KIM spruces up 3 equity funds to meet diverse investor needs

Seoul-based investment house Korea Investment Management said Thursday that it has rebranded three open-ended equity funds to cater to the diversified needs of South Korean retail investors. The three open-ended equity funds have ditched their respective strategies and shifted their focus to the domestic technology sector; to sectors benefiting from the Korean New Deal initiative, such as batteries, biotechnology, internet and games; and to environmental, social and governance factors. Accor

MarketJan. 28, 2021

AFoCO views forest cooperation as key to battle climate and pandemic crisis

Ricardo Calderon, the executive director of the Asian Forest Cooperation Organization (AFoCO), has welcomed the Korean government’s announcements on plans for carbon neutrality by 2050. President Moon Jae-in announced last October that South Korea will seek to reach carbon neutrality by 2050 in an effort to transform the country’s fossil-fuel reliant economy into an eco-friendly one. The Korean Forest Service announced its 2050 Carbon Neutral Forestry Sector Strategy this month, w

IndustryJan. 28, 2021

AFoCO chief strives for stronger regional forest cooperation in Asia

Ricardo Calderon, as the recently appointed executive director of the Seoul-based Asian Forest Cooperation Organization (AFoCO), faces new challenges while working towards prospective goals he has for the forestry community. On a personal level, Calderon -- who is from the Philippines -- is simply facing difficulties being away from home and adjusting to the new environment in Seoul, as his family, friends, relatives and colleagues are also struggling to adjust to the new climate, atmosphere an

IndustryJan. 28, 2021

Seoul stocks dip nearly 2% on massive foreign selling

South Korean stocks dipped almost 2 percent Thursday on massive foreign selling, generated by results of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 53.51 points, or 1.71 percent, to close at 3,069.05 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 1.3 billion shares worth around 22.7 trillion won ($20.3 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 768 to 114. Foreigners sold a net 1.6 tri

MarketJan. 28, 2021

S-Oil Q4 net jumps 172% on robust petrochemical demand

S-Oil Corp., South Korea's No. 3 refiner, said Thursday its fourth-quarter net profit soared 172.1 percent from a year earlier as strong sales of petrochemical products offset the weak refining margin. S-Oil posted a net profit of 129.7 billion won ($116 million) in the October-December period, compared with 47.7 billion won a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing. Its operating profit jumped 880.5 percent on-year to 93.1 billion won, while sales tumbled 33.9 percent to 4.3 tri

IndustryJan. 28, 2021

Kakao Pay to halt part of service due to unsolved large shareholder issue

Kakao Pay is expected to halt its integrated personal data management services after failing to obtain a license from the financial authorities, the company said Thursday. The move could leave the firm lagging behind rivals, which are aggressively tapping into the business area. The fintech arm of mobile giant Kakao said its asset management service, which allows users to keep track of all their bank accounts, credit card records and insurance policies, will cease Feb. 5. Other companies that

MarketJan. 28, 2021

IMF dispels concerns of S. Korea’s rising budget deficit

South Korea’s current snowballing budget deficit, fueled by the COVID-19 pandemic “can be offset by gradual consolidation” in coming years, the International Monetary Fund said Thursday. The remark by Andreas Bauer, Korea mission chief at the IMF, apparently aims to alleviate concerns surrounding the nation’s government debt surged by four rounds of supplementary budgets implemented to finance COVID-19 relief programs. The sovereign debt is projected reach 956 trillio

EconomyJan. 28, 2021

Mobile carriers push for online platforms, unmanned stores amid pandemic

South Korean mobile carriers are launching unmanned stores and expanding their online retail platforms as the COVID-19 pandemic limits in-person contact and accelerates the use of virtual services. KT Corp. said Thursday it launched its first unmanned store equipped with digital kiosks for customers to buy phones and switch data plans all on their own. The store, located in the southeastern city of Daegu, is run by employees during the day and operates unmanned at night, allowing virus-wary cu

TechnologyJan. 28, 2021

GM Korea chief picks labor issues as key concern for investment

Lack of labor flexibility, continued industrial action and annual wage negotiations remain major challenges to doing business in South Korea and attracting foreign investment, the chief of GM Korea Co. said Thursday. GM Korea President and Chief Executive Kaher Kazem said there are things to be improved to make multinational companies invest further in Korea. He mentioned the Korea-US free trade agreement, Korea's stable economy, its manufacturing capability and highly competitive supply base

IndustryJan. 28, 2021

Korea Public Health Association teams up with Febreze to launch hygiene campaign

The Korea Public Health Association has teamed up with P&G Korea’s Febreze to launch a public hygiene campaign to keep homes clean. The new campaign is designed to raise awareness of what has been dubbed the “new normal” lifestyle that has emerged in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, putting an emphasis on hygiene at home, the company said. The four-step guidelines touch on sterilization, disinfection, ventilation and humidity and also lays out ways to disinfect item

