SK teams up with Plug Power to branch out into hydrogen market in Asia

SK Holdings said on Thursday that it is teaming up with US hydrogen company Plug Power to branch out into the hydrogen market in Asia. The partnership comes after the South Korean conglomerate invested 1.85 trillion won and acquired some 10 percent of shares in Plug Power, becoming the largest shareholder of the hydrogen giant. An online deal closing ceremony was held Thursday and was attended by executives of both companies including CEO of SK Holdings Jang Dong-hyun, Vice Chairman of SK E&a

IndustryFeb. 25, 2021

Seoul stocks shoot up 3.5% on US Fed chief's soothing comments over yield hike

South Korean stocks sharply rebounded to surge more than 3 percent Thursday as the US Federal Reserve chairman's comments soothed inflation worries. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) jumped 104.71 points, or 3.5 percent, to close at 3,099.69 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 1.3 billion shares worth some 16.9 trillion won ($15.3 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 807 to 80. Foreigners bought a net 968 billion

MarketFeb. 25, 2021

LG AI Research unveils first AI achievement

LG Group unveiled its first achievement in artificial intelligence research conducted by the group’s AI research arm. The South Korean conglomerate announced two academic papers on explainable AI and continual learning in collaboration with University of Toronto, through the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence. Explainable AI, co-researched by a team led by Professor Konstantinos Plataniotis, refers to a technology that easily explains a result of its research to

TechnologyFeb. 25, 2021

[News Focus] COVID-19 causes historic gap in online sales by product type

SEJONG -- The novel coronavirus was found to have brought a seriously widening disparity in the online sales performances of local retailers by product segment and business type. South Koreans have sharply increased their online spending on agricultural, livestock and fisheries products as the cut back on dining out amid the pandemic. According to Statistics Korea, the monthly turnover of retailers selling products from agriculture, livestock and fisheries online -- for homemade food -- reach

EconomyFeb. 25, 2021

S. Korea to suspend more coal plants in spring to cut fine dust emissions

South Korea said Thursday it plans to suspend the operations of more coal-powered plants during spring time in line with its efforts to cut the emissions of fine dust. Under the plan, the country plans to halt the operation of 19 to 28 coal plants in March depending on the electricity demand, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. It will mark a sharp rise from nine to 17 plants suspended over the December-January period. The country's fine dust emissions from coal-powered pl

EconomyFeb. 25, 2021

Carmakers to recall over 470,000 vehicles over defects

Mercedes-Benz Korea, Hyundai Motor, Kia, Honda Korea, Ford Sales and Service Korea, Audi Volkswagen Korea, Nissan Korea, Volvo Cars Korea, and BMW Korea will recall 478,371 vehicles after faulty components have been found, South Korea’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said Thursday. The latest action came a day after the ministry announced a mass recall for 26,699 units of Hyundai Motor’s electric vehicle models over faulty batteries. Of the total cases, 29,769 units

IndustryFeb. 25, 2021

Finance minister to attend virtual G-20 meeting this week

Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki plans to attend a meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors of the Group of 20 major economies this week to discuss ways to tackle the pandemic, the finance ministry said Thursday. The meeting, to be chaired by Italy, will be held virtually Friday due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. G-20 financial chiefs and leaders of international organizations will discuss ways to strengthen policy coordination to cope wi

EconomyFeb. 25, 2021

‘Market picks SK Group as top ESG player here’

As the ESG business management trend continues to gain traction in South Korea, environmental factors have outweighed social and governance values in importance, the Federation of Korean Industries said on Thursday. The major business advocacy group also added that SK Group, among business entities across the nation, has received the top recognition in the market as a pioneer of the ESG business culture. In the federation’s survey polling research chiefs of major brokerages here, 60 pe

IndustryFeb. 25, 2021

South Korea maintains 3% growth outlook

South Korea’s central bank on Thursday decided to maintain its previous 3 percent growth outlook for the nation’s gross domestic product this year, with its chief suggesting that vaccination will determine its economic development. Following its first monetary policy meeting of the year, the Bank of Korea decided to keep its interest-rate at a record-low of 0.5 percent, while keeping up the 3 percent growth rate for 2021. The growth rate for this year was announced in November. It

EconomyFeb. 25, 2021

EMA starts rolling review of Celltrion’s COVID-19 treatment

European Medicines Agency said Wednesday, local time, that it has started a “rolling review” of data on South Korean company Celltrion’s monoclonal antibody regdanvimab. Regdanvimab, also known as CT-P59, is being developed by Celltrion for the treatment of COVID-19. A rolling review refers to an on-the-roll evaluation system that accepts data as they come from ongoing research. This form of evaluation is enforced during public health emergency, for a more time-efficient ass

IndustryFeb. 25, 2021

[Exclusive] Korean investors' $16.8b coal exposure highlights call for climate action

