SK Inc. to pay out W447.6b in dividends

SK Inc., the holding firm of South Korea's No. 3 conglomerate SK Group, said Wednesday it is paying out 447.6 billion won ($373.9 million) in dividends for the fiscal 2021 in an effort to promote shareholder value. The company's board approved the year-end dividend payment of 6,500 per common stock and 6,550 won per preferred share, amounting to 368.3 billion won, SK said in a regulatory filing. SK paid the interim dividends of 1,500 won per common stock, or 79.3 billion won, in August last year

IndustryFeb. 9, 2022

McDonald‘s to bring Spicy McNuggets to Korea

McDonald‘s is bringing its fan-favorite Spicy Chicken McNuggets to Korea for a limited time, the company in Seoul said last week. Seasoned with cayenne and chili pepper, the spicy version of the iconic menu item created a huge buzz in the US when released as a limited time offer in 2020. The fast food giant is hoping to further capture the Korean palate, which is characterized by a love for spice. The Spicy McNuggets are available for a limited time only from  Feb. 4 to early May. F

BusinessFeb. 9, 2022

Seoul stocks up for 2nd day on earnings hope

South Korean stocks closed higher for a second day in a row on Wednesday amid hopes of strong corporate earnings. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) advanced 22.38 points, or 0.81 percent, to close at 2,768.85 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 530 million shares worth some 10.2 trillion won ($8.5 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 757 to 125. Institutions bought a net 197 billion won and foreigners purchased 239 b

MarketFeb. 9, 2022

AMAXG opens research center, holds contest for DApp developers

Blockchain company AMAXG said it is focusing on the metaverse, artificial intelligence and digital personal safe businesses this year. Having laid the groundwork for the BizAuto platform last year, this year the company expects to boost the AMAXG Metaverse World where metaverse meets nonfungible tokens, big data and AI. AMAXG Group said on Thursday it will establish a metaverse-AI convergence research center, and expand and reorganize its business structure to make progress on new businesses.&

BusinessFeb. 9, 2022

Samsung under pressure to double pay raise

Samsung Electronics has come under heightened pressure to offer hefty pay increases amid strike threats from its minority labor unions over stalled wage talks, according to industry sources Wednesday. As the Korean tech giant has no majority labor union, an in-house management-labor council has held wage talks since October last year. But the two sides have failed to narrow their differences until recently. Sources say the council’s employee representatives this week lodged new demands

TechnologyFeb. 9, 2022

Samsung Electronics tops chip facility investment in 2021

Samsung Electronics invested more money into its chip plants and equipment in 2021 than any of its competitors including Intel and TSMC. According to the South Korean chip giant Wednesday, the company poured 43.6 trillion won ($36.4 billion) for upgrades to and the expansion of its chip plants in Korea and China where advanced DRAM chips and vertical NAND flash memory chips are produced. The funds were also used for the expansion of an advanced 5-nanometer production line at its foundry plan

IndustryFeb. 9, 2022

Asiana Airlines certified 5-Star Airline for 16 years

Asiana Airlines said Wednesday that it has been certified by Skytrax, a leading review site for airlines, as a 5-Star Airline for the quality of its airport and onboard product and staff service. The airline has been winning the highest rating for 16 consecutive years since 2007. This year, Asiana Airlines has also been certified with the highest Skytrax 5-Star COVID-19 Airline Safety Rating that reviews airline health, hygiene, and cleanliness standards. Since the outbreak of the pandemic, t

MobilityFeb. 9, 2022

SK Bioscience rolls out 1st batch of Novavax vaccine

SK Bioscience rolled out the first batch of Nuvaxovid, Novavax’s synthetic antigen-based COVID-19 vaccine, the company said Wednesday. On top of the 840,000 doses that were rolled out on Wednesday, SK Bioscience said it plans to supply a total of 2 million doses by the end of this month. The shipment follows the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety’s approval of the vaccine last month. In December, SK Bioscience signed a contract with the US bio firm to secure the manufacturing and s

IndustryFeb. 9, 2022

[Newsmaker] Hana Financial taps man behind successful KEB merger transition as new chief

South Korea’s Hana Financial Group has nominated Vice Chairman Ham Young-joo, who led its flagship lender’s smooth operation and business rebranding after its grueling acquisition of Korea Exchange Bank seven years ago, to be the next chairman of the banking group. On Tuesday, the firm’s chairman nomination committee tapped Ham as the sole nominee for the position, citing his performance in generating profit and bolstering stability in business. Ham has also shown “extra

MarketFeb. 9, 2022

Korean Air-Asiana merger takes step further with Singapore approval, FTC’s imminent decision

A merger between South Korea’s two biggest air carriers picked up pace on Wednesday after they received an unconditional approval from Singapore and as a final decision by the Fair Trade Commission approaches next week. According to Korean Air, the Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore concluded that the air carrier’s acquisition of Asiana Airlines will not infringe Singapore’s Competition Act. The decision comes after the CCCS conducted a public consultation last

