Samsung SDI, GM to build $3 bln EV battery plant in US

Samsung SDI Co. said Tuesday it is pushing to build an electric vehicle (EV) battery manufacturing facility in the United States in a joint venture with General Motors Co. The South Korean battery maker unveiled the plan in a regulatory filing, under which the two companies have agreed to invest more than $3 billion in constructing a plant with an annual capacity of over 30 gigawatt hours (GWh). The location of the plant has not been decided yet, it said. The company aims to commence commercial

IndustryApril 25, 2023

Hyundai Motor outpaces Samsung in quarterly earnings for 1st time

Hyundai Motor, the flagship unit of Hyundai Motor Group, said Tuesday it posted record operating profits of 3.6 trillion won ($2.7 billion) in the first three months of this year, outpacing Samsung Electronics in quarterly earnings for the first time. The auto giant reported surprising earnings in the first quarter, with operating profits jumping up 86.3 percent on-year. During the same period, Samsung Electronics posted 600 billion won in operating profits. It is the first time that Hyundai

MobilityApril 25, 2023

Seoul shares down for 4th day ahead of earnings season

South Korean stocks ended markedly lower Tuesday, led by big-cap tech losses, as investors took to the sidelines awaiting major corporate earnings reports. The local currency rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 34.48 points, or 1.37 percent, to close at 2,489.02, extending its losing streak to a fourth session. Trading volume was a bit heavy at 875.67 million shares worth 13.46 trillion won ($10.1 billion), with decliners outpacing gainers 641 to 248.

MarketApril 25, 2023

Samsung, Posco join forces to tackle business uncertainties

South Korean steel giant Posco said Tuesday it had signed its first ever long-term agreement with Samsung Electronics in a bid to expand technical cooperation between the two industrial giants and to jointly seek new business opportunities. According to Posco, its Vice Chairman Kim Hak-dong and Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Han Jong-hee visited Samsung's headquarters in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, to iterate the specifics of the three-year agreement the two companies signed in March. &quo

IndustryApril 25, 2023

[Herald Interview] Ballantine’s master blender on new whisky expression full of memories

Sandy Hyslop, the master blender behind Ballantine’s, visited South Korea to celebrate the global launch of the first edition of Pernod Ricard's premium whisky series, the 40 Year Old Masterclass Collection. Marking his 40 years in the industry this year, Hyslop is widely known as the master blender of Ballantine’s, the Glenlivet and Chivas Regal. His job is to check the quality of what distilleries produce every single week, create new whiskies and manage the continuity and fla

IndustryApril 25, 2023

[Herald Interview] 2023 Procurement Expo to fuel post-pandemic growth

The Public Procurement Service is gearing up to host the Korea Public Procurement Expo 2023, an annual event which will serve as a platform for companies to showcase their products and technologies and broaden their global footprint in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. “The 23rd Korea Public Procurement Expo boasts the largest-ever turnout with over 560 companies and upwards of 1,000 booths,” PPS administrator Lee Jong-Wook said in an interview with The Korea Herald. The Public

IndustryApril 25, 2023

S. Korean economy rebounds as consumer spending picks up

South Korea’s economy showed a slight sign of recovery, with 0.3 percent growth in the first three months of 2023 on the rebound of private consumption as the COVID-19 pandemic wanes. The country’s gross domestic product -- the value of all goods and services created -- grew 0.3 percent in the January-March period, showing signs of recovery from the minus 0.4 percent of the previous quarter. It showed a 0.8 percent increase from the same period of 2022, data from the Bank of Korea sh

EconomyApril 25, 2023

LG Energy Solution to set up W600b advanced production line at Ochang plant

LG Energy Solution said Tuesday it will set up an advanced production line at its Ochang plant in a bid to supply more certified battery prototypes to global electric carmakers. Under a 600 billion won ($450.7 million) investment, the battery maker plans to build what it calls a “mother" production line, where a battery cell prototype can be mass-produced, in its Ochang plant located in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province. The existing pilot line manufactures such prototypes but do

MobilityApril 25, 2023

Apple still in need of Korea-made displays despite production push

US tech giant Apple will likely continue its reliance on Korean-made displays, although it has been making a “sweeping effort” to develop its own components for more direct control over its designs, a report showed Tuesday. According to a report released by the Institute for Information & Communications Technology Promotion, Apple is expanding its use of in-house components such as chips and displays in its flagship iPhones as part of a strategy to maintain its dominance in the m

TechnologyApril 25, 2023

Korea Customs Week 2023 to go beyond borders for global cooperation

South Korea's customs agency Korea Customs Service said Tuesday that it will host an international conference in Seoul starting from Wednesday, under the theme of global cooperation and digital customs. Taking place between Wednesday to Friday, Korea Customs Week 2023 will be the first large-scale international customs conference held by the agency. The event will be attended by customs authorities from 75 countries, with 600 domestic and overseas entrepreneurs and officials, including the

EconomyApril 25, 2023

Are Koreans really fat?

