Samsung’s new China team signals strategy reboot

Samsung Electronics has reportedly launched a new China team under the direct supervision of vice chairman and Chief Executive Officer Han Jong-hee, signaling a change in its strategy to reenter Asia’s largest market that is already dominated by homegrown manufacturers. According to media reports, Samsung Electronics has kicked off a new operation, loosely translated as the China Business Innovation Team. The unit is dedicated to businesses ranging from mobile handsets to semico

TechnologyDec. 19, 2021

Competition heats up for used EV batteries

The competition to enter the used battery business for electric vehicles is heating up among domestic and global car and battery makers, amid market prospects that the market size would grow to hit 20 trillion won ($16.8 billion) in less than 10 years, data showed. According to data from SNE Research, a consulting firm based in Korea, the global market size of used EV batteries is anticipated to surge to 20.2 trillion won by 2030, up by 1,124.24 percent compared to two years ago. By 2050, it mi

MobilityDec. 19, 2021

Challenging big tech, banks enter delivery service market

South Korea’s commercial banks are rushing into the delivery service market, challenging the country’s big tech and retail companies that have blurred boundaries between finance and tech industries. According to Shinhan Bank, it will start its food delivery beta service Wednesday. The delivery app, dubbed “Ddaeng-gyoeyo,” is a separate app from the bank’s all-in-one mobile app “Shinhan SOL.” The service will also be operated through a third-party deli

MarketDec. 19, 2021

Hankook Tire resumes operations at its plants in S. Korea after strike

Hankook Tire & Technology Co., the world's sixth-largest tiremaker by sales, said it resumed operations at its two plants in South Korea on Sunday, 26 days after a strike began over this year's wage deal. The deal reached Friday includes a 6 percent increase in basic monthly pay, 5 million won ($4,200) in performance-based pay and a bonus of 2 million won per worker. The agreement ended the strike that began Nov. 24. It marked the first strike since the foundation of the company's labor un

IndustryDec. 19, 2021

Hyundai, Kia say eco-friendly cars surpass 10% of their global sales

Hyundai Motor Group said Sunday that environment-friendly vehicles topped 10 percent of its global car sales for the first time this year amid growing demand for electric cars. The country's top automotive conglomerate said its two carmakers, Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Corp., sold a total of 656,479 eco-friendly vehicles globally in the January-November period, 10.7 percent of their entire sales of 6.12 million units. The growth marks a sharp increase from 2015, when the annual sales of such ca

MobilityDec. 19, 2021

[Photo News] Korean Air drones inspect airplanes

Korean Air said Thursday that it has developed drones for airplane inspection. At an airship hangar located in Gangseo-gu, eastern Seoul, Korean Air demonstrated a group of drones inspecting a Boeing 737 aircraft in front of officials from the Ministry of Land and Transportation. The drone used in the demonstration weighs only 5.5 kilograms and is relatively small in size, with the width and length both coming in at 1 meter. Four drones move in groups when they inspect an airplane, sharing

IndustryDec. 18, 2021

Seoul stocks to gain ground next week on eased uncertainty over US monetary policy: analysts

South Korean stocks are expected to gain momentum next week, as investor sentiment will be buoyed by eased uncertainty about the US monetary policy, analysts said Saturday. The benchmark Kospi closed at 3,017.73 points Friday, little changed from 3,010.23 points a week ago. The key stock index retreated on Monday and Tuesday as investors took to the sidelines ahead of the US Federal Reserve's policy meeting. But local stocks rebounded for three straight sessions to Friday, as the outcome of t

MarketDec. 18, 2021

Top green bond seller in Korea plans debt boost abroad

South Korea is among the world’s biggest seller of green bonds, and one of its top issuers is planning to tap the global debt market more aggressively next year to provide sustainable funds to local companies operating abroad. Export-Import Bank of Korea, the nation’s second-largest issuer of green notes, plans to sell about $12 billion to $12.5 billion of bonds offshore in 2022, compared with around $11 billion this year, said Lee Dong-hoon, the treasurer of the bank. It expects ab

MarketDec. 18, 2021

What will the Fed’s expected rate hikes mean for Korean market?

The US Federal Reserve recently said it would wrap up its pandemic-era bond purchases in March, signaling as many as three rate hikes by the end of 2022. While the South Korean financial authorities have expressed confidence that the expected rate hikes will have minimal impact on the local market, experts were divided on the matter as of Friday. The nation’s First Vice Finance Minister Lee Eog-won said Thursday that the US Fed’s latest decision was within market expectations, res

EconomyDec. 17, 2021

British helicopter operator pre-orders 'Butterfly' air taxis being co-developed by Hanwha

British helicopter operator Bristow Group Inc. has pre-ordered about 20-50 electric air mobility aircraft being jointly developed by South Korea's Hanwha Systems Co. and US Overair, according to industry sources Friday. Overair, the California-based air taxi startup, signed a memorandum of understanding with Bristow on Thursday (local time), to collaborate on the development and commercialization plans for "Butterfly," an all-electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, or

