[News Focus] Naver’s global ambitions taking shape

Naver is more than just a South Korean version of Google. For many Koreans, it is the go-to site for searching, news, blogging, cloud services, shopping, fintech and many other things -- including killing time with cartoons. And the behemoth isn’t stopping there. Naver is aggressively investing in global platforms that cater to the social media generation throughout the world. For now, its main focus appears to be cartoons and K-pop.    Webtoons Web-based cartoons, or web

TechnologyFeb. 1, 2021

Seoul stocks again cross 3,000 point threshold on foreign, institutional buying

South Korean stocks closed back over the 3,000-point threshold Monday, led by foreign and institutional buying and strong advances by bio shares. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) jumped 80.32 points, or 2.7 percent, to close at 3,056.53 points. Trading volume was high at about 958 million shares worth some 20.5 trillion won ($18.4 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 710 to 156. Foreigners bought a net 131 billion won and

MarketFeb. 1, 2021

Renault Samsung's Jan. sales down 1.3% on weak domestic demand

Renault Samsung Motors Corp. said Monday its sales fell 1.3 percent last month from a year earlier due to weak domestic demand. The South Korean unit of Renault SA sold 6,152 vehicles in January, down from 6,233 units a year earlier, the company said in a statement. Domestic sales sank 17.9 percent on-year to 3,534 units last month on sluggish sales of SM6 sedans and QM6 SUVs. Exports rose 35.6 percent to 2,618 units over the cited period as the first batch of its flagship XM3 SUVs were shipp

IndustryFeb. 1, 2021

Retail investors see disappointing performance in January

Amateur share traders, who defended the market from a massive selloff by established investors, injected nearly half of last year’s investments in January, but their performance remained in negative territory, data showed Monday. According to the Korea Exchange, individual investors net purchased Kospi-listed stocks worth 22.34 trillion won ($19.97 billion) and 3.51 trillion-won worth of shares from the secondary Kosdaq market. The net buying figures, when combined, are equivalent to 40 p

MarketFeb. 1, 2021

SK Telecom to sell Facebook’s VR device Oculus Quest 2 in S. Korea

SK Telecom said Monday it would begin sales of Facebook’s latest virtual reality device, the Oculus Quest 2, in South Korea, starting Tuesday. The Oculus Quest 2 will go on sale from 414,000 won ($370) at SK Telecom’s offline and online stores. The device is equipped with Qualcomm Technologies’ XR2 chipset and supports almost-4K resolution display. It also allows users to toggle between 72 hertz, 80 hertz and 90 hertz refresh rate modes. The standalone virtual reality head

TechnologyFeb. 1, 2021

GM Korea's Jan. sales soar 76% on robust exports

GM Korea Co. said Monday its sales jumped 76.4 percent last month from a year earlier on solid vehicle sales abroad. The South Korean unit of General Motors Co. sold 36,126 vehicles in January, up 20,484 from the previous year, the company said in a statement. Domestic sales gained 19.7 percent on-year to 6,106 units last month, thanks to robust sales of the Chevrolet Spark minicar and the Trailblazer SUV. Exports soared 95.2 percent to 30,020 units over the cited period, it said. The Detroi

IndustryFeb. 1, 2021

NCSoft benefits most from listing transfer to Kospi

Forty-five companies, which first went public via South Korea’s tech-heavy Kosdaq market, saw at least a threefold surge in market valuation after they transferred to the nation’s main bourse market since 2000, data showed Monday. Of the 45 companies transferred to Kospi, 42 firms progressed with a combined market capitalization of 206.57 trillion won ($184.89 billion) as of Friday, jumping from 65.77 trillion won logged 20 years ago, according to the Korea Exchange. The three disap

MarketFeb. 1, 2021

[News Focus] COVID-19 contributed to widening of income inequality: BOK

The COVID-19 pandemic has worsened income inequality in the nation, as the social distancing rules cost jobs and increased poverty, the central bank said Monday.  The potential total wage loss rate -- which took into account the nation’s labor capability in lockdowns, the duration of lockdowns and the number of regular workers -- amounted to 7.4 percent last year, the Bank of Korea said in its regular report on the nation’s economy.  The rate was also calculated on the

EconomyFeb. 1, 2021

SsangYong's Jan. sales rose 13% on SUVs

SsangYong Motor Co. said Monday its sales rose 13 percent last month from a year earlier on improved demand for its recreational vehicles amid the COVID-19 pandemic. SsangYong Motor sold 8,648 vehicles in January, up from 7,653 units a year ago on strong overseas sales of the Rexton and Rexton Sport models, the company said in a statement. Domestic sales rose 1.6 percent to 5,648 units last month from 5,557 the previous year, and exports jumped 45 percent to 3,030 from 2,096, it said. SsangYo

IndustryFeb. 1, 2021

Suhyup Bank's pre-tax earnings dip 18% on coronavirus impact

Suhyup Bank, the credit and banking division of South Korea's fisheries cooperative, said Monday its earnings tumbled more than 18 percent in 2020 due to the impact of the coronavirus outbreak. The lender, affiliated with the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives, said its pre-tax net profit came to 233.6 billion won ($209 million) last year, down 18.1 percent from a year earlier. The drop resulted mainly from increased loan loss provisions in the wake of the country's COVID-19 outbrea

