Global Business Forum examines ways to embrace 4th Industrial Revolution

Ways for South Korea to properly gear up for the Fourth Industrial Revolution era were explored at the Global Business Forum on Wednesday at the Ambassador Seoul hotel. During the during the sixth session of the forum, Ahmad Fahmi Ahmad Sarkawi, charge d'affaires at the Malaysian Embassy in Seoul, emphasized South Korea's need to make necessary preparations to adapt and improve itself in the rapidly evolving world. As the pandemic fades out, Sarkawi said he believed it is "very ti

March 30, 2023

[KH Explains] Political meddling prolongs KT leadership vacuum

South Korea’s telecommunications giant KT Corp. is in turmoil after a series of CEO candidates stepped down, apparently under pressure from the presidential office and the ruling party. More than two decades after its privatization, the government's political clout still seems to permeate the company, and investors are outraged by a recent plunge in share prices. “If this situation happens overseas, it would be called a scandal,” said Park Sang-in, a professor at Seoul Nat

March 30, 2023

Seoul shares up for third day as bank fears fade

Seoul shares finished higher for a third straight session Thursday, as eased market jitters about the global banking sector have boosted investor sentiment. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index advanced 9.24 points, or 0.38 percent, to close at 2,453.16. Trading volume was moderate at about 579 million shares worth some 10.3 trillion won ($7.97 billion), with gainers far outnumbering losers 594 to 276. Institutions and retail investors offl

March 30, 2023

Hyundai E&C offers exclusive concierge services at apartments

Hyundai Engineering & Construction will bring convenient concierge services to its Hillstate Sunhwa the Wise – a residential and commercial apartment complex in Daejeon. The complex, with units now for sale by Hyundai E&C, stands 54 floors tall including underground floors and contains 851 medium-sized to large apartments. In entering a partnership with the Dopda, a premium concierge service company, to offer premium services to residents of the apartment complex, Hyundai E&C a

March 30, 2023

LG Energy Solution CEO purchases treasury shares worth W572m

LG Energy Solution CEO Kwon Young-soo has purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, according to the firm's public disclosure on Thursday. The price for each share during the time of purchase was 572,800 won ($446), bringing the total value to 572.8 million won. The CEO in April last year purchased 1,000 company shares at 420,000 won each. “By consistently purchasing shares of our company, CEO Kwon is enhancing our shareholder value and demonstrating responsible management,

March 30, 2023

Mirae Asset Securities, SKT collaborate to lead security token industry

South Korea's largest securities firm Mirae Asset Securities and telecommunications giant SK Telecom on Thursday formed a consortium called Next Finance Initiative to become a leader of the new emerging security token industry. "We expect to establish a firm position as a global platform that leads the security token industry by combining Mirae Asset Securities' financial expertise with SK Telecom's ICT capabilities and service operation experience,” said Ahn In-seong

March 30, 2023

Hyundai Sonata restyled

Hyundai Motor Company on Thursday launched the newest edition of its Sonata at the 2023 Seoul Mobility Show held at Kintex in Gyeonggi Province. The latest version of the midsize sedan is named “Sonata The Edge.” As the long-time popular model of the carmaker, the eighth-generation model has undergone almost a full face-lift with its design and technology updates. The automaker said it will begin taking pre-orders for the new Sonata on April 20. The new Sonata, which will go on sale

March 30, 2023

Mercedes-Benz underscores luxury, electrification

Mercedes-Benz Korea on Thursday reemphasized the German carmaker’s firm commitment to bolstering its lineup of luxury and electric vehicles in the Korean market. “Mercedes-Benz stayed true to the promise that we would ‘Lead in Electric,’ which it promised here in 2021, by completing the EQ lineup in all segments, without compromising its brand promise of ‘building the world’s most desirable cars,’” Thomas Klein, CEO of Mercedes-Benz Korea, said dur

