Hanwha Aerospace logs record profit in Q2

Hanwha Aerospace posted record operating profit of 358.8 billion won ($260 million) in the second quarter thanks to arms exports to Poland, the Korean defense firm said Wednesday. According to the company, operating profit surged by 357 percent compared to the second quarter of last year. Hanwha Aerospace logged 2.79 trillion won in revenue, up 46 percent on year. The earnings exceeded market expectations. Hanwha explained that the delivery of six units of K9 self-propelled howitzers and 18 unit

July 31, 2024

[Photo News] Hyundai Group chair named honorary governor

Hyundai Group Chairperson Hyun Jeong-eun (right) has been reappointed as honorary governor of North Chungcheong Province, recognizing her contributions to the region's development. This marks Hyun’s second term in the position, following her first in 2022. This recognition highlights Hyundai Group’s engagements in the region, including the relocation of Hyundai Elevator’s headquarters to the area and corporate social responsibility activities in collaboration with the loca

July 31, 2024

NCSoft invests $3.5m in Sweden's Moon Rover Games

NCSoft announced Tuesday that it had invested $3.5 million in Swedish game studio Moon Rover Games, as the Korean game company continues seeking future growth engines to expand its gaming portfolio and global market. Moon Rover Games was established in 2022 by a group of developers who had taken part in creating global hit first-person shooters such as the Battlefield series, Far Cry and Tom Clancy’s The Division. Moon Rover Games is currently developing an FPS titled Project Aldous, based

July 30, 2024

Lotte Wellfood eyes W1tr in snack sales in India

Lotte Wellfood announced Tuesday it plans to merge its Indian subsidiaries, Lotte India and Havmor Ice Cream, to improve operational efficiency and enhance its presence in the Indian market. According to the company, the boards of both affiliates approved the decision in meetings held Monday. Under the merger agreement, Lotte India will acquire Havmor Ice Cream, and both brands will continue their product lines. "Lotte Wellfood has decided to create a combined entity in India to enhance our

July 30, 2024

[Photo News] Celebrating Victory

Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Chung Euisun (center), who serves as the president of the Korea Archery Association, celebrates the South Korean national archers' gold medal in the men's archery team event at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris on Monday. The trio of Kim Woo-jin, Kim Je-deok and Lee Woo-seok beat the French national team in the final match at the Invalides stadium, marking Korea's third title in the men's archery team event at the Olympics. Hyundai Motor Grou

July 30, 2024

Hyundai Motor’s decadeslong support for Korean archery shines in gold at Olympics

South Korea's female archers continued to rewrite history as they won the Olympic gold medal in the women's archery team event in Paris on Sunday, extending the winning streak to a 10th consecutive title. Behind the archery team’s efforts, there was Hyundai Motor Group’s unwavering support that began in 1985. The auto conglomerate’s 40-year-long sponsorship of the Korea Archery Association marks the longest for a single sports association here. Hyundai Motor Group beg

July 29, 2024

Samsung chief boosts global ties at Paris Olympics

Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong has embarked on a business trip to Paris to leverage the 2024 Paris Olympics to strengthen ties with key global business partners, political figures and sports leaders, the company said Sunday. Since arriving in Paris last Wednesday, Chairman Lee has engaged in a series of high-level business meetings. This marks his first attendance at the Olympics since the 2012 London Games. His agenda includes discussions with leaders from the semiconductor, IT and a

July 28, 2024

Cash-crunched Tmon begins refund process for customers

Tmon, an online marketplace platform owned by Singapore-based e-commerce company Qoo10, on Friday, started issuing refunds to customers who did not receive their products purchased on the platform hit by a liquidity crisis. This move comes a day after the CEO of WeMakePrice, another affiliate of Qoo10, offered an apology and began issuing refunds as hundreds of consumers visited the headquarters of the online marketplace platform. Tmon and WeMakePrice, which were acquired by Qoo10 in 2022 and 20

July 26, 2024

2nd generation of owner families at mid-level conglomerates owns 33.5% of shares

An analysis of 81 conglomerates categorized as "middle market enterprises" showed Wednesday that the second generation of owner families owns a total of 33.5 percent of company shares. Corporate tracker CEO Score analyzed the shareholding structure of companies with 2 trillion won ($1.44 billion) or more in assets, and found that the combined value of shares held by owner families' second generations came to 13.39 trillion won as of July 15. The second generation in the report r

July 24, 2024

LG Chem’s US partner starts phase 2 trial on rare obesity drug

LG Chem announced on Wednesday that Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, which had acquired the global license for LB54640 -- a new oral drug for a rare form of obesity developed by LG Chem -- has begun giving doses to the first participants in a phase 2 clinical trial. For the phase 2 trial, Rhythm Pharmaceuticals recruited 28 patients aged 12 and older with hypothalamic obesity -- a condition caused by congenital or acquired damage to hypothalamic function, resulting in difficulties in appetite control. Th