EconomyFeb. 1, 2021

Korea should foster automotive semiconductor industry: report

As electric cars have been the driving force behind the changing automotive industry, South Korea should foster competitiveness in the automotive semiconductor industry, a local think tank said Monday. In its report, the Korea Automotive Technology Institute says there is a need for Korean companies to gear up to meet the rising demands of automotive semiconductors, as cars are developing into “moving IT machines” with new technologies such as self-driving and electric powertrains

MobilityFeb. 1, 2021

SK hynix completes first EUV fab for DRAM

SK hynix has completed its first fabrication line equipped with extreme ultraviolet lithography equipment for DRAM chips, the company said Monday. Named M16, the fab on its Icheon campus in Gyeonggi Province is the company’s largest. It has a building area of 57,000 square meters, equivalent to the size of eight soccer fields combined, and is 105 meters high, reaching the height of a 37-floor apartment building. SK hynix has injected 3.5 trillion won ($3.1 billion) and 3.34 million

TechnologyFeb. 1, 2021

Hyundai Motor, KDB earmark W74.5b to invest in mobility startups

Hyundai Motor Group said Monday it has partnered with state-run lender Korea Development Bank to create a fund of 74.5 billion won ($66.6 million) to support open innovation of the South Korean automaker giant and its supply chain. The fund primarily targets domestic startups dedicated to eco-friendly cars and smart cars, as well as companies with futuristic mobility technologies with regards to urban air mobility and purpose-built vehicles. Major backers of the fund include Hyundai Motor, K

MarketFeb. 1, 2021

S. Korea accounts for 34.7% of global EV battery market in 2020

Three South Korean electric vehicle (EV) battery makers accounted for over a third of the global market last year underscoring their increased presence in the fast-growing sector, a market research firm said Monday. The three -- LG Energy Solution Ltd., Samsung SDI Co. and SK Innovation Co. -- supplied a combined 49.4 gigawatt-hour (GWh) equivalents of EV batteries in 2020, accounting for 34.7 percent of the total, according to the data by SNE Research. Their combined share more than doubled

IndustryFeb. 1, 2021

S. Korea to provide W240b in support for logic chip R&D this year

South Korea said Monday it will provide 240 billion won ($214 million) in support for research and development (R&D) in logic chips and the fabless chip sector this year as the country seeks to boost its semiconductor industry. The R&D plan aims to foster fabless chipmakers and bolster the country's competitiveness in artificial intelligence chips and next-generation sensors, according to the science ministry. While South Korea holds a tight grip on the global memory chip market throug

IndustryFeb. 1, 2021

Duty-free sales dip 38% in 2020 on coronavirus

Sales at South Korean duty-free stores plunged nearly 38 percent on-year in 2020 due to the spread of the new coronavirus, industry data showed Monday. Combined sales of local duty-free shops totaled 15.5 trillion won ($13.9 billion) last year, down 37.7 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Duty Free Shops Association. Foreign shoppers accounted for 94 percent of the sales figure as the coronavirus pandemic kept South Koreans from going abroad. The proportion was

ConsumerFeb. 1, 2021

SK Biopharm's anti-epileptic drug wins EU drug agency's positive opinion

The European Union's drug agency has recommended the approval of an anti-epileptic drug of SK Biopharmaceuticals Co., paving the way for its sales in the region, the biopharmaceutical affiliate of South Korea's SK Group said Monday. The Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) under the European Medicines Agency recommended the application of cenobamate, SK Biopharmaceuticals said in a press release. The European Commission, which is authorized to approve medicines in the region,

IndustryFeb. 1, 2021

44 conglomerate affiliates added to antitrust watchlist over past 3 months

The number of South Korean companies affiliated with large business groups under tight supervision rose by 44 over the past three months mainly because conglomerates expanded their eco-friendly energy business, data showed Monday. The total number of affiliates on the Korea Fair Trade Commission's (KFTC) list reached 2,369 as of the end of January, compared with 2,325 three months earlier, according to the antitrust regulator. Major business groups newly launched or acquired 97 new units, whil

IndustryFeb. 1, 2021

Celltrion's Remsima SC wins approval in Canada

South Korean biopharmaceutical firm Celltrion Inc. said Monday its drug Remsima SC for the treatment of autoimmune diseases has won sales approval in Canada. The Public Health Agency of Canada gave the green light to Celltrion's application to sell the subcutaneous (SC) version of Remsima, a biosimilar copy of Janssen Biotech Inc.'s Remicade, according to the company. Remsima, administered through intravascular injections, is used in the treatment of a number of diseases, from rheumatoid arthr

IndustryFeb. 1, 2021

SK Telecom to launch Facebook's Oculus VR device in S. Korea

SK Telecom Co., South Korea's largest wireless carrier, said Monday it will release Facebook Inc.'s latest virtual reality (VR) device, the Oculus Quest 2, as the telecom operator seeks to expand its presence in the local VR market. The mobile carrier said it will offer the device in South Korea on Tuesday as an extension of its partnership with the US social media giant in 2019. SK Telecom sold the company's previous Oculus Go device through last year. The Oculus Quest 2, which provides aroun

TechnologyFeb. 1, 2021