Moody’s maintains S. Korea’s credit rating at Aa2

Global ratings firm Moody’s has kept the credit rating of South Korea at Aa2, affirming the outlook at stable, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance on Wednesday. The US rating firm holds discussions with the ministry and the state-run Bank of Korea on a regular basis before annoucing a credit rating report for the nation The rating agency cited the nation’s strong economic fundamentals, and quick economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic as some of the reasons

MarketMay 12, 2021

HMM, Hybe, SKC, GC Pharma join MSCI Korea index

Morgan Stanley Capital International announced Wednesday that it has added four South Korean stocks -- HMM, Hybe, SKC and GC Pharma -- to its global and regional equity index, as part of May rebalancing. The US company also removed seven listed firms -- Hyundai Marine & Fire Insurance, Hanwha, GS Retail, Samsung Card, Lotte Corp., Korea Gas Corporation and Ottogi -- from the MSCI Korea Index. As a result, the regional equity index’s constituents of large- and mid-cap stocks fell to

MarketMay 12, 2021

HiteJinro to sell Terra in US, Singapore and Hong Kong

South Korean liquor maker HiteJinro said on Wednesday it will bring popular lager Terra to the US, Singapore and Hong Kong. The move marks the first time the green-bottled beer will be sold outside Korea since its release three years ago, with a batch of 1.2 million 330-milliliter bottles set to hit the shelves in Hong Kong first, before they are made available in the US and Singapore. Terra will be supplied to Korean communities in the countries first, where high demand is expected, before be

ConsumerMay 12, 2021

[Feature] One year into pandemic, contactless businesses continue to thrive

Once fueled by an emphasis on social distancing and hygiene woes, contactless businesses are continuing to thrive in Korea nearly one year into the coronavirus pandemic as companies rush to prepare for the post-pandemic era. Lee Do-shim, a 29-year-old Pilates instructor in Sejong City, is among the many who have become used to meeting basic necessities such as grocery shopping and getting takeout food without human interaction. “After the pandemic began, social distancing became the norm

ConsumerMay 12, 2021

Foreigners turn net buyers of S. Korean stocks in April

Foreign investors turned net buyers of South Korean equities in April, ending their four-month selling spree, the central bank said Wednesday. Foreigners purchased a net $590 million worth of local stocks last month, compared with net selling of $2.58 billion in March, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). Offshore investors, however, remained net buyers of Korean bonds worth $2.74 billion last month, the BOK said. Meanwhile, volatility in South Korea's currency slightly fell in April from th

EconomyMay 12, 2021

Samsung’s Bespoke appliances make global debut

Samsung Electronics will start rolling out Bespoke home appliances in the United States, Europe and Southeast Asian countries, aiming to duplicate the success of the colorful and customizable brand overseas. The South Korean tech giant unveiled flagship packages of its Bespoke refrigerators, washing machines, dryers, clothes care systems and wireless vacuum cleaners, differently created for each market, considering specific needs of customers in each region. Bespoke comes in over 20 orig

TechnologyMay 12, 2021

Banks' household loan growth quickens in April

South Korean banks' household loans grew at a faster clip in April, as money chased after initial public offerings, central bank data showed Wednesday. The value of outstanding bank loans to local households came to 1,025.7 trillion won ($912.2 billion) as of end-April, up 16.1 trillion won from the previous month, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). The April reading represents a hike from a 6.5 trillion-won gain in March. The BOK said the rise in lending was mainly attributa

EconomyMay 12, 2021

PC shipments in S. Korea soar to 10-year high in Q1: report

South Korea's personal computer (PC) market expanded to the largest in 10 years in the first quarter of 2021, industry data showed Wednesday, due to robust demand for online education and remote working amid the pandemic. Domestic PC shipments stood at 1.89 million units in the January-March period, up 30.7 percent from a year ago, according to the data from market researcher IDC Korea. This was the largest PC shipment volume in South Korea since the first quarter of 2012, when it recorded 1.9

EconomyMay 12, 2021

Samsung researcher to lead largest working group in 3GPP

Samsung Electronics Co. said Wednesday that one of its senior researchers will head the largest working group in a global mobile telecommunication standards organization, boasting of its leadership in the wireless communications sector. Kim Youn-sun, a master at Samsung Research, was elected to the chair of Radio Access Networking Group 1 (RAN WG1) at a 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) meeting on Tuesday, according to the tech giant. This is the first time that a South Korean has beco

IndustryMay 12, 2021

Genesis vehicle sales exceed 500,000 in past 5 years

Hyundai Motor Co. sold more than 500,000 units of vehicles under its independent Genesis brand since its launch five years ago, the company said Wednesday. Hyundai sold 378,999 Genesis vehicles in the domestic market and 121,192 units overseas since November 2015, the company said in a statement. The Genesis brand has advanced to the United States, Canada, the Middle East, Russia, and Australia, with a plan to make inroads into China and Europe this year. The Genesis lineup consists of the G9

