Creditors in dilemma over additional assistance for cash-strapped Daewoo Shipbuilding

Creditors of Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. are in a dilemma over whether to provide additional assistance to the cash-strapped shipbuilder as the company is facing a liquidity shortage amid a sharp fall in new orders, industry sources said Sunday.The creditors, led by the state-run Korea Development Bank, announced a rescue package worth 4.2 trillion won ($3.63 billion) in October 2015 for Daewoo Shipbuilding, on expectations that the shipbuilder would clinch up to $12 billion wor

March 12, 2017

Hyundai Motor's G80 sells over 30,000 in Korea

Hyundai Motor Co., South Korea's top automaker, said Sunday that it has sold over 30,000 units of the G80 midsized luxury car in the eight months since its launch here.The automaker's G80, one of its luxury Genesis brand models, made its debut in the country in June last year. Hyundai Motor Co.'s G80 (Hyundai Motor)In late 2015, the carmaker turned Genesis into a separate brand that does not carry the Hyundai emblem to better compete with Mercedes and other foreign rivals on the global stage.Hyu

March 12, 2017

BAT seals CBA negotiation with labor union

Global tobacco company British American Tobacco Korea has signed a collective bargaining agreement with its Sacheon factory’s labor union, agreeing to bolster cooperative relations, the company said Tuesday.The negotiation was finalized in February.“The latest agreement is the result of our consistent efforts to further consolidate a cooperative labor-management culture. The Sacheon factory, based on such stable relations, will continue to cement its status as a global hub in addition to improvi

March 7, 2017

Samsung chairman’s wife leaves art museums for personal reasons

Hong Ra-hee, wife of Samsung Electronics head Lee Kun-hee, has decided to leave the two art museums she has chaired for years, Samsung Foundation for Culture said Monday. The foundation that runs the Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art and Ho-Am Art Museum in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, said she was stepping down as director for both institutions, citing personal reasons.  Hong Ra-hee (The Korea Herald)“We haven’t heard of any background on her resignation in detail,” said the foundation, adding she was

March 6, 2017

Hanwha Life to pay W91b won in suicide claims

Hanwha Life Insurance Co., a major South Korean insurer, decided Friday to pay all overdue insurance claims on suicide.Hanwha plans to pay around 91 billion won ($78.8 million) on 637 unsettled cases in the decision made at a board meeting.It's apparently aimed at reversing the state financial watchdog's tough punishment against the firm.Last month, the Financial Supervisory Service issued a two-month suspension of partial business operations for its refusal to pay most of unpaid benefits for su

March 3, 2017

LG's G6 smartphone wins 31 awards at tech fair in Spain

LG Electronics Inc. said Friday its new flagship smartphone, G6, has won a total of 31 awards from foreign technology magazines at a wireless industry fair in Spain. LG unveiled the G6 smartphone earlier this week at the annual Mobile World Congress fair with the aim of reviving its loss-making smartphone business. (Yonhap)Samsung Electronics Co. and Apple Inc. did not release their new flagship smartphones at the fair. According to LG, foreign technology media organizations, including Wired, Di

March 3, 2017

Law firm BKL to take bigger role in trial of Samsung's de facto chief

Bae, Kim & Lee LLC, a law firm that has represented the de facto chief of Samsung Group, will take a bigger role in the upcoming trial of Lee Jae-yong after the group dismantled its key office, a group official said Friday. Lee, vice chairman of Samsung Electronics Co., was arrested on Feb. 17 over his alleged role in a presidential influence-peddling scandal that led to the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye. (Yonhap)Special prosecutors investigating the scandal accused Lee of paying bribes

March 3, 2017

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