S. Korea recoups nearly 70% of bailout funds

South Korea has recouped 69.7 percent of the public funds it spent to bail out troubled financial firms since the 1997-1998 Asian financial crisis, the financial regulator said Monday. The country retrieved 327.9 billion won ($284.3 million) in the second quarter out of the 168.7 trillion won in state funds spent to save firms from bankruptcy, according to the Financial Services Commission (FSC). The recovery rate was up from 69.5 percent recorded at the end of March, it added. The government

EconomyAug. 2, 2021

Hyundai beats Toyota to top FCEV market in H1

Korean automaker Hyundai Motor Co. beat its Japanese rival Toyota to become the world's largest fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV) maker in the first half of the year with the release of a facelifted model, industry data showed Monday. Hyundai Motor, the maker of the NEXO SUV, sold about 4,700 units in the January-June period, up 62.7 percent from a year earlier, according to the data by SNE Research. Hyundai slipped to second place in the FCEV market in the first quarter, but it regained the t

MobilityAug. 2, 2021

Samsung to expand overseas sales of wind-free air conditioner

Samsung Electronics Co. said Monday it will expand overseas sales of its wind-free air conditioner after the product posted robust sales in the first half of the year amid the pandemic-induced stay-at-home trend. The tech giant said its wind-free air conditioner sales outside South Korea jumped 75 percent in the first six months of 2021 from a year earlier. Samsung's wind-free air conditioner boasts a cooling technology that disperses cool air through a maximum of 270,000 micro air holes to en

IndustryAug. 2, 2021

S. Korea to release 80,000 tons of rice in Aug. to cope with supply shortages

South Korea said Monday it plans to release 80,000 tons of rice into the market this month in a bid to deal with supply shortages and stabilize prices. The move will raise the amount of reserved rice released into the market since January to 370,000 tons, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. The ministry earlier said it will release up to 370,000 tons of rice into the market this year. The government said the August plan is aimed at coping with a potential spike i

EconomyAug. 2, 2021

S. Korean manufacturing activity hits 7-month low in July

South Korea's manufacturing activity reached a seven-month low in July amid the spread of the delta coronavirus variant here, a global market researcher said Monday. The purchasing managers' index (PMI) of the country's manufacturing industry came to 53 last month, down 0.9 point from the previous month, according to a survey by IHS Markit. It marks the lowest point since December, though July is the 10th straight month that the index has remained the 50-point mark that separates contraction f

EconomyAug. 2, 2021

Seoul stocks open higher on solid export data

South Korean stocks opened higher Monday, helped by strong economic data that fueled optimism for a quick economic rebound from the pandemic. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 14.44 points, or 0.45 percent, to 3,216.76 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks got off to a bullish start as South Korea's July exports jumped 29.6 percent on-year to a record high amid high demand for chips and autos. Top cap Samsung Electronics added 1.02 percent, and No. 2 chi

MarketAug. 2, 2021

Korea Aerospace wins $78m trainer jet deal from Thailand

Korea Aerospace Industries Co. (KAI), South Korea's sole aircraft manufacturer, said Monday it has received a $78 million deal to supply trainer jets to Thailand. Under the deal, KAI will supply two T-50TH advanced trainer jets to the Thailand air force by November 2023, the company said in a regulatory filing. KAI has achieved $400 million worth of deals to supply 16 T-50 trainer jets to date. KAI has exported 156 trainer jets worth US$3.1 billion -- 72 T-50 advanced trainer jets worth $2.6

IndustryAug. 2, 2021

Samsung ranks No. 5 in Q2 Chromebook market: report

Samsung Electronics Co. was the world's fifth-largest vendor of Chromebooks in the second quarter of the year, a report showed Monday, as the South Korean tech giant aims to expand its presence in the portable PC market amid the pandemic. Samsung had a market share of 7 percent in the April-June period after shipping 900,000 Chromebooks that refer to laptops or tablets running on Google's Chrome operating system (OS), according to a report from market researcher International Data Corp. (IDC).

IndustryAug. 2, 2021

Beer imports hit 5-year low in H1

South Korean imports of beer touched a five-year low in the first half of the year amid a nationwide boycott of Japanese products, data showed Monday. The value of beer imports stood at US$106.5 million in the January-June period, down 5.4 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Korea Customs Service. The amount represents the lowest first-half tally since the $79.4 million recorded in 2016. The Netherlands was the largest exporter of beer to South Korea, followed b

EconomyAug. 2, 2021

Bill aims to force game makers to compensate for ‘unfair’ rollbacks

A revision bill has been proposed to allow game players to withdraw from their contracts with game developers and get refunds when faced with unfair practices. “If game developers and publishers decide to roll back their games to a previous version as a result of their own mistakes, they must provide proper compensations to game players,” said Rep. Yang Jung-suk, an independent lawmaker, who authored the draft of the revision bill to the Act on the Consumer Protection in Electronic

