Kolon invests W24b to target EV tire market

Kolon Industries will invest 24 billion won ($18 million) to increase the production of pure monomer resin, or PMR, to cope with the expanding electric vehicle market and the increasing demand for EV tires, the company said Monday. The South Korean chemical and industrial materials maker plans to boost its annual production capacity at the PMR manufacturing plant in Yeosu, South Jeolla Province, by 10,000 metric tons to 21,000 tons. The expansion is projected to be completed in the first half of

IndustryMay 15, 2023

Kakao Pay to tap deeper into global market with Siebert: CEO

Kakao Pay, the online payment unit of South Korean tech giant Kakao Corp., will step up its stock trading service and expand global footing by launching a solution jointly with US brokerage firm Siebert Financial, the firm's CEO Shin Won-keun said Monday. “We are considering making a solution that combines Siebert's stock trading solution with Kakao Pay Securities' mobile trading service,” Shin said at the press conference held at Conrad Seoul in Yeouido, Seoul. In A

IndustryMay 15, 2023

CJ to launch street food lineup overseas

South Korean food giant CJ CheilJedang said Monday it will start selling Korean street food products in major overseas markets, such as North America and Europe, riding a wave of momentum from the booming "K-food" business. The conglomerate will launch six "strategy" Korean street food products in the overseas market under its brand Bibigo. The new products include tteokbokki, Korean-style hot dogs, gimbap, fried seaweed rolls, bungeoppang (fish-shaped waffle filled with red

ConsumerMay 15, 2023

[Test Drive] Face-lifted Rexton boasts powered toughness

KG Mobility, formerly known as SsangYong Motor, is hoping to expand the market size of its long-beloved large sports utility vehicle Rexton and pickup truck Rexton Sports with the latest face-lifted versions of the two signature brands: Rexton New Arena and Rexton Sports&Khan Culmen. The automaker held the test drive events for the Rexton New Arena and Rexton Sports&Khan Culmen last week with about 100 South Korean media outlets taking part. The 220-kilometer test drive included winding

MobilityMay 15, 2023

Container freight rates for major destinations fall on-month in April

Outbound container shipping costs for major destinations, including the US west coast and the European Union, slipped in April from a month earlier, data showed Monday. The average rate for a 40-foot container from Asia's fourth-largest economy to the US west coast reached 4.84 million won ($3,610) last month, down 5.3 percent from March, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. Compared with the previous year, the cost was down 64.4 percent. The data is based on freight rates

EconomyMay 15, 2023

Seoul shares open lower amid US debt ceiling woes

South Korean stocks opened slightly lower Monday, as growing worries over the debt ceiling standoff between the US government and Congress weighed on investor sentiment. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index slipped 4.10 points, or 0.17 percent, to 2,471.32 in the first 15 minutes of trading. The Joe Biden administration and a divided Congress have yet to reach an agreement over raising the US government's $31.4 trillion borrowing limit, with the Congressional Budget Office warnin

MarketMay 15, 2023

S. Korea to hike Q2 electricity, gas rates on high costs, losses

South Korea will raise second-quarter electricity rates and gas prices on high global energy costs and mounting losses of the state utility companies, the industry ministry said Monday. The government will jack up the electricity rates for consumer and industrial use by 8 won ($0.01) per kilowatt hour for the April-June period, compared with a 13.1 won increase per kWh in the first quarter of this year, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The fee hike is estimated to cost a

EconomyMay 15, 2023

Govt., ruling party to meet Monday over hike in electricity, gas rates for Q2

The government and the ruling People Power Party will hold a consultative meeting this week to decide on a hike in electricity and gas rates for the second quarter, officials said Sunday. The meeting will be held Monday to decide on the extent of an increase in electricity rates, which has been postponed for more than a month, according to officials from the ruling party. The government and the ruling party "tentatively" decided to raise the electricity rates by 8 won ($0.01) per kilow

IndustryMay 14, 2023

[Test Drive] Hyundai Sonata gets sporty upgrade

The face-lifted version of Hyundai’s flagship family sedan Sonata the Edge has made a grand comeback after four years, making its 37th anniversary this year. The Sonata is the longest-running car in South Korea, selling around 9.3 million units since its launch in 1985. But the beloved midsized sedan suffered a setback in recent years as more drivers flock to SUVs. Amid slowing sales, the car even faced rumors that it might be discontinued when the carmaker delayed launching the eighth-gen

MobilityMay 14, 2023

Samsung, Tesla chiefs meet in Silicon Valley

Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong met with Tesla CEO Elon Musk at the Korean tech giant’s chip complex in Silicon Valley on Wednesday to discuss ways to strengthen cooperation in future tech industries, according to industry sources on Sunday. During the meeting, sources said the two business leaders agreed to continue exchanges for next-generation technology development, especially on chips for fully autonomous vehicles. It was the first time the heads of the world’s largest

