Regulator says 16 fintech firms attract over W136b in investment

South Korea's financial regulator said Thursday that 16 fintech firms and startups have attracted a combined 136.4 billion won ($111 million) in investment over the past year as the country is pushing to promote the fintech industry. The investments came a year after South Korea introduced a regulatory sandbox meant to allow fintech firms using new technologies, such as blockchain and big data, to develop new financial services without regulatory hurdles. The move came as South Korea is count

EconomyMay 14, 2020

Foreign investors expected to return to stock market from H2

Foreign investors will return to the Korean stock market starting from the second half of the year if the US job market hits rock bottom in June, according to a local brokerage Thursday. “If figures on the US labor market hit a low point in June, offshore investors are highly likely to inject their capital into the local stock market from July,” said Lee Eun-taek, an analyst at KB Securities. “They will eye large-cap stocks first.” The US’ monthly employment repo

MarketMay 14, 2020

Seegene’s net profit jumps 600% in Q1

    　Real-time polymerase chain reaction COVID-19 detection test kit maker Seegene saw a whopping 600 percent jump in its consolidated operating profit and net profit in the first quarter of 2020, according to company filings Thursday.   　Seegene rose from being one of many molecular diagnosis companies to a globally acknowledged high-profile firm after it became one of the first to produce a real-time PCR COVID-19 test kit.   　The company said it posted a consolidated rev

IndustryMay 14, 2020

Hanjin KAL decides to inject W300b in cash-strapped Korean Air

Hanjin KAL said Thursday it will inject 300 billion won ($244.3 million) in Korean Air by selling its assets and through mortgage loans, one day after the airliner’s board decided to raise 1 trillion won by selling new stocks as part of a self-rescue plan.  The parent company of Korean Air currently owns a 29.96 percent stake in the air carrier. Amid the growing economic impact of COVID-19 on the aviation industry, Hanjin KAL’s board of directors decided to “preemptivel

MobilityMay 14, 2020

World’s first hydrogen mobility show to kick off in Seoul in July

Seoul will hold the world’s first hydrogen mobility exhibition called 2020 H2 Mobility+ Energy Show on July 1, to take the lead in the future’s core energy business, according to the event organizer Thursday.  Due to the latest outbreak of COVID-19, the opening of the hydrogen mobility exhibition was discussed by organizing committee members, but they decided to proceed with the plan, the organizer said.  The exhibition had earlier been delayed from March 18 due to the w

MobilityMay 14, 2020

Bio Korea 2020 goes online amid pandemic

The annual Bio Korea International Convention will take place online for the first time this year, in an innovative approach that involves virtual reality exhibition pavilion and remote business meetings. “Instead of calling off the global gathering for the opportunity to share the latest medical and pharmaceutical endeavors, we have decided to jump over the spatial limitations by taking the event online,” said Kwon Deok-cheol, president of Korea Health Industry Development Institu

IndustryMay 14, 2020

Asiana to reopen 13 int'l routes in June as virus woes ease

Asiana Airlines Inc., South Korea's second-biggest carrier, said Thursday it will resume flights on 13 international routes next month as the coronavirus outbreak seems to have passed its peak. The move comes on the heels of its bigger local rival Korean Air's similar plan. Asiana plans to restart flight services on 13 international routes -- one to Seattle and 12 to Chinese cities, such as Beijing and Shanghai -- from June 1, while increasing the number of flights on six other routes to citi

MobilityMay 14, 2020

Samsung Galaxy A51 bestselling Android smartphone in Q1: report

Samsung Electronics Co.'s mid-range smartphone, the Galaxy A51, was the world's bestselling Android smartphone model in the first quarter of the year, a report showed Thursday. The Galaxy A51, which was unveiled in December, shipped 6 million units globally, accounting for 2.3 percent of all smartphones shipped in the January-March period, according to market tracker Strategy Analytics. The Redmi 8, made by China's Xiaomi Corp., was the second bestselling Android smartphone with a 1.9 perce

TechnologyMay 14, 2020

Seoul stocks open lower on Wall Street losses

Seoul stocks opened lower Thursday, tracking losses on Wall Street amid the new coronavirus pandemic. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 24.37 points, or 1.26 percent, to 1,916.05 in the first 15 minutes of trading. US stocks plunged Wednesday (local time) after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell expected a slow economic recovery from the novel coronavirus fallout. Investor sentiment was also hit by growing concerns over tensions between the United States and Chin

MarketMay 14, 2020

[Monitor] Startups hopeful of new opportunities post-COVID-19

According to a survey conducted in April by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, four out of 10 startups in South Korea were hopeful of a positive impact from the COVID-19 pandemic, such as wider opportunities for new business models. (khnews@heraldcorp.com)

