[Photo News] Korean Air spreads wings of charity

Employees from Korean Air and Delta Air Lines pose for a photo after a homebuilding project in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, Wednesday. In collaboration with Habitat for Humanity Korea, the initiative aims to provide much-needed housing for local families. A team of 33 employees from the two airlines worked together on various construction tasks, including brick-laying, roofing and carpentry. Korean Air’s partnership with Habitat for Humanity Korea dates back to 2001, initially fo

IndustryAug. 19, 2024

Seoul shares open nearly flat on profit taking

South Korean stocks opened nearly flat on Monday as investors cashed in profits following recent gains amid the eased fears of a potential recession in the United States. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) edged down 0.58 points, or 0.02 percent, to 2,696.65 in the first 15 minutes of trading. South Korean stocks tumbled by the most on record to a near nine-month low on Aug. 5 amid intensifying fears over a US economic slowdown, crashing 8.77 percent to close at 2,441.55. Se

MarketAug. 19, 2024

More young Koreans give up on finding a job

The number of young people not in education, employment or training was the highest last month for any July on record, revealing South Korea’s deepening troubles in the labor market. The number of NEET Koreans between the age of 15 and 29 who were not actively seeking work stood at 443,000 in July, up 42,000 on-year, according to data from Statistics Korea. The figure had stayed below 300,000 between 2013 and 2017, before surpassing it in 2018. It peaked at 441,000 in 2020 amid the COVID-1

EconomyAug. 18, 2024

Hyundai AutoEver leads security infrastructures projects in Africa

Hyundai AutoEver, Hyundai Motor Group’s software subsidiary, has scored a series of orders to build public security infrastructures in developing African nations: Angola and Mozambique. According to information and communications technology industry sources on Sunday, Hyundai AutoEver signed an 89 billion won ($65.7 million) contract with Angola for a security enhancement project in June this year. For the project, Hyundai AutoEver will set up a system similar to the Korean National Police

CompaniesAug. 18, 2024

Hybrid vehicles report fewest fire incidents: data

Statistics from the National Fire Agency showed Sunday that hybrid vehicles reported the fewest fire incidents over the last five years, as fears related to battery-electric vehicles spread across Korea following the recent EV fires that occurred earlier this month. According to the fire authority’s fire incident status by vehicle type, there were 131 fire cases among hybrid vehicles, which are powered by both an internal combustion engine and an electric motor. As the accumulated number o

MobilityAug. 18, 2024

Per-customer spending at duty-free shops hits 5-year low

The average purchase amount per customer at duty-free shops in South Korea has in the first seven months of this year reached the lowest level in five years, largely due to shifting trends among Chinese tourists and losing their appeal to domestic customers, data showed on Sunday. According to data compiled by the Korean Duty-Free Shop Association, total sales of domestic duty-free companies reached 7.39 trillion won ($5.45 billion) in the first half of the year, up 13.6 percent from 6.5 trillio

IndustryAug. 18, 2024

SK hynix sales more than double in China, US in H1

SK hynix witnessed its sales in China and the US more than double to contribute to an overall growth in revenue in the first half of this year, according to the company’s half-year report Sunday. The world’s second-largest memory chip maker said it logged a total of 28.8 trillion won ($21.26 billion) in sales in the January-June period this year, marking a significant recovery from the 12.3 trillion won the company achieved in the same time last year. In this year's record, 55.4

IndustryAug. 18, 2024

Rebellions, Sapeon Korea merge to challenge Nvidia

Artificial intelligence startup Rebellions and Sapeon Korea officially signed a merger, signaling the birth of the country's first AI unicorn, SK Telecom, Sapeon Korea’s parent company, said Sunday. Rebellions, a fabless chip designer valued at 900 billion won ($664 million), and Sapeon Korea, the AI chip supplier for data centers valued at 550 billion won, have joined hands to carve out a spot in the global AI chip market that is currently dominated by US-based graphic processing uni

IndustryAug. 18, 2024

[Contribution] Boosting trade through digital innovation, global cooperation

By Lee Seong-woo Vice president, Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry "I'll keep changing it for you." This tagline from a global shopping website's free return policy ad recently stirred up controversy here. Despite receiving a warning from the government for its misleading ad, the e-commerce platform managed to climb to second place among the country's most popular shopping apps. But this surge in overseas direct purchases is not all rosy -- it in fact comes

IndustryAug. 18, 2024

SK Networks to invest $30m in SBVA’s AI-focused fund

SK Networks said Friday it will commit $30 million in a $130 million fund formed by SBVA to invest in artificial intelligence startups. It is the second-largest investment among fund participants. The SBVA-led fund -- Alpha Intelligence Fund -- plans to focus on investing in promising early-stage startups in the AI, robotics and deep tech fields. SK Networks, a general trading affiliate of SK Group, which announced its vision as an AI company this year, plans to go beyond fund investment and bus

