BOK set to begin normalization to ease side effects of low rates: chief

The Bank of Korea (BOK) is preparing to begin normalizing its pandemic-era easing of monetary policy as it seeks to ease side effects of low interest rates, BOK Gov. Lee Ju-yeol said Friday. The remarks came a day after Lee strongly hinted it may conduct its first post-pandemic rate hike by the end of this year, despite a recent spike in COVID-19 infections. The BOK has "notified markets in advance that it could start normalization to ease side effects of low rates for too long if the eco

EconomyJuly 16, 2021

Netflix-SK dispute over net neutrality to continue

The legal battle between US-based streaming giant Netflix and South Korea’s internet service provider SK Broadband is likely to continue centering on the controversial topic of net neutrality. Netflix on Thursday appealed a Seoul court’s decision that sided with SK Broadband. Last month, the Seoul Central District Court dismissed a request from Netflix that the video streaming service operator is not liable to pay network usage fees to SK Broadband. The court also rejected Ne

TechnologyJuly 16, 2021

Budget carrier Air Premia wins govt. approval for operations

Budget carrier Air Premia Co. has obtained government approval for its operations amid the extended COVID-19 pandemic, the transport ministry said Friday. The ministry issued an air operator certificate (AOC) to Air Premia to allow it to use aircraft for commercial purposes. "Air Premia needs to report its routes to the aviation authority before it begins flight services," a ministry official said. Air Premia plans to start services on mid-and long-haul routes initially with a 309

MobilityJuly 16, 2021

SK hynix to post strong Q2 earnings on price hikes: analysts

SK hynix Inc., South Korea's No. 2 chipmaker, is expected to deliver strong second-quarter earnings, analysts here said Friday, due to a rise in memory chip prices. SK hynix was estimated to log 9.92 trillion won ($8.6 billion) in sales in the April-June period, up 15.3 percent from a year earlier, while its operating profit was projected to reach 2.76 trillion won, up 41.8 percent from a year ago, according to the data from 11 local brokerage houses compiled by Yonhap Infomax, the financial n

IndustryJuly 16, 2021

S. Korea eyes deeper economic ties with Kenya

South Korea said Friday it seeks to forge deeper economic ties with Kenya in line with its efforts to diversify its trade portfolio and penetrate deeper into the African market. Vice Industry Minister Park Jin-kyu met his Kenyan counterpart Betty Maina in Seoul to discuss a wide array of economic issues, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. During the meeting, Park said South Korea wishes to expand its presence in Kenya's consumer goods and biohealth segments, as the launch

EconomyJuly 16, 2021

Sales of short-term bonds climb 12% in H1

Sales of short-term corporate bonds in South Korea rose 12 percent in the first half of the year from a year earlier amid the coronavirus pandemic, data showed Friday. Local companies issued 577.4 trillion won ($505 billion) worth of bonds maturing within one year in the January-June period, up from 515.5 trillion won a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Securities Depository (KSD). Compared with a year earlier, the amount was also up 11.9 percent. Sales of general short-term

EconomyJuly 16, 2021

Flare-up in COVID-19 cases ups economic uncertainty: ministry

The South Korean economy is on a recovery track, but a recent flare-up in COVID-19 cases could heighten uncertainty over an improvement in domestic demand, the finance ministry said Friday. In its monthly economic assessment report, the ministry said the country's exports remain robust and domestic demand showed signs of improvements while the job market is recovering from slumps. "But a resurgence in COVID-19 cases could increase uncertainty about domestic demand," the Ministry of E

EconomyJuly 16, 2021

Seoul stocks open lower on inflation worries

South Korean stocks opened lower Friday, tracking US stock losses over concerns of faster-than-expected inflation. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 13.17 points, or 0.4 percent, to 3,273.05 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the US central bank would support an accommodative stance as the current inflation is expected to wane. But the comment fell short of reducing the tapering jitters in the financial markets. Ove

MarketJuly 16, 2021

Hankook Tire supplies tires for BMW X3, X4 M models

Hankook Tire & Technology Co., the world's sixth-largest tiremaker by sales, said Friday it began supplying tires for BMW's high-performance X3 M and X4 M models this year. Hankook Tire has provided the high-performance Ventus S1 evo Z tires for the performance SUV models since the first half, the company said in a statement. BMW M is one of the world's three major sports racing brands, along with Mercedes-Benz's AMG and Audi's Renn Sport (RS) brands. To enhance its global brand image,

IndustryJuly 16, 2021

Stellantis to bring 6 EVs to S. Korea by 2026

Multinational carmaker Stellantis Group said Friday it will bring six electrified models to South Korea by 2026 as it aims to get a share of the emerging local EV market.   Stellantis is a 50:50 joint venture recently set up through the merger of U.S. carmaker Fiat Chrysler Automobiles N.V. and French automaker PSA Groupe.  This year, Stellantis plans to introduce the Wrangler 4xe plug-in hybrid electric vehicle in the Korean market and five other electrified models in the nex