For 27-year-old Choi, the main focus in her life recently has been getting her weight down. The after-work dinners at her new job and frequent dates with her new boyfriend have resulted in her tipping the bathroom scale into the above-55-kilogram range for the first time in her life, prompting her to panic-buy a gym membership, exercise equipment and organic meal kits. “I just feel so big since I’ve put on the extra weight. I want to get my weight down to below 50 kilograms,” s

Social AffairsApril 25, 2023

Meritz ascends to become No. 3 financial group

Meritz Financial Group on Tuesday completed the process of incorporating its nonlife insurance and brokerage affiliates into the group, making it the third-largest financial conglomerate in Korea. After the consolidation, the group's market capitalization is expected to extend to over 9 trillion won ($6.73 billion). Only KB Financial Group (19.85 trillion won) and Hana Financial Group (12.31 trillion won) are estimated to have higher market capitalizations. The group's decision to in

IndustryApril 25, 2023

Seoul shares open nearly flat ahead of earnings season

South Korean stocks opened nearly flat Tuesday, following a three-day losing streak, as investors await first-quarter corporate earnings reports. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 1.64 points, or 0.06 percent, to 2,521.86 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, US shares ended mixed as big tech earnings season approaches. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2 percent, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fell 0.29 percent. This week, South Korean chip giants Samsun

MarketApril 25, 2023

S. Korean economy avoids recession in Q1; outlook dims amid weak exports

South Korea's economy narrowly avoided a recession in the first quarter of the year after a contraction the previous quarter, central bank data showed Tuesday. The economy grew 0.3 percent in the January-March period from the previous quarter, according to the preliminary data compiled by the Bank of Korea. The first-quarter expansion follows a 0.4 percent on-quarter contraction the previous quarter. Technically, two consecutive quarters of economic contraction are judged to be a recession.

IndustryApril 25, 2023

Coupang couriers launch labor union, claiming decline in working conditions

Delivery workers of e-commerce giant Coupang's subcontractors have set up a labor union, calling for better working conditions amid the company’s rapid growth in recent years. According to the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, one of the major umbrella confederations of unions here, the new labor union held a launching ceremony at the company’s logistics center in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, on Monday. This labor union primarily includes delivery workers at subcontracted comp

ConsumerApril 24, 2023

LG Innotek wins Edison Award for ultraslim TV technology

LG Innotek announced Monday it won the 2023 Edison Award in the commercial technology category for its ultrathin Nexlim magnetic component, which plays a crucial role in developing slim high-definition TVs. The world's thinnest magnetic component is used in TV power modules and vehicle chargers for voltage regulation and signal filtering. It improves energy efficiency in electronics and electric vehicles by reducing heat-induced power loss. LG Innotek started related research in 2017 as it

IndustryApril 24, 2023

Seoul shares down for 3rd day ahead of earnings season; Korean won hits yearly low

South Korean stocks ended markedly lower Monday, led by big-cap tech losses, as investors took a pause ahead of the corporate earnings season and amid concerns about potential impacts of the Sino-US rivalry on business circumstances. The local currency fell to a yearly low against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 20.90 points, or 0.82 percent, to close at 2,523.50, extending its losing streak to a third day. Trading volume was moderate at 914.5 million shares w

MarketApril 24, 2023

Korea reinstates Japan on fast-track trade 'white list'

South Korea reinstated Japan to its “white list” of trusted trading partners in more than three years in a push to revive economic cooperation between the two countries, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said Monday. The ministry released a notification on Japan’s restored status in an amendment of the export and import notification of strategic materials. With the change, Japan will be included the list of 28 other countries who are granted simplified procedures for

EconomyApril 24, 2023

[K-Financiers] KB Global Fintech Lab acts as catalyst for startups' Asia expansion

KB Global Fintech Lab is at the forefront of supporting South Korean startups to have Singapore as a launchpad and make their way into other overseas markets. At the same time, KB, the Korean banking giant, aims to seek new business opportunities in the Southeast Asian country’s sprawling digital finance sector. "Although some in-house teams for digitalization exist in our company, it's difficult to develop and create everything on our own. As a result, we are now supporting st

IndustryApril 24, 2023

Samsung, SK under renewed pressure to join US chip battle against China

South Korean chipmakers are facing increasing pressure amid an intensifying US-China rivalry, as Washington has reportedly requested the Korean government to hold back from filling China's shortfalls in chips. Seoul’s presidential office refused to comment Monday over a report from the Financial Times that the White House had asked the Korean government to urge its chipmakers to "not fill any market gap" in China, if Beijing bans US-based Micron Technology from selling chips

IndustryApril 24, 2023