Banks to tighten lending to SMEs, households in Q2

Korean banks are expected to further tighten their grip on loans to small and medium enterprises and households in the second quarter due to their increased credit risks stemming from the eurozone debt crisis and other uncertainties, the central bank said Tuesday.Based on the results of a survey on 16 banks, the Bank of Korea said the index measuring their lending attitude came in at three for the April-June period, compared with seven registered in the previous quarter.The reading marked the lo

April 3, 2012

Samsung Electronics to build semiconductor plant in central China

Samsung Electronics Co., the world's largest memory chipmaker, announced Monday it will build a semiconductor plant in central China as part of its move to diversify production.The company said it will initially inject US$2.3 billion to build the plant in Xian, China. It added that up to $7.0 billion could be poured into the project in the coming years, making the plant Samsung's single largest ov

April 2, 2012

Samsung to build chip plant in Xian

Samsung Electronics said Monday that it picked China’s Xian, Shaanxi province to build its second overseas NAND Flash production plant.With initial funding of 2.3 billion won ($2 million) for construction, the firm plans to begin producing 10-nano NAND Flash at the plant starting in the latter half of next year, according to company officials.The 10-nano NAND Flash memory chips are planned to be manufactured at the firm’s Korean plant in June.Samsung also plans to spend up to 7 billion won to co

IndustryApril 2, 2012

POSCO steel mill project in India hits snag as approval suspended

POSCO’s envisioned $12 billion steel mill project in India hit another snag as the country’s environmental panel suspended the approval given to the construction plan that has dragged on for seven years.The ruling by India’s National Green Tribunal, after considering a public petition, said the Environment Ministry should reassess the conditions on which environmental clearance was granted to the project last year, Environment Minister Jayanthi Natarajan said Friday in New Delhi. Natarajan said

IndustryApril 2, 2012

Carmakers post sagging sales at home

Four out of the five major automakers suffered a year-on-year drop in sales in the local market in the first quarter of 2012 amid sluggish private consumption.Hyundai Motor saw its sales at home post 154,855 units in the first quarter, down 7.1 percent from 166,749 units over the same period in 2011.For March sales, the nation’s largest automaker reported a 9.5 percent drop with 56,022 units at home, compared with 61,932 units a year earlier.By contrast, its exports, including production at over

MobilityApril 2, 2012

Samsung Display launch signals change in global display business

Samsung Display announced its new beginning and signaled a change in the global display industry as it held a launching ceremony in its plant in Tangjeong, South Chungcheong Province on Monday.Headed by new chief executive Park Dong-gun, the spin-off of the electronics arm’s liquid-crystal unit will start its business, which recorded accumulated yearly sales of 22.7 trillion won last year, with about 20,000 employees.Park, who formerly served as the executive vice president of LCD businesses, em

IndustryApril 2, 2012

Shares rise on upbeat data

South Korean stocks finished 0.76 percent higher on Monday largely due to upbeat economic data from China and an upgrade in South Korea’s rating outlook, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark KOSPI advanced 15.25 point to close at 2,029.29. Trading volume was moderate at 405 million shares worth 4.28 trillion won ($3.95 billion) with gainers outpacing 472 to 330.“China’s economic data eased concerns over a global economic down,” said Kim Byung-yun, an anal

April 2, 2012

Korea’s CDS premium drops on eased eurozone crisis

The cost of insuring South Korea’s sovereign debt against default has dropped on the back of eased eurozone debt woes and increased hopes of the U.S. economy recovering, data showed Monday.The credit default swap premium on South Korea’s foreign currency bonds with five-year maturities reached 125 basis points on March 30 on the New York market, down 11 basis points from a month ago, according to the data by the Korea Center for International Finance. A basis point is 0.01 percentage point.On Ma

April 2, 2012

Households’ debt burden jumps

The debt service burden of South Korean households rose sharply last year, as their debt payments increased amid high inflation, the country’s central bank said Monday.The so-called household debt service ratio, an estimate of the ratio of debt payments to disposable personal income, stood at 12.9 percent last year, compared with 11.4 percent a year earlier, according to the Bank of Korea.“The DSR for all households, excluding the ones in the highest income bracket, rose by two or three points l

April 2, 2012

SK Planet targets Kakao Talk with acquisition of Tic Toc

SK Planet said Monday that it had acquired MADsmart, a venture firm best known for its mobile messenger service Tic Toc.With Kakao Talk dominating the local mobile messenger market, the company hopes to expand its presence with the new acquisition.It is the first acquisition for SK Planet since the former platform unit of SK Telecom was spun off in October. MADsmart, established in last March by KAIST graduates, recently saw its subscriber numbers surpass 13 million since the launch of the Tic T

IndustryApril 2, 2012