by Al Gihaz, a Saudi Arabian engineering, procurement and construction company. The company will take charge -- from product s

IndustryMarch 3, 2020

Suwon steps up efforts for sustainable urban growth

  Under a 10-year drive to create a human-friendly and innovative environment in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, the city with a population of 1.25 million has become a global green city.  In its final year that wraps up the grand policy drive, Suwon Mayor Yeom Tae-yong has vowed to focus on creating jobs and enhancing the welfare system, while seeking new growth engines for the city’s fiscal independence. “To boost employment, the city government has decided to create 34,000

EconomyMarch 3, 2020