ConsumerJan. 28, 2021

Four-way partnership forged for flying cars

Korea Airports Corp., Hanwha Systems, SK Telecom and the Korea Transport Institute have formed a four-way partnership to accelerate the commercialization of flying cars, or urban air mobility vehicles. Leaders from each party signed a memorandum of understanding at KAC’s headquarters in western Seoul on Wednesday as part of efforts to form a “dream team” with the goal of trialing commercial air taxis by 2025, the corporation announced on Thursday. The move will see KAC build

MobilityJan. 28, 2021

Samsung, Deutsche Telekom complete 5G standalone trial in Czech Republic

Samsung Electronics Co. has successfully completed its first 5G standalone (SA) trial with Deutsche Telekom AG, according to the company, as the South Korean tech giant tries to expand its presence in the European 5G telecommunications market. Samsung and Deutsche Telekom, Europe's leading telecom service operator, conducted their first 5G SA trial in Pilsen, the Czech Republic, verifying performance of 5G SA multi-user, multiple-input, multiple-output (MU-MIMO) technologies, Samsung said late

TechnologyJan. 28, 2021

Samsung relegated to 2nd spot in Q4 smartphone market: report

Samsung Electronics Co. dropped to the second spot in the global smartphone market in the fourth quarter of 2020, a report showed Thursday, as Apple Inc. outshined other companies on the back of its new iPhone 12 series. Samsung shipped 73.9 million smartphones in the October-December period, up 6.2 percent from a year earlier, for a market share of 19.2 percent, according to market researcher International Data Corp. (IDC). Apple was the top performer in the fourth quarter after shipping 90.1

IndustryJan. 28, 2021

LS Electric 2020 net profit down 17% to W85.5b

LS Electric Co. on Thursday reported its 2020 net profit of 85.5 billion won ($76.6 million), down 17 percent from a year earlier. Operating income for the year was 133.7 billion won, down 20.7 percent on-year, the company said in a regulatory filing. Annual revenue rose 2.4 percent to 2.4 trillion won. (Yonhap)

IndustryJan. 28, 2021

LS Electric Q4 net income up 64.8% to W21.2b

LS Electric Co. on Thursday reported its fourth-quarter net profit of 21.2 billion won ($19 million), up 64.8 percent from a year earlier. The company said in a regulatory filing that it posted 32.6 billion won in operating profit for the quarter, compared with 43.2 billion won a year ago. Revenue fell 12.7 percent to 610.2 billion won. The operating profit was 18.0 percent lower than the average estimate, according to the survey by Yonhap Infomax, the financial data firm of Yonhap News Agency

IndustryJan. 28, 2021

S. Korea's daily FX turnover dips 5% last year amid won's gain

The daily foreign exchange (FX) trading by banks in South Korea fell 5.3 percent on-year in 2020 as the local currency rose against the US dollar, central bank data showed Thursday. The daily FX turnover came to an average $52.8 billion last year, down $2.93 billion from the previous year, according to the data by the Bank of Korea (BOK). The BOK said the drop in the daily FX turnover came as the won's gain reduced demand to hedge risks with FX derivative trading. The Korean currency apprecia

MarketJan. 28, 2021

FSC recommends banks to keep dividends below 20% of earnings

South Korea’s top financial regulator said Thursday it has decided to advise major banks to maintain their dividend payouts below 20 percent of net income during the first half of this year in response to the prolonged economic fallout of COVID-19.  Under the latest guidance by the Financial Services Commission, local lenders are expected to cut payments to shareholders by about 5 to 7 percentage points. Last year, the country’s four major banking groups -- KB Financial, Shinha

MarketJan. 28, 2021

Dutch investor NNIP says Korean bonds have less upside potential than EM peers

Netherlands-based investor NN Investment Partners said Thursday the search for yield will make emerging markets the most attractive destination for bond investors, but that South Korea was not likely to be their first choice. “Although Korea is part of the emerging market universe in indices, it is much closer to the developed than many other emerging market universe,” Valentijn van Nieuwenhuijzen, chief investment officer of NNIP, said in a teleconference with Korean reporters. &

MarketJan. 28, 2021

S. Korea's trade terms rise for 9th straight month in Dec.

South Korea's terms of trade rose for the ninth consecutive month in December as export prices increased at a faster pace than import prices, central bank data showed Thursday. The nation's net terms-of-trade index for goods -- a gauge of trade terms -- increased 7.2 percent last month from a year earlier, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). It marked the ninth straight month of an on-year rise since April, when the trade terms logged the first on-year hike in over two

EconomyJan. 28, 2021

Honda Korea bets on hybrid models in S. Korea

Honda Korea Co., the South Korean unit of Japanese carmaker Honda Motor Co., said Thursday it will focus on reviving lackluster sales this year by launching new gasoline hybrid models amid the prolonged coronavirus pandemic. Honda Korea has launched the new all-wheel CR-V hybrid SUV and the upgraded Accord hybrid sedan to regain a share in the Korean market, where its sales plunged 65 percent to 3,056 vehicles last year from 8,760 a year earlier. "We are targeting to sell 3,000 hybrid mod

MobilityJan. 28, 2021