TechnologyMay 14, 2023

SpaceX's Starlink gets approval for Korean business

The Ministry of Science and ICT has completed the registration of Starlink Korea, a local subsidiary of US space company SpaceX, as a common telecommunications business. According to the ministry on Friday, the government decided to grant the license to the US company after it reviewed its financial and technical capabilities, and plans to protect users, as part of the registration requirements under the Telecommunications Business Act. SpaceX filed for business registration with the ministry in

TechnologyMay 14, 2023

Capital Group becomes Hana’s 3rd-biggest shareholder at 5.5%

US investment firm Capital Group has increased its stake in Hana Financial Group from the previous 5.08 percent to 5.55 percent, becoming the Korean financial giant’s third-largest shareholder. Following the 5.08 percent stake purchase in February, the US firm announced its additional stake purchase of 0.47 percent last week. With the latest purchase, Capital Group becomes the third-largest shareholder after the National Pension Service with 8.78 percent and BlackRock with 6.19 percent. Ca

IndustryMay 14, 2023

[Photo News] Hana chief tests Line Bank

Hana Financial Group Chairman Ham Young-joo (front left) tests a loan-linked payment service on the Line Bank app using a Samsung Electronics smartphone during the “Line Bank X Samsung” event held at a shopping mall in Jakarta, Indonesia on Thursday. Line Bank is a digital banking service jointly launched by Hana Bank and Line, the messenger platform, in Indonesia in 2021.

IndustryMay 14, 2023

KT forays into health care in Vietnam

South Korean telecommunications giant KT announced Sunday that it will push forward a non-face-to-face health care project in Vietnam involving health examination centers and artificial intelligence in medical fields. The company plans to conduct a pilot service for cancer and chronic disease patients using a remote care platform with KT Healthcare Vina, a Vietnamese medical corporation established earlier this year. Post-discharge management of gastric cancer surgery patients and health care ma

IndustryMay 14, 2023

SK Group chips in for NYC cultural festival

SK Group is sponsoring art and cultural festivities in New York as part of business efforts to expand its presence in the US market. The SUPEX Council, the group’s highest consultative panel, confirmed that five SK affiliates -- SK E&S, SKC, SK On, SK C&C and SK Ecoengineering -- will participate as corporate sponsors in the Lincoln Center's Summer for the City festival in New York from June 14 to Aug. 12. It is the group's first time employing the key “Global Sto

CompaniesMay 14, 2023

Pulmuone to expand Asian noodle biz in US

South Korean food giant Pulmuone said Sunday it is planning on expanding the production line of its Asian noodle products in the United States by the end of this year, following its burgeoning Asian noodle business there. According to Pulmuone, the company said its sales of Asian noodles in the US were tallied at $72.2 million last year, seeing an on-year growth of 65 percent. Over the course of the last three years, the company's Asian noodle products in the US had seen a 119 percent growt

IndustryMay 14, 2023

[KH Explains] Hanwha’s youngest heir targets new biz opportunities

Kim Dong-sun, head of strategic management at Hanwha Galleria and the youngest son of Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-youn, is ramping up efforts to amplify his presence as a succession scheme at the nation’s seventh-largest conglomerate is taking shape centering on the chairman’s three sons. While his elder brothers -- Dong-kwan, president of Hanwha Solutions; and Dong-won, president of Hanwha Life Insurance -- are taking over the group’s key defense and energy and financial b

IndustryMay 14, 2023

[Beyond Earth] KAI poised to repeat success with satellite exports

The consecutive successes of South Korea’s Nuri rocket and Danuri lunar orbiter opened a new space era for the country’s space road map last year. The Korean government and President Yoon Suk Yeol set out ambitious goals of landing on the moon in 2032 and on Mars in 2045, signaling the beginning of the space economy. Korea Aerospace Industries, which has played an essential role in the country’s recent space milestones, is now aiming to expand its space businesses with a focus

TechnologyMay 14, 2023

Kakao beats Naver in average salary for 3rd year: data

Kakao Corp., a major South Korean tech firm, beat its rival Naver Corp. in terms of average wage for three consecutive years through 2022, data showed Sunday. Kakao, which operates the country's most popular mobile messenger, KakaoTalk, saw its average wage reach 139 million won ($103,422) last year, hovering above the 134.49 million won posted by Naver, according to the data released by the Financial Supervisory Service. The figure includes gains from exercise of stock options. The amount

IndustryMay 14, 2023

Jobs for 40-somethings fall for 10th month amid manufacturing slump

The number of jobs for people in their 40s in South Korea decreased for the 10th consecutive month in April, data showed Sunday, amid the protracted slump in the country's manufacturing industry. Jobs for the age group have been falling on-year since July, with the positions decreasing 22,000 from a year earlier in April, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. South Korea added 816,000 jobs annually in 2022, with the addition maintaining growth through April on the back of the

EconomyMay 14, 2023