Hyundai Heavy shares hit 52-week high on hope for recovery, spin-off

Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., a major shipyard here, traded at a 52-week high on Friday on simmering expectations that the shipbuilding sector is on a recovery track and its plan to spin off non-shipbuilding businesses may boost its competitiveness.Hyundai Heavy closed at 167,500 won ($146) on the Seoul bourse, up 1.21 percent from the previous session's close, while the broader index, the KOSPI, dropped 1.14 percent.For the past month, the combined market capitalization of Hyundai Heavy and its

March 3, 2017

Ra In Ho secures a major deal with Russian shipyard

Ra In Ho, a South Korean ship lift and transport system developer, has signed a deal with a Russian shipyard to provide it with the world’s largest ship transfer system, the company said Thursday. The company will provide a 54,000-ton ship transfer system worth about 20 billion won ($17.5 million) to Zvezda Shipyard in the Russian Far East. Ra In Ho will have full control of the entire process from designing to installing the system, the company said. Ra In Ho Co. CEO Rainer Sinnreich (right) si

March 2, 2017

HMM’s normalization accelerating

With Hanjin Shipping’s bankruptcy declared earlier last month, Hyundai Merchant Marine, now South Korea’s only major shipping line, is expected to fill the vacuum, supported by government rescue schemes and positive signs in the industry, analysts and industry watchers said Tuesday. “After hitting the bottom in 2015 and 2016, the shipping industry seems to be improving with increased freight rates and eased competition,” Um Kyung-a, an analyst at Shinyoung Securities

Feb. 28, 2017

CJ gears up for chairman’s return

South Korea’s food and entertainment giant CJ Group is set to expand investments and speed up its delayed plans to tap more markets around the world by carrying out a personnel reshuffle in March, the group said Sunday, hinting at chairman Lee Jay-hyun’s return to management. “Sales grew slightly last year but the group’s sales remained at 20-something trillion won for the last three or four years,” an official at CJ Group said. “We need to spur growth in or

Feb. 26, 2017

Hyundai Heavy union launches strike ahead of spinoff decision

The labor union of Hyundai Heavy Industries has launched a full-scale strike, calling on the company to finish wage negotiations and scrap its plan to spin off non-shipbuilding units. The labor union has staged partial strikes several times but Thursday’s strike was the first full-fledged strike in 23 years.  The labor union carried out an eight-hour strike from 8 a.m. and said it planned to continue with it Friday and also Monday when the company shareholders will meet to decide a

Feb. 23, 2017

KEB Hana named best private bank in Korea

KEB Hana Bank was selected the best private bank in Korea in the Private Banking & Wealth Management Survey 2017 by Euromoney, a business and finance magazine based in London, the bank announced Thursday. This is the 10th time the bank was recognized by the Euromoney survey, which has been conducted for 14 years.  KEB Hana Bank CEO Ham Young-joo (center) poses after receiving the best private bank in Korea award Tuesday. (KEB Hana Bank)“As a new bank combines strengths in asset management and fo

Feb. 23, 2017

Kumho Asiana Group expands cultural activities

Kumho Asiana Group has been expanding its cultural activities as the core of its social contribution programs, helping to foster aspiring artists and operating the country’s representative museums and art centers.South Korea’s leading air carrier has been expanding its artistic contribution, in particular since Chairman Park Sam-koo was made the ninth chair of the Korea Mecenat Association, a nonprofit body that encourages corporate support of the arts, in February 2015.Many of the group’s arts-

Feb. 19, 2017

Hotel Shilla shares shine amid rumors of Samsung heiress’ rise

Shares of a luxury hotel led by Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong’s younger sister were on the rise amid rumors that she might fill the group’s leadership vacuum. Shares in Hotel Shilla, led by Lee Boo-jin, the eldest daughter of Samsung Group Chairman Lee Kun-hee, soared Friday as market watchers speculated the 46-year-old female tycoon may succeed her brother in managing South Korea’s most powerful conglomerate. Shares in Hotel Shilla soared more than 5 percent

Feb. 17, 2017

Hanjin Shipping ends 40 years of sailing

A court in South Korea has declared the bankruptcy of Hanjin Shipping, after two weeks of appeals that ended Friday, bringing to a close 40 years of the company’s history as a leading shipping line and leaving challenges for the industry. The demise of the company -- once the largest shipping company here and the world’s seventh biggest -- began in 2008 in the midst of the financial crisis.  Hanjin and other local shippers suffered from falling freight rates caused by an over

Feb. 17, 2017

[Superrich] SPC’s third generation hits stride with success of Shake Shack

SPC Group, which was recently boosted by its successful launch of premium burger chain Shake Shack here, is undergoing a generational shift in management.Chairman Hur Young-in’s two eldest sons were promoted to vice presidents in 2015 and 2016 joining the firm’s management.The change has drawn a mixed reaction among those in the food and beverage industry, with some anticipating the young leaders will take initiative in coming up with new business models and improving the group’s structure. Othe