TechnologyAug. 1, 2021

Korea marks first trade surplus in pharmaceuticals in 2020

South Korea marked its first trade surplus in medicines in 2020, backed by gains in drug exports, the government said Sunday. According to data from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, the country posted a surplus of 1.39 trillion won ($1.21 billion) in pharmaceutical trade in 2020, which grew 62.5 percent from the year earlier. The export of drugs jumped 92.3 percent to 7.93 trillion won, taking up 79.6 percent of all outbound shipments, the ministry explained. It was the first time th

IndustryAug. 1, 2021

Kakao Mobility buys into No. 1 on-call chauffeur service firm

Kakao Mobility is expanding into the on-call chauffeur service market by buying into the field’s No. 1 player, Korea Drive, the company said Sunday. According to Kakao Mobility, the mobility service affiliate of Kakao Group, its subsidiary CMNP has acquired an undisclosed amount of shares in Korea Drive. It has established a new company called K Drive to take over Korea Drive’s 1577 Chauffeur business. Kakao Mobility Chief Financial Officer Lee Chang-min will head K Drive. Whi

MobilityAug. 1, 2021

Mid-sized crypto exchanges shut down amid FSC inspection

Mid-sized local cryptocurrency exchanges in Korea are shutting down as the country’s finance regulator has caught some of their illegal activities recently, and stricter regulations are to be implemented to allow their business operations, industry sources said Sunday. According to the sources, the 11 exchanges that have used fraudulent collective accounts will most likely close business as Financial Services Commission plans to stop their transaction and notify illegal activities to the

MarketAug. 1, 2021

LG Energy Solution sets out new ESG vision, ‘We CHARGE’

LG Energy Solution on Sunday announced its new environmental, social and governance vision, pledging to source electricity generated 100 percent by renewables at all its business sites by 2030 and go carbon neutral by 2050. According to the world’s leading electric vehicle battery manufacturer, it will gradually reduce carbon emissions from its 2019 level of 960,000m metric tons to zero by 2050. Also, the company aims to accomplish RE100 by 2030, which is 20 years ahead of the global

IndustryAug. 1, 2021

Traditional banks bolster online mortgage services to compete with KakaoBank

South Korea‘s traditional banks are planning to expand online and mobile mortgage services this month in an apparent bid to gain an upper hand in the market against the fast-growing KakaoBank, which announced its plan to launch 100 percent online home loan services. Internet banks like KakaoBank and K Bank have gained popularity with contactless credit loan services but the mortgage market has so far occupied by traditional lenders, which still prefer to receive property-related document

MarketAug. 1, 2021

July exports best-ever in Korea’s history

South Korea’s exports in July surged 29.6 percent to $55.4 billion on-year, a record monthly figure since the nation began compiling the data in 1956, according to the Trade Ministry Sunday. In the first seven months of this year, Korea’s accumulated exports were worth $358.7 billion, setting another record. Also, this is the first time in 10 years that the country saw double digit growths for four consecutive months in 10 years -- 41.2 percent in April, 45.6 percent in May, 39.8

IndustryAug. 1, 2021

Hyundai Capital launches knowledge sharing platform for its global entities

Hyundai Capital Services, the country’s leading auto financing company, said Sunday that it launched an online knowledge sharing platform for its global entities to share new strategies and up-to-date progress of product development. The “Online Knowledge Sharing Platform,” which to be developed into a global product hub, will help global entities to share product strategies, experiences and knowledge from the different regions in real time, the company said. The online pl

MarketAug. 1, 2021

[Feature] Looking inside the flesh of batteries

Electric vehicles are powered by hundreds, even thousands of battery cells. If just one defective cell catches fire, a massive recall will not only cost billions of dollars but also the trust of customers. So how do battery manufacturers sort out the bad apples? “For automakers, the safety of EVs are their key competitiveness, so they require stringent safety standards from their battery suppliers,” said Zin Hwang, chief financial officer at Innometry, a South Korean firm that

IndustryAug. 1, 2021

July exports set fresh high on chips, autos

South Korea's exports jumped 29.6 percent on-year in July to a record high, extending their gains to a ninth consecutive month as the global economy maintained a recovery, data showed Sunday. Outbound shipments came to $55.4 billion last month on strong auto and chip sales, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The monthly export volume marked the highest level since South Korea started compiling related data in 1956. The country's exports over the first

EconomyAug. 1, 2021

Nine groups join race to take over SsangYong Motor

The race to acquire the troubled SsangYong Motor is heating up beyond expectations, with nine groups reportedly having expressed interest. According to local reports, a total of nine have submitted letters of intent to buy a controlling stake in the automaker, which is currently under court receivership, before the Friday deadline.  They include Cardinal One Motors, set up by US-based auto importer and distributor HAAH Automotive Holdings, a consortium led by Korean electric bus maker E

IndustryJuly 30, 2021