IndustryDec. 17, 2021

Seoul stocks rise for 3rd day on foreign buying

South Korean stocks rose for a third straight session on Friday, as foreign investors snapped up local stocks on eased uncertainty about the US monetary policy. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) increased 11.32 points, or 0.38 percent, to close at 3,017.73 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 438 million shares worth some 11.2 trillion won ($9.5 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 510 to 344. Foreigners bought a n

MarketDec. 17, 2021

Seoul metropolitan area still leads home price growth

SEJONG -- The growth in housing prices in the Seoul metropolitan area -- Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon -- continued to outpace that of the nationwide average as of last month, government data showed Friday. According to the recent economic trends, published by the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the average trading price of homes in the area of Seoul, Gyeonggi and Incheon climbed by 0.76 percent in November, compared to the previous month. This outstripped a 0.63 percent increase acro

MarketDec. 17, 2021

Hyundai Motor Group makes generational change through largest ever reshuffle

Marking a shift in generation after Chairman Chung Euisun took office, Hyundai Motor Group announced its regular reshuffle Friday, the largest yet with more than 200 promotions to senior positions. Many executives from the older generation, such as Hyundai Motor Vice Chairman Yoon Yeo-chul stepped down, with younger figures newly appointed to senior positions. That includes Choo Kyo-woong, the 47-years old former head of electrical and electronic systems development, who has been promoted as

IndustryDec. 17, 2021

Korean Air joins Pratt & Whitney’s engine service network

Korean Air said Friday that it has joined Pratt & Whitney’s engine maintenance, repair and overhaul, or MRO, network to enhance its competitiveness in the field of aviation engine management. US aerospace company Pratt & Whitney is the producer of a high-bypass geared turbofan engine family called the Geared Turbofan, or GTF, and operates a global GTF engine MRO network with the industry’s top players such as Delta TechOps, Lufthansa Technik, and MTU Aero Engines. The A320n

IndustryDec. 17, 2021

Lotte Chemical to invest W250b to boost advanced concrete material production

Lotte Chemical Corp., a petrochemical unit of South Korean conglomerate Lotte Group, said Friday it will spend 250 billion won ($211.4 million) to expand its domestic production line of ethylene oxide adduct (EOA), an advanced material used in concrete. The expansion of the production line in Daesan, a county in the central South Chungcheong Province, will help boost its EOA production capacity by an annual 150,000 tons to 480,000 tons globally, the company said in a release. It will also incr

IndustryDec. 17, 2021

GS Caltex drone flies over Seoul to deliver heating oil successfully

GS Caltex said Friday its drone flew about 1 kilometer over Seoul to successfully deliver heating oil to its destination in a test run. According to the Korean total energy company, the demonstration was performed at the Korea Drone Expo 2021 in Yeouido, western Seoul, Thursday. The drone, which took off from a GS Caltex gas station, flew across the sky and landed at a nearby park 1 kilometer away. There, officials took out the heating oil from the drone and fueled a heater with it. “G

IndustryDec. 17, 2021

SK chairman’s younger brother returns as co-CEO of SK On

SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won’s younger brother Chey Jae-won will take the post as the co-CEO of SK On, the group’s electric vehicle battery unit. According to SK on Friday, it held a board of directors meeting and appointed the junior Chey as the co-CEO. Chey Jae-won will lead SK On together with current CEO Jee Dong-seob. This is a return to management for Chey eight years after he stepped down from all posts in 2013 when he was sentenced to 3 1/2 years in prison for embezzl

IndustryDec. 17, 2021

PM says gov't mobilizes all possible resources to support small businesses

Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said Friday the government has mobilized all possible resources to provide additional financial support to small businesses that will be affected by the new virus curbs. Kim spoke at a joint press briefing with economy-related ministers on the government's plan to pay 1 million won ($844) each to 3.2 million small business owners following its announcement of stricter social distancing measures the previous day. "We came up with additional support measures that

EconomyDec. 17, 2021

Virus flare-up feared to hurt domestic demand: finance ministry

South Korea's domestic demand is feared to lose steam amid the latest upsurge in COVID-19 cases and tighter antivirus measures, the finance ministry said Friday. Amid global inflation risks and supply chain disruptions, Asia's fourth-largest economy faces persisting uncertainty due to the spread of the omicron variant and major economies' move to accelerate monetary policy shifts, the ministry said in its monthly economic assessment report, called the Green Book. "The country's exports re

EconomyDec. 17, 2021

Q3 overseas direct investment rises at steepest pace in nearly 5 years

South Korea's overseas direct investment rose at the fastest pace in nearly five years in the third quarter amid the global economic recovery, data showed Friday. South Korean companies' overseas investments came to $17.01 billion in the July-September period, up 58.2 percent from the previous year, according to the data by the Ministry of Economy and Finance. It marked the fastest on-year gain since the fourth quarter of 2016, when it grew 58.3 percent. The third-quarter growth rate was also

EconomyDec. 17, 2021