Forty South Korean investors were found to have invested a total of $16.8 billion in securities issued by thermal coal-related companies worldwide as of January, data exclusively obtained by The Korea Herald showed Thursday. The figure highlights calls for more aggressive climate action on the part of the investors, beyond just declaring an end to additional coal investing, for a nation that pledged to achieve carbon neutrality by cutting emissions to net zero by 2050 for a more sustainable fut

MarketFeb. 25, 2021

Incumbent Hana Financial chief to take on 4th term, but only for 1 year

  Kim Jung-tai, the incumbent chairman of Hana Financial Group, was officially tapped by board members to lead the banking giant for another year, the group said Thursday.  Hana Financial Group’s recommendation committee for CEO nominations had recommended Kim as the sole candidate for the next president, allowing him to clinch a fourth term in office.  Once the appointment is confirmed during a general meeting of stockholders and board of directors slated for March, Kim

MarketFeb. 25, 2021

Overseas employees worried about LG’s plans for smartphone biz

LG Electronics’ potential plan to discontinue the smartphone business would have ripple effects on jobs in its overseas production bases, persons working for LG outside Korea said. 　 According to workers assembling LG phones at the company’s Brazil factory, local employees are paying keen attention to the circulating rumors about the Korean vendor’s plans for the struggling phone business. “The latest reports about LG’s sale of its smartphone business have made u

TechnologyFeb. 25, 2021

Fisheries output hits 4-year low in 2020

South Korea's fisheries output hit a four-year low last year due largely to sluggish aquaculture production and a fall in consumption amid the pandemic, data showed Thursday. The total fisheries output amounted to 3.71 million tons last year, up 3.8 percent from the previous year, according to Statistics Korea. The tally marked the smallest since 2016, when such output reached 3.26 million tons.Last year, the output from seaweed and oyster farming remained sluggish amid long rainy seasons. Fis

EconomyFeb. 25, 2021

Young wage workers suffer extended employment slumps amid pandemic

The number of jobs for wage workers in South Korea increased on-year in the June-August period of last year, but those in their 20s and 30s suffered extended employment slumps amid the pandemic, data showed Thursday. The number of paid employee jobs reached 19.1 million in the cited period, up 369,000 from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. The quarterly tally was higher than an increase of 211,000 in the March-May period of 2020, when such jobs rose by the sma

EconomyFeb. 25, 2021

Hyundai wins most 2021 Top Safety Pick awards

South Korean automaking giant Hyundai Motor Group said Thursday it has earned the most Top Safety Pick awards from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). Hyundai Motor Co., Hyundai's independent brand Genesis and affiliate Kia Corp. received 12 Top Safety Pick (TSP) and five Top Safety Pick+ (TSP+) ratings from the IIHS in its latest round of crash-testing evaluations, a Hyundai spokesman said. Hyundai's Palisade SUV and Nexo hydrogen fuel-cell electric vehicle, Kia's K5 sedan and

MobilityFeb. 25, 2021

Retail sales up 6% in Jan. on strong online sales

Retail sales in South Korea rose 6 percent in January from a year earlier as more consumers purchased daily necessities from online stores, with the demand for gift items ahead of the Lunar New Year's holiday also bolstering the sales, data showed Thursday. The combined sales of 26 major offline and online retailers reached 12.5 trillion won ($11.2 billion) last month, up from 11.7 trillion won a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Online

IndustryFeb. 25, 2021

[Graphic News] Samsung remains No. 2 chip buyer in 2020: report

　Samsung Electronics remained the world’s second-largest chip buyer behind US tech titan Apple last year, a report showed, while manufacturers’ spending on semiconductors increased due to the pandemic-induced stay-at-home economy. 　Samsung, the world’s largest smartphone and TV maker, accounted for 8.1 percent of global semiconductor spending in 2020 after purchasing $36.4 billion worth of chips, up 20.4 percent from a year earlier, according to preliminary results from m

BusinessFeb. 25, 2021

Provisioning, relief measures to support S. Korean banks’ performance: Fitch

US credit rating agency Fitch Ratings said on Wednesday that the near-term performance of South Korea's four major banks will be supported by loan-loss provisioning already made in 2020 and sustained relief measures introduced by the regulator. The pressure on their financial profiles, however, may persist as the ramification of last year’s pandemic-induced recession is likely to linger and affect the banks' asset quality and profitability, according to the company. “The prelimina

MarketFeb. 25, 2021

BOK keeps key rate at record low amid pandemic, growth estimate at 3% this year

South Korea's central bank on Thursday held its benchmark policy rate unchanged at a record low of 0.5 percent, as the third wave of the new coronavirus undermined the scope of sustaining an economic recovery. As widely expected, the monetary policy board of the Bank of Korea (BOK) voted to leave the base rate steady in this year's second rate-setting meeting. The Bank of Korea (BOK) also maintained its growth outlook for the year at 3 percent but hinted it may revise up the figure depending

EconomyFeb. 25, 2021