MobilityMay 12, 2021

Seoul stocks open lower, tracking Wall Street decline

South Korean stocks opened lower Wednesday, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street as concerns of inflation weighed down on investor sentiment. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 3.9 points, or 0.12 percent, to 3,205.53 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, the US Dow Jones Industrial Average slumped 1.36 percent as rising commodity prices fueled worries of inflation. In Seoul, market behemoth Samsung Electronics shed 0.25 percent, while No. 2 chipm

MarketMay 12, 2021

Samsung's presence in DRAM market slightly down in Q1: report

Samsung Electronics Co.'s share in the global DRAM market declined slightly in the first quarter of the year, a report showed Wednesday, though it maintained the dominant status amid bullish demand for memory. The South Korean tech giant posted a 42 percent share of the global DRAM flash market in terms of revenue in the January-March period, down only 0.1 percentage point from a quarter earlier, according to market tracker TrendForce. Samsung's revenue came to $8.07 billion in the first three

IndustryMay 12, 2021

Samsung Electronics keeps No. 1 spot on S. Korea's top 500 firms' list

Global tech titan Samsung Electronics Co. retained the No. 1 spot on the list of South Korea's top 500 companies in 2020, with 44 companies newly making the list, a corporate tracker said Wednesday. Samsung Electronics, the flagship of South Korea's leading family-controlled conglomerate Samsung Group, remained the biggest company by sales last year, with its top line reaching 236.8 trillion won ($212 billion). Leading automaker Hyundai Motor Co., the marquee unit of automaking behemoth Hyunda

IndustryMay 12, 2021

S. Korea reports largest job growth in almost 7 years in April

South Korea reported the largest job growth in almost seven years in April in the latest sign that the job market is recovering from a yearlong slump caused by the pandemic, data showed Wednesday. The number of employed people reached 27.2 million last month, 652,000 more than a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. It marked the largest on-year increase since August 2014, when the number of employed people rose 670,000. The April reading also marked the second str

EconomyMay 12, 2021

Samsung announces global launch of expanded BESPOKE home appliance lineup

Samsung Electronics Co. on Tuesday introduced its expanded lineup of customizable home appliances to global audiences as the South Korean tech giant aims to boost sales amid the pandemic-driven stay-at-home trend.  The company said its BESPOKE Home solutions will be available in more countries this year with more products.  BESPOKE is a brand promoted by Samsung that allows consumers to tailor their own configurations by material, color and modules to meet user preferences in home ap

ConsumerMay 11, 2021

LG Uplus to invest over W300b to build new data center

LG Uplus Corp., a major South Korean telecom operator, said Tuesday it will invest more than 300 billion won ($267.9 million) to build a new internet data center amid growing user demand. The company said in a regulatory filing that it will invest 318.1 billion won for a new internet data center from June 1 until Dec. 31, 2023. The move comes after LG Uplus CEO Hwang Hyeon-sik vowed earlier this year to focus on new businesses aimed at corporate customers. LG Uplus currently operates four in

IndustryMay 11, 2021

Samsung unveils first CXL-based DRAM, sets new standard

Samsung Electronics on Tuesday unveiled the industry’s first DRAM module which supports the new Compute Express Link (CXL) interconnect standard, a new technology that can enhance the performance of data centers or cloud servers. Samsung has integrated its double data rate 5 (DDR5) technology with the CXL-based module, enabling server systems to significantly scale memory capacity and bandwidth. The CXL is a new interface that can efficiently connect different types of devices that use a

TechnologyMay 11, 2021

[News Focus] Samsung estate sparks debate on inheritance tax

The inheritance process for the wealth of the late Samsung Group tycoon rekindled a chronic legislation debate here – the country’s inheritance tax rate that is one of the world’s highest. While business circles took the occasion to call for a revision of the current taxation system, authorities continued to draw a line in the debate, refraining from what may seem to be a privilege for the Samsung empire. Some market observers, while consenting to the tax system itself, cla

IndustryMay 11, 2021

[Herald Interview] From textile to advanced biochemicals, Ventex expands, evolves

Founded in 1999 as a textile company in South Korea, Ventex took a risk and ventured into uncharted territory, and fortunately, that paid off.　 The company, which used to produce chemical materials for functional textile products, now makes antibacterial biochemical materials with a much wider range of applications, including hand sanitizer, cosmetics, textbooks, paints and sanitization and deodorization solutions. Behind the dramatic transformation was sustained investment in research and de

TechnologyMay 11, 2021

Small but mighty, Ventex bets future on nano-materials

Ventex started off in 1999 as a tiny textile developer. Through a relentless search for new materials using nanotechnology, the Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province-based company is now building its global presence as a biochemical company. According to founder and CEO Go Gyeong-chan, the company is on course to achieve 34.8 billion won ($31.2 million) in sales this year, which is expected to more than double to 73.5 billion won next year. Driving the growth are disinfection and sanitization produc

TechnologyMay 11, 2021