MobilityFeb. 9, 2022

ASML CEO hints at adding 1,000 more jobs in Korea by 2029

Netherlands-based lithography equipment maker ASML is poised to add at least 1,000 more jobs in South Korea by the end of 2029, ASML CEO Peter Wennink said in a conference in Seoul Wednesday. The move will bolster its partnership with Korean semiconductor chip makers, including Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, the key clients for ASML’s extremely expensive lithography machines that are crucial for cutting-edge chip production. “This decade, we will add at least 1,000 people more

TechnologyFeb. 9, 2022

Korean retailers expand delivery service with robots, drones

Retail companies in South Korea are taking the plunge into last-mile mobility technology by launching service robots and drones to provide contactless services sparked by the coronavirus pandemic. To meet the high demand for delivery and dining services, Mesh Korea, the operator of tech-based logistics startup Vroong, said Wednesday it has partnered up with Bear Robotics Korea, the Korean branch of a US-based robot manufacturing company, to introduce unmanned automated transport service to the

ConsumerFeb. 9, 2022

LX Hausys sets eye on North American market at KBIS 2022

The building materials company LX Hausys said Wednesday that it showcased its latest collection of engineered stone and artificial marble at the Kitchen and Bath Industry Show in Orlando, Florida, which began Tuesday and concludes Thursday. The company’s outing to North America’s largest jamboree for kitchen and bath brands signals its ambitions to further tap into the lucrative North American market.  The Calacatta Collection fashioned from Viatera, an engineered stone surface

BusinessFeb. 9, 2022

Google files lawsuit against S. Korean regulator to overturn fine

Google has filed a lawsuit against South Korea's antitrust regulator to overturn the regulator's decision to fine the global technology giant for pressing smartphone makers into only using its Android mobile operating system, sources said Wednesday. The legal action by Google against the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) came after the KFTC decided in September last year to fine Google 207.4 billion won ($173 million) for obstructing local smartphone makers, such as Samsung Electronic

TechnologyFeb. 9, 2022

SK rises to No. 2 Korean company by assets

Semiconductor-to-telecom conglomerate SK Group has stepped up as the country’s second-largest business group in terms of assets, market data showed Wednesday. SK Group, which has the largest number of affiliates in the country, 176, has been the country’s third-largest since 2006.  According to market tracker CEO Score data on conglomerates’ assets as of third quarter last year, SK Group’s assets came at 270.7 trillion won ($226 billion) as of Q3 last year, which

IndustryFeb. 9, 2022

Asset value rise leads to early retirement of senior citizens: BOK report

An increase in the value of assets owned by senior citizens results in a rise in the possibility of their early retirement, causing a decline in labor supply to the economy, a central bank report showed Wednesday. According to the report by the Bank of Korea, a 10 percent increase in the value of assets such as homes owned by senior people leads to a 1.8 percentage point fall in their economic participation rate and a 6.1 percent decline in hours they worked. Such asset value increase also raise

EconomyFeb. 9, 2022

S. Korean economy faces heightened external economic risks: KDI

The South Korean economy is on a recovery track, but external economic uncertainty remains high amid soaring energy costs and monetary policy shifts by the US Federal Reserve, a state-run think tank said Wednesday. The manufacturing industry has extended solid growth and the latest spike in COVID-19 cases appears to have had limited impacts on the service sector, compared with previous waves of the pandemic, the Korea Development Institute (KDI) said in a monthly economic assessment report. &quo

EconomyFeb. 9, 2022

Homeplus fined W2.42b for unfair biz activity

South Korea's antitrust regulator said Wednesday it has decided to fine discount store chain Homeplus 2.42 billion won ($2 million) for unfairly passing on sales promotion costs to its subcontractors. Homeplus Express, a supermarket unit of Homeplus, made 45 suppliers shoulder the costs worth around 1.7 billion won in 2017-2020 without related prior contracts, according to the Fair Trade Commission. The regulator said it will closely look into alleged unfair business practice by other retailers.

IndustryFeb. 9, 2022

S. Korea asks OECD chief for more discussions on digital tax deal

South Korea on Wednesday asked the chief of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) to have additional discussions on its global tax deal to prevent exporters from shouldering an excessive burden, Seoul's industry ministry said. South Korea's Industry Minister Moon Sung-wook made the request during a meeting with the organization's Secretary-General Mathias Cormann held in Seoul. In October, the OECD announced that 136 nations had agreed upon a sweeping reform of the int

EconomyFeb. 9, 2022

SK Telecom Q4 net profit down 14% to W314.8b

SK Telecom Co. on Wednesday reported its fourth-quarter net profit of 314.8 billion won ($263.4 million), down 14 percent from a year earlier. The company said in a regulatory filing that it posted 226.7 billion won in operating profit for the quarter, compared with 292.7 billion won a year ago. Sales rose 3.9 percent to 4.29 trillion won. The operating profit was 3.4 percent lower than the average estimate, according to the survey by Yonhap Infomax, the financial data firm of Yonhap News Agency

IndustryFeb. 9, 2022