IndustryAug. 18, 2024

Shinhan opens new Vietnam headquarters

South Korea’s Shinhan Financial Group has opened its new Vietnam headquarters in Ho Chi Minh City’s Thu Thiem financial district, bringing its subsidiaries together under one roof, the company said Sunday. On Thursday, Shinhan’s five Vietnamese subsidiaries — Shinhan Bank, Shinhan Finance, Shinhan Life, Shinhan Securities and Shinhan DS — relocated to The Mett Building, a landmark in the new urban area of Thu Thiem. The opening ceremony was attended by key executive

IndustryAug. 18, 2024

Interpark Commerce seeks debt restructuring following TMON, WeMakePrice

Interpark Commerce filed for a debt restructuring program with the Seoul Bankruptcy Court on Friday, following in the footsteps of two sister e-commerce giants amid a liquidity crisis. The company's request for an autonomous restructuring support (ARS) program came 18 days after TMON and WeMakePrice filed for the same program to negotiate with creditors for rescheduling overdue payments. With Friday's decision, all three Korean e-commerce companies under Qoo10 are now subject to the co

Social AffairsAug. 16, 2024

Fila Holdings continues growth in Q2, boosted by US golf unit Acushnet

South Korean sports apparel firm Fila Holdings reported a jump in second-quarter profits, driven by robust performance from its golf equipment subsidiary and strong brand momentum abroad. According to its recent earnings report Friday, its revenue rose 2.5 percent year-on-year to 1.18 trillion won ($887 million) in the April-June period. Its operating profit surged 52.4 percent to 140.15 billion won. Its US subsidiary, Acushnet, in particular, reported 937.77 billion won in sales, driving up the

IndustryAug. 16, 2024

Celltrion scraps merger plan after investor backlash

Celltrion Group on Friday ditched its planned merger of the two units Celltrion and Celltrion Pharm after months of fierce resistance from shareholders. The two companies announced that they would focus on their core operations and work on creating synergy within their respective firms. The decision comes after a series of evaluations conducted by a special review committee set up by their boards of directors, external studies by accounting firms and shareholder surveys. "We established the

IndustryAug. 16, 2024

Namyang Dairy vows transparency under new ownership

Namyang Dairy Products, one of South Korea's largest dairy companies, is embarking on a major overhaul under new ownership to shed its scandal-ridden past. On Friday, the company’s newly appointed board of directors announced a series of reform measures aimed at rebuilding the company’s reputation and regaining consumer trust. "We're establishing guidelines for law-abiding business practices to prevent illegal activities," said Lee Sang-wook, Namyang's chief compliance dire

IndustryAug. 16, 2024

Seoul shares extend winning streak to 5th day on eased US recession fears

South Korean stocks ended almost 2 percent higher Friday to extend their winning streak to a fifth day, as a series of US data soothed economic slowdown fears. The local currency gained ground against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) rose 52.73 points, or 1.99 percent, to close at 2,697.23. Trade volume was moderate at 375.9 million shares worth 10.8 trillion won ($7.95 billion), with winners slightly outnumbering losers 473 to 412. Foreigners scooped up a w

MarketAug. 16, 2024

SK hynix's DRAM market share rises, buoyed by HBM growth

SK hynix, the world’s No. 2 memory chipmaker, was the only company that elevated its market share in the soaring global DRAM market in the second quarter of this year, according to market tracker TrendForce Friday. In the April-June period, DRAM sales totaled $22.9 billion, a 24.8 percent jump from the previous quarter. Samsung Electronics, the world’s largest memory chipmaker, retained its No. 1 position with $9.8 billion in sales. But the company’s market share slightly decre

IndustryAug. 16, 2024

NeuroBo Pharmaceuticals completes patient enrollment for phase 1 trial for antiobesity drug

NeuroBo Pharmaceuticals, the Nasdaq-listed biotech firm affiliated with South Korean drug maker DongA ST, announced Wednesday the company has completed patient enrollment for the first part of the phase 1 clinical trial for its antiobesity drug, dubbed DA-1726. DA-1726, designed to induce weight loss and glycemic control by simultaneously affecting GLP-1 and the glucagon receptor, is a drug candidate for treating obesity developed as an oxyntomodulin analog. In January, NeuroBo Pharmaceuticals

IndustryAug. 16, 2024

Foreign investors lukewarm on Korea's Corporate Value-up program: Bank of America survey

Nearly 70 percent of foreign investors expect South Korea's government-led Corporate Value-up Program to have minimal or moderate impact on the capital market, according to a recent Bank of America survey. The survey, conducted earlier this month with around 200 Asian fund managers, revealed that 22 percent foresee "no significant impact" from the program, a 6 percent increase from July's results. Meanwhile, 44 percent anticipate a "moderately positive impact," whil

MarketAug. 16, 2024

Top financial regulators of Seoul, Tokyo to meet next month

The top financial regulators of South Korea and Japan are set to meet next month. Korea’s Financial Services Commission Chairman Kim Byoung-hwan is scheduled to meet with Hideki Ito, commissioner of Japan’s Financial Services Agency, in Tokyo in September, according to the FSC on Friday. This marks the first meeting between the newly appointed financial chiefs since both assumed their positions in July. The upcoming bilateral talks follow the revival of the regular meetings between K

EconomyAug. 16, 2024