Feb. 16, 2017

[Superrich] Breakdown of salaries for heads of listed public companies

There are eight public enterprises that are listed on the domestic stock market: Kangwon Land, Grand Korea Leisure, Industrial Bank of Korea, Korea Gas Corporation, Korea Electric Power Corporation, KEPCO Engineering and Construction Company, KEPCO KPS, and Korea District Heating Corporation.The corporate stocks of these companies are openly traded on the market. Both individuals and companies can be shareholders while the government holds over 50 percent of the shares, allowing it to have autho

Feb. 16, 2017

[KOSDAQ STAR] Semiconductor, display boom boost SFA Engineering

In January, foreign investors held a record high of over 500 trillion won ($435 billion) in shares of listed companies in South Korea, according to the Finance Supervisory Service. Among the top five stocks foreigners have been collecting in the tech-heavy Kosdaq in January was SFA Engineering Corp., a display equipment and logistics equipment maker, which has been enjoying a recent boom in the semiconductor and display sectors. Foreign investors continued their buying spree for the company.

Feb. 12, 2017

KEB named best PB in digital client solution

KEB Hana Bank was named the best private bank in digital client solutions by a global finance magazine, the bank said Wednesday. South Korea’s leading bank, owned by Hana Financial Group, received the Global Best PB in Digital Client Solutions award in New York on Tuesday. The award was bestowed by Global Finance, a finance magazine based in the US that surveys and picks the best players in various financial sectors every year. The bank’s performance in the private banking sector has been recogn

Feb. 8, 2017

SK E&C inks $3.2b power plant deal

SK Engineering and Construction announced Friday it had inked a deal worth 3.7 trillion won ($3.23 billion) to build South Korea’s largest private power plant in Goseong, South Gyeongsang Province. The company will build two generator units at the thermal power plant, which will have a capacity of 1,040 megawatts. The company said it would apply top-notch technology to build an efficient power plant.  It will adopt a technology called “ultra super critical,” which can in

Feb. 3, 2017

[Superrich] After acquittal, Nexon founder sets out for new future

Korea’s top 100 rich list is dominated by chaebol families, but there is one self-made man who has made it on to the list, Kim Jung-ju. At 49 years old, Kim is the chairman of NXC, the holding company of Nexon, which is the representative figure of the online game industry.According to The Superrich Team’s “Korea’s Richest 100,” Kim has 2 trillion won ($1.7 billion) worth of assets through his ownership of unlisted companies. He ranks 12th as of Jan. 30 on the list.Kim does not own any share of

Feb. 2, 2017

[Superrich] Daughters jumping into business

An increasing number of second- to fourth-generation daughters of the nation’s large conglomerates are seen joining the ranks of management in recent years. These daughters, born in the 1980s and 1990s, tend to graduate from universities abroad and start their careers at consulting firms before joining their family businesses. They tend to enter their fathers’ companies in their mid-20s, with some of them starting off as rank-and-file employees and being promoted to executive levels within three

Feb. 2, 2017

Hyundai Motor plans to build Korea's tallest building in Seoul

Hyundai Motor Group's new headquarters building to be constructed in southern Seoul by 2021 will be the country's tallest, a district office said Wednesday.Its draft document for environmental impact assessment submitted to the Gangnam Ward Office showed that the main building of the planned Global Business Center (GBC) will be 569 meters tall.Previously, the world's fifth-largest carmaker said the 105-story main tower will be 553 meters, lower than the 555-meter Lotte World Tower awaiting the c

Feb. 1, 2017

[Advertorial] Samsung Fire & Marine offers reliable service for customers

Samsung Fire & Marine’s insurance risk consultant program offers a win-win system that provides stable jobs for women and reliable services for customers. The company offers a six-month training course for a beginner RC in order to provide a systemic education for its RCs. The job offers stability both in career and income, making it particularly helpful for women seeking to re-enter the job market after raising children, the company said.A Samsung Fire and Marine Insurance Co. Risk Consultant i

Jan. 25, 2017

McDonald’s Korea joins Herald campaign

McDonald’s Korea is participating in The Korea Herald’s campaign to provide newspapers to military units in isolated regions as part of its social responsibility program, the company said Wednesday.The units are located in areas including Hwacheon in Gangwon Province and Icheon and Yeoju in Gyeonggi Province. Some 50 editions will be provided to the units for a year. (Yonhap)McDonald’s have been exerting continuous CSR efforts under its corporate philosophy of contributing to the development and

Jan. 25, 2017

OB supports children through ‘Happy Library’ project

Oriental Brewery has launched this year’s first “Happy Library” project to improve after-school programs for children in conjunction with the Headquarters for Community Child Center, the company said Tuesday. The project is part of the company’s social responsibility program involving the renovation of child education facilities and provision of various education kits and books.For this year’s project, the company selected three community child centers in Seoul, Gwangju and Cheongju that were in

Jan. 24, 2017