IndustryMay 14, 2020

S. Korea aims to create 1.56m jobs in public sector

South Korea aims to create 1.56 million jobs in the public sector, Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Thursday, as the nation's economy suffered its sharpest job losses in 21 years over the coronavirus pandemic. Hong said the government will soon draw up plans to mitigate the impact of the coronavirus on the job market. About 1 million jobs in the public sector have not been opened due to social distancing rules, but the government will soon open such jobs by easing some rules, Hong said. T

EconomyMay 14, 2020

Credit card use posts smaller dip in April amid virus slowdown

Credit card spending by Koreans dipped at a slower rate in April than the previous month amid the COVID-19 infection slowdown, industry data showed Wednesday.  Combined credit card spending last month decreased by 2.9 percent from a year earlier to reach some 54.5 trillion won ($44.5 billion), marking a smaller dip compared to 6.7 percent in March, said Rep. Park Kwang-on of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, quoting data compiled by eight credit card issuers: Shinhan, Samsung, KB Koo

MarketMay 14, 2020

[Herald Interview] ‘Private investor engagement key to climate-resilient world’

In the climate finance world, money goes not only to the countries most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, but also to innovative, eco-friendly infrastructure projects that help the world reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Striking the balance between the two themes -- adaptation and mitigation -- is one of the primary missions of the Green Climate Fund, the world’s largest fund dedicated to helping developing countries take climate actions. The fund serving the Paris Agreement on

MarketMay 13, 2020

Nexon, Netmarble post disappointing Q1 earnings

South Korean game giant Nexon announced Wednesday that it posted a decline in revenue, operating profit and net profit in the first quarter, drawing concerns over its performance in overseas markets. The company’s revenue dipped 11 percent on-year to 904.5 billion won ($738.6 million) while its operating profit and net profit dived 21 percent and 7 percent to 454 billion won and 545.5 billion won, respectively. Nexon’s performance in South Korea was stellar, posting the best qua

IndustryMay 13, 2020

Korean Air to raise W1tr via stock sale amid virus woes

Korean Air Lines Co. said Wednesday it will raise 1 trillion won ($820 million) by selling stocks as part of self-help measures amid the growing coronavirus impact on the airline sector. The rights issue is one of the options that Korean Air has reviewed to raise the capital needed to ride out the coronavirus crisis, the company said in a statement. Shareholders of the country's biggest carrier will be given the rights to buy 79 million stocks to be issued at 12,600 won per share. The new sha

MobilityMay 13, 2020

LG Chem sends petrochem biz chief to India over gas leak crisis

LG Chem on Wednesday dispatched a special task force comprised of eight officials to India in the aftermath of a deadly styrene gas leak at a LG Poloymers plant, which left at least 12 local residents dead and more than 1,000 hospitalized. The South Korean chemical and battery firm said the special team includes production and environmental safety experts led by LG Chem Executive Vice President and President of Petrochemicals Business Noh Kug-lae, who will meet local residents and explain su

IndustryMay 13, 2020

Kepco clinches 60 MW solar power deal in Guam

The Korea Electric Power Corp. said Wednesday that it had won an international bid to build and operate a solar power generation facility in Guam. The state-run utility won an international bid from the Guam Power Authority and signed a long-term electricity supply contract that is expected to bring in $340 million for the company over 25 years. Samsung C&T is to build solar power generation facilities with a capacity of 60 megawatts and an energy storage systems power plant with a capa

IndustryMay 13, 2020

Tesla sales push EV battery supplier LG Chem to No. 1

LG Chem topped the global electric vehicle battery market in the first quarter thanks to client company Tesla’s strong sales, data showed Wednesday. According to market tracker EV Volumes, the company supplied 14 percent of the batteries for 88,461 Tesla EVs in the first quarter. Propelled by Tesla’s strong sales, LG Chem supplied EV batteries with a total storage capacity of 6.3 gigawatt hours. It took the lead over its Japanese competitor Panasonic for the first time in terms o

IndustryMay 13, 2020

S-Oil donates W280m to help coronavirus-hit local communities

S-Oil said Wednesday that its chief executive has donated 280 million won ($228,275) to a social welfare organization to help local communities hit by the coronavirus outbreak. Hussain Al-Qahtani, who was appointed as the company’s new CEO last June, made the donation to the Korea National Council on Social Welfare while also launching corporate social responsibility activities at some 250 service stations nationwide. In the campaign, S-Oil’s marketing staff and executives will c

IndustryMay 13, 2020

Seoul office market to face pandemic impact in Q2: report

Seoul’s prime office building market will face flagging demand due to the coronavirus coupled with new supply in the second quarter, which will create more empty space within the properties and reduce their cash flow, Savills Korea said in a report Wednesday. According to the real estate services firm, real estate investors in South Korea are expected to take a cautious stance as uncertainties in the leasing market are likely to erupt in terms of the proposed buyers’ financing cond

MarketMay 13, 2020