MobilityJuly 16, 2021

Yanolja snaps up $1.7b funding as SoftBank ramps up Korea tech bet

Travel and leisure platform operator Yanolja completed a $1.7 billion investment round by sole investor SoftBank Vision Fund 2, the company said on Thursday. Yanolja said the company will use the proceeds to scale digital transformation of the global travel and hospitality industry and expand its technology offerings in new markets. The company plans to build and operate an advanced global travel platform by enhancing its automated solutions using artificial intelligence and personalized offe

MarketJuly 15, 2021

BlackRock Real Assets to back Korean offshore wind farm project

BlackRock Real Assets said Thursday it has closed its first investment in South Korea’s offshore wind sector, in line with the country’s renewable energy transition initiative. The New York-based asset managing arm dedicated to real estate and infrastructure investment acquired a 100 percent equity stake in renewables developer Korea Renewable Energy Development & Operation Holdings, formerly known as Igis Private Equity. The transaction price was not disclosed. BlackRock Real

MarketJuly 15, 2021

Blockchain firm AMAXG forays into NFT & metaverse

South Korean blockchain company AMAXG has recently taken steps to grow a platform business specializing in the metaverse and nonfungible tokens amid the rise of these virtual technologies. The metaverse refers to a collective virtual shared space. Extended reality is the foundation of the metaverse, as it makes diverse activities possible in the virtual world through virtual reality and augmented reality technology. AMAXG seeks to put the metaverse to practical use and commercialize virtual a

IndustryJuly 15, 2021

COVID-19 redefines how to value Korean private companies

The COVID-19 pandemic has been a catalyst for changing the way of assessing the value of a privately-owned company in the private capital market in South Korea, said a veteran investment professional on Thursday. The pandemic has accelerated both the demand and supply of services and products associated with the digital transformation and energy transition. This phenomenon triggers a bipolarization of target company valuation, Chai Jin-ho, executive managing partner at STIC Investments, said i

MarketJuly 15, 2021

Eximbank extends $600 million to Tunisia for digital infra project

The state-run Export-Import Bank of Korea said Thursday it had agreed to extend a $600 million loan to Tunisia to support the North African country’s digital infrastructure development projects. Tunisia plans to use the fund to digitize some 4.5 million maps and land-related documents to build a database and develop a comprehensive land information management system there. “We expect that our support for Tunisia’s land management infrastructure innovation, which is the cou

MarketJuly 15, 2021

[Contribution] Korea Customs Service’s war on drugs

This June, a telescope arrived in South Korea as an express consignment from the US.  At a glance, it looked like an ordinary item, but when customs officers examined it closely, they discovered a steel plate welded onto the original product. Through an intrusive search, officers seized 442 grams of methamphetamine hidden inside. Earlier in March, 4 kilograms of methamphetamine disguised as sea salt was found among international parcels from the US. It amounted to a whopping 150,000 dos

EconomyJuly 15, 2021

Doctors raise concerns over Hyundai Pharm’s abortion pill

Medical experts are divided over the safety and efficacy of an abortion pill poised to soon hit local pharmacy shelves. After a Korean firm sought to bring in the drug Mifegyne -- which is sold in over 70 countries -- under a local brand name Mifegymiso, a group of local experts on Thursday called for a bridging study to verify the pill’s safety and efficacy. A bridging study on a drug is an additional study executed in a new region to compare it with foreign clinical data on safety, e

TechnologyJuly 15, 2021

SK Bioscience aims to launch COVID-19 vaccine by early next year

SK Bioscience is to soon begin the Phase 3 clinical trial of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate, the firm’s CEO Ahn Jae-yong told a local seminar held Wednesday. Ahn also added the company expects the vaccine to be out early next year. SK Bioscience currently has two COVID-19 vaccine candidates, GBP510 and NBP2001, under development. The Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province-based firm is expected to choose one -- GBP510. The company last month applied for a regulatory permission to start the Phase 3

TechnologyJuly 15, 2021

Seoul stocks up on Fed's comments, improved China data

South Korean stocks rebounded Thursday morning as investors are relieved by the US Federal Reserve's reiteration of its dovish stance, with China's economic indicators signaling that the global recovery is on track. The Korean won rose against the US dollar The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 21.41 points, or 0.66 percent, to close at 3,286.22 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 1.2 billion shares worth some 13.4 trillion won ($11.7 billion), with gainers outn

MarketJuly 15, 2021

Toss Securities launches service for gifting stock like coffee

Toss Securities, the brokerage arm of fintech company Viva Republica, on Thursday said that it launched a stock gifting service to make investing easier. The new service allows users to give away their stocks to others, just by submitting a real name and phone number, like they do to virtually send coffee or other presents via mobile messenger service KakaoTalk. The company said the new service is part of the company‘s efforts to expand market access for new investors. Earlier this

MarketJuly 15, 2021