Mirae Asset chief’s dividend donations reach W31.5b

Mirae Asset Financial Group founder and Chairman Park Hyeon-joo is donating 1.6 billion won ($1.2 million) he earned from dividends last year, marking the 14th straight year of his philanthropic tradition. On Sunday, the company disclosed that Park will endow his entire dividend income from Mirae Asset Global Investments. Continuing the practice since 2010, Park's cumulative donations now reach 31.5 billion won. The group traces Park's charitable journey back to 2008 when he penned a l

March 31, 2024

[Test Drive] All-new Defender trumpets return of off-road champ

INJE, Gangwon Province -- “(Other carmakers) are worried when (they) see snow and rain, but we love it, and I think we’re going to have a great day,” said Robin Colgan, managing director of Jaguar Land Rover Korea, as he greeted reporters taking part in the automaker’s test drive for the 2024 all-new Defender in Inje, Gangwon Province, on Tuesday. As the 48-kilometer test drive for the JLR’s flagship sports utility vehicle included on- and off-road routes that had m

March 31, 2024

Korean fashion brands go global with Hyundai’s new platform

South Korean retail giant Hyundai Department Store announced Sunday the debut of The Hyundai Global, a pioneering platform designed to establish the nation’s homegrown fashion and entertainment brands in prominent international retail spaces. The new platform will offer a strategic pathway for small to medium-sized Korean brands to enter global markets without the usual financial strains associated with international expansion. By substantially reducing costs related to space leasing, inte

March 31, 2024

[Photo News] Robotaxi passes DMV road test

Hyundai Motor Group on Saturday posted a video of an autonomous robotaxi model of the Ioniq 5, the Korean automaker's all-electric compact sports utility vehicle, passing the driver's license test, on its global YouTube channel. The four-minute video shows how the self-driving vehicle gets through the road test without a driver but with a certified DMV examiner overseeing the process from the passenger seat, in the state of Nevada. (Hyundai Motor Group)

March 31, 2024

Kolmar Korea makes R&D push for bigger footing globally

The global rise in popularity of K-beauty brands has brought attention to Kolmar Korea, a leading cosmetics original design manufacturer that has secured a whopping 70 percent market share in the sun care sector alone here. According to the company Sunday, its “Fitting SPF Boosting” technology has been integrated into multiple sun care items sold at home and abroad. More recently, the products are selling hot in the US through major distribution channels, including Amazon. The Fittin

March 31, 2024

[From the Scene] Extreme climates to battery cells: Inside Hyundai's safety efforts

Hyundai Motor Group, having climbed to the rank of the second-largest electric vehicle seller in the United States last year just behind the trailblazer Tesla, recently took reporters behind the scenes to reveal the backbone of their success: a commitment to safety amid the industry's sprint toward longer battery ranges and fast charging. On Wednesday, the press was invited to the automaker's Namyang Technology Research Center in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, to witness firsthand the safety testi

March 31, 2024

Govt. mulls further cutting EV subsidies

The government is considering further cutting electric vehicle subsidies next year to instead use the funds to supplement insufficient charging infrastructure, according to sources Sunday. According to the sources, government ministries overseeing EV subsidy policy, including the finance and environment ministries, are discussing ways to reduce EV subsidies for next year based on state budget guidelines for 2025. During the discussions, the finance ministry has stressed the need to strengthen th

March 31, 2024

Google to suspend political ads in S. Korea ahead of general election

Google has decided to suspend all politics-related advertisements on its services in South Korea ahead of the upcoming general election next month, according to industry sources Sunday. According to the sources, Google recently posted a notice saying that it will not support political ads during South Korea's election period. The decision will apply uniformly across Google services, including YouTube, Google search and the Google Play Store. The decision appears to have been made to prevent

March 31, 2024

March inflation estimated to reach 3.2 %

South Korea's consumer prices increase is estimated to stay above 3 percent for the second month in March on energy price and foreign exchange variables, market reports showed Sunday. The country's March inflation outlooks estimated by eight securities firms, including NH Investment & Securities, Kyobo Securities, Meritz Securities and DB Financial Investment, averaged at 3.2 percent. In January, inflation fell below 3 percent for the first time since July 2023, when the figure cam

March 31, 2024

Foreign investors net purchase record amount of S. Korean stocks in Q1

Foreigners net purchased over 15 trillion won worth of local shares in the first three months of the year, breaching the 15 trillion-won mark for the first time in history, data showed Saturday. Foreign investors scooped up a net 15.77 trillion won ($11.7 billion) worth of shares in the first quarter, the highest quarterly figure since the country's main stock exchange KRX began compiling such data in 1998. The previous record was 14.79 trillion won tallied in the third quarter of 2009, acc