July 24, 2024

Nongshim to build smart farm in Saudi Arabia by 2025

Nongshim announced on Tuesday that it has been selected for South Korea's smart farm export project that aims to establish and operate a pilot greenhouse in Saudi Arabia. The project is initiated by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and led by the Korea Agriculture Technology Promotion Agency, according to the company. The agreement ceremony took place at Nongshim's headquarters in Seoul, attended by Nongshim CEO Lee Byung-hak, Korea Agriculture Technology Promotion A

July 23, 2024

[From the Scene] What it's like working as intern at K-food giant

Vien Yeung, a 29-year-old Chinese American from the University of California, Berkeley, and a current MBA candidate at Harvard Business School, has chosen to spend her summer at Korea's food giant, CJ CheilJedang. With her graduation set for March 2025, Yeung's decision to work at the company stems from her ambition to gain international experience for her future career. “I wanted to get my MBA to reach the executive level, potentially becoming a chief marketing officer one day,&

July 23, 2024

Alibaba to launch B2B platform exclusively for Korean sellers

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba.com, owned by Alibaba Group, said Monday that it will launch an online platform to help Korean sellers expand into global online markets. The new platform, called the South Korea Pavilion, will be available starting Aug. 8 and will focus on business-to-business transactions, according to the company. "Despite the abundance of talented sellers in Korea across various fields such as food, cosmetics and auto parts, many still struggle to expand their online sal

July 22, 2024

[Photo News] New engine on display

Hanwha Aerospace said Monday that it will unveil the prototype of a 15,000-pound-thrust-class turbofan engine for the first time at this year's Farnborough International Airshow taking place in the United Kingdom throughout this week. The engine will power South Korea's KF-21 fighter jets and uncrewed combat aircraft in the future. Along with Hanwha Aerospace's latest development, Hanwha Systems will exhibit its active electronically scanned array, or AESA, radars for different ty

July 22, 2024

Merger boosts SK On’s bid for turnaround

SK On's announcement Wednesday that it will merge with SK Trading International and SK Enterm has raised hopes of a potential turnaround in its financial performance and competitiveness in the battery industry. SK On has been grappling with persistent financial losses. The company, spun off from SK Innovation in October 2021, reported an operating loss of 581.8 billion won ($419.5 million) last year and 315 billion won in the first quarter of this year. This marked its 10th consecutive quar

July 19, 2024

Daewoo E&C chosen to construct Czech nuclear plants

Daewoo Engineering & Construction has been chosen as the preferred bidder to build nuclear power plants in the Czech Republic, the company said Thursday. According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy earlier in the day, the Czech government has selected the state-run Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power as the preferred bidder to build four nuclear power units in the country. If the final contract is signed in March 2025, Daewoo E&C will be responsible for the construction. Daewoo E

July 18, 2024

SK Innovation shuffles affiliates to cope with EV slump, lead future energy sector

SK Innovation on Thursday vowed to create synergy and lead the global energy sector through the realignment of its affiliates by merging itself with SK E&S and amalgamating battery-maker SK On with SK Trading International and SK Enterm. “We decided the merger with SK E&S to lay the groundwork for the growth of future energy businesses and push for a bold, structural innovation,” said Park Sang-kyu, CEO of SK Innovation, in a press conference at the SK Seorin Building in Seou

July 18, 2024

[KH Explains] Doosan's merger plan fuels investor clash

Doosan Group’s recently announced governance restructuring plan has divided investors, raising questions about its viability. Central to the plan, unveiled on July 11, is the proposal to make Doosan Bobcat a wholly-owned subsidiary of Doosan Robotics, which has sparked debate over the fairness of the merger ratio based on the stock prices of both companies. Doosan Bobcat, a significant revenue generator for the group, stands at the heart of this controversy. Shareholders of Bobcat are conc

July 17, 2024

Proptech startup DNK eyes expansion into Japan

DNK, a Seoul-based property management solution provider, formerly known as Dongnae, said Tuesday it has launched its fully redesigned property management system that enhances convenience for asset managers through centralized operational services. Currently managing over 15,000 units in the Korean market, the system now offers advanced features such as tenant tax reporting tools and banking virtual account integration. It supports English and Korean. Additionally, DNK disclosed its intention to

July 16, 2024

LG Electronics sets up HVAC tech lab in Frankfurt

LG Electronics said Monday it has opened a new research lab in Frankfurt, Germany dedicated to developing its heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) technologies, with a focus on providing practical air solutions for the European market. The Frankfurt facility, covering around 1,000 square meters, is the third of its kind, following branches in Changwon, Korea and Atlanta, the US. Its primary focus is to develop high-quality HVAC technologies for residential, commercial and industrial

July 15, 2024