March 30, 2024

Hyosung honorary chair dies at 89

Hyosung Group Honorary Chair Cho Suck-rai, the father of incumbent Chair Cho Hyun-joon, died of a chronic disease at the age of 89, according to industry sources Friday. It has been seven years since he stepped down from his top management post in 2017 due to his advanced age and health. Born as the eldest son of Hyosung founder Cho Hong-jai in 1935, Cho Suck-rai pursued his academic interests in chemistry at Japan's Waseda University and earned a master's degree in chemical engineerin

March 29, 2024

Hahn & Co shakes up Namyang Dairy's board to cement control

Private equity company Hahn & Co has taken over the boardroom of Namyang Dairy Products to put an end to 60-year family ownership of the dairy firm. During the regular shareholders meeting held at Namyang’s headquarters in southern Seoul on Friday, officials from Hahn & Co were appointed as inside directors, while Lee Myung-Chul, chair of Institut Pasteur Korea, was appointed as an outside director. Previous directors, including Hong Won-sik, chair of Namyang Dairy Products, steppe

March 29, 2024

Daughter of late Samsung chairman becomes Samsung C&T president

Lee Seo-hyun, the second daughter of late Samsung Group Chairman Lee Kun-hee and the younger sister of Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong, is returning to the management as she takes the post of president at Samsung C&T. Samsung C&T, the construction and energy arm of Samsung Group that acts as a holding company for major affiliates of the group, said Friday that it named Lee as the president, who is in charge of the company’s strategy planning. “She is expected to con

March 29, 2024

More S. Koreans voice dissatisfaction with overseas e-commerce platforms in 2023

More South Korean consumers expressed dissatisfaction with their experiences shopping directly via online platform services based overseas last year, partly attributed to Chinese e-commerce platform AliExpress tapping deeper into the Korean market as well as greater demand for overseas travel among Koreans using online travel agency services based in Singapore, according to the Korea Consumer Agency. According to the KCA on Friday, the total number of requests for advice and reports of disputes

March 29, 2024

Banks rush to cough up misselling compensation

Korea's top lenders have all decided to accept the compensation guidelines suggested by the country's financial watchdog, agreeing to make up for the losses from the misselling of equity-linked securities tied to a Hong Kong index, with KB Kookmin Bank and Shinhan Bank joining the list Friday. Following company board meetings held earlier in the day, KB Kookmin Bank and Shinhan Bank announced they would carry out the compensation procedure, accepting the voluntary-basis plan suggested

March 29, 2024

Baemin pays out W400b in dividends to Delivery Hero

South Korea’s leading food delivery app Baedal Minjok, or Baemin, posted a 65 percent growth in operating profit last year, achieving a significant surplus for the second consecutive year. As a result, its German parent company, Delivery Hero, received some 412.7 billion won ($306 million) in dividends for the first time since acquiring Baemin. Baemin's app operator Woowa Brothers announced Friday that its consolidated sales reached 3.41 trillion won last year, marking a 15.9 percent

March 29, 2024

[Investor] Korea M&A Exchange secures investment from Japan

Korea M&A Exchange, Korea's premier M&A trading platform, has successfully secured a 500 million yen ($3.35 million) investment from Nihon M&A Center, Japan's leading M&A trading platform. A ceremony to mark the agreement between Korea M&A Exchange and Nihon M&A Center was held Thursday at Korea M&A Exchange headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul. As part of the agreement, Nihon M&A Center will acquire approximately 10 percent of Korea M&A Exchange's sh

March 29, 2024

Seoul shares end almost flat ahead of key US inflation report

South Korean stocks finished nearly unchanged Friday as investors took a wait-and-see stance ahead of a key US inflation report that would set the tone for the Federal Reserve's rate-setting decision. The local currency fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 0.81 point, or 0.03 percent, to close at 2,746.63. Trade volume was moderate at 485.5 million shares worth 11 trillion won ($8.17 billion), with losers beating winners 603 to 270. Foreign inves

March 29, 2024

City Oil Field to export oil coverted from waste plastic to Vietnam

South Korean environmental and energy solution provider City Oil Field, said Friday it signed a contract to supply decomposition oil derived from waste plastic to Vietnam’s Nam Anh Joint Stock Company. City Oil Field CEO Jeong Yeong-hun and Nam Anh JSC CEO Van Vien Thong signed the purchase agreement at the Vietnam firm’s headquarters in Ho Chi Minh, Thursday. Under the contract, City Oil Field will supply plastic waste derived oil including naphtha produced from its facilities in So

March 29, 2024

Hana Financial teams up with Credit Agricole to expand presence in Europe

Hana Financial Group, one of South Korea's top four finance conglomerates, has joined hands with Credit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank to strengthen cooperation in expanding its business in Europe, the firm said Friday. The two entities have signed an agreement to expand cooperation in corporate and investment banking, treasury and trade finance, and financing for environment, social and governance-related initiatives. Hana Financial Group Vice Chair Lee Eun-Hyung, Xavier Musca, the

March 29, 2024