March 30, 2023

Kia premieres EV9

Kia on Thursday unveiled its first all-electric large sports utility vehicle, the Kia EV9, at the 2023 Seoul Mobility Show at Kintex in Gyeonggi Province. The Kia EV9 is the South Korean automaker’s second all-electric vehicle equipped with the company’s self-developed EV platform named Electric Global Modular Platform, or E-GMP after the launch of the EV6 in 2021. “As Korea’s first large SUV EV model that has been equipped with innovative technology and spaciousness, the

March 30, 2023

BMW presents revamped electrification vision

BMW Korea presented the largest number of car lineups at 24 at the Seoul Mobility Show 2023, underscoring its net-zero initiative as a key vision for future mobility. BMW, along with sub-brands Mini and BMW Motorrad, introduced its distinctive clean car models powered by battery and hydrogen engines. The Korean unit of the German carmaker showcased the prototype of iX5, a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle, for the first time in Korea. On a single hydrogen charge, which takes around 3 to 4 minutes, it c

March 30, 2023

Porsche Vision 357 makes Asia debut in Seoul

Porsche Korea on Thursday showcased its Vision 357 sports car for the first time in Asia at the Seoul Mobility Show 2023, celebrating its 75 years of sports car history. The car model is an homage to the first-ever Porsche sports car, the 356, the dream sports car made by Ferry Porsche, the legendary car designer and founder of the German carmaker. The symbolic car made its Asia debut in Korea, Porsche's sixth-largest market. “We have sold around 310,000 vehicles worldwide last year a

March 30, 2023

Seoul shares open almost flat amid eased woes over banking sector

Seoul shares opened flat on Thursday amid easing anxiety about the global banking system. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index moved slightly up 0.65 point, or 0.03 percent, to 2,444.57 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, US stocks closed up, led by tech gains amid improved sentiment about the global banking sector. The S&P 500 went up 1.42 percent, the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 1 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 1.79 percent. In Seoul, most la

March 30, 2023

McKinsey promotes Hyejin Kang to senior partner in Seoul office

McKinsey & Co., a global consulting firm, said Wednesday it has promoted partner Hyejin Kang to senior partner. Kang, who assumes the role on April 1, holds a bachelor's degree in microbiology from Seoul National University and a doctorate in neuroscience from the California Institute of Technology in the US. Since joining the company in 2001, Kang has been in charge of evaluating corporate culture of Korea’s top 100 companies. She is credited for playing a leading role in facilit

March 29, 2023

LG Innotek develops upgraded vehicle communication module

LG Innotek said Wednesday it has successfully developed an upgraded vehicle-to-everything communication module that drastically improves data transmission speed. The second-generation 5G network-based module, using Qualcomm chips, is considered a crucial safety component for autonomous driving. The company said it is seeking to start promotional activities targeting global car and parts makers, with an aim to debut the final product by 2025. The official product name is 5G-V2X Cellular Module. T

March 29, 2023

SK hynix CEO says won't cut production further

SK hynix, the world's second-largest memory chip maker, will not carry out an additional cut in chip production this year, and will stick to its plan to build an advanced packaging plant in the US, the company's chief executive officer said Wednesday. Speaking at a shareholders meeting at the company's headquarters in Icheon, Gyeonggi Province, SK hynix Vice Chairman and co-CEO Park Jung-ho forecast the demand for chips to recover in the second half of this year. But as uncertaint

March 29, 2023

Upgraded Hanmac released

South Korea’s top brewer, Oriental Brewery, said Wednesday it is releasing an upgraded version of Hanmac, its Korean rice-based lager beer that made its grand debut in 2021. Hanmac was launched as “Korea’s most representative lager project” to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the nation’s beer history. Being loved for its unique refreshing flavor and softness, the beer is making a comeback under the slogan, “Smooth Korea.” The brewer said the new Hanma

March 29, 2023

KB earns top rating for ESG management

KB Financial Group announced Wednesday that it earned the title of the first and only Korean financial firm to receive the top AAA rating on the 2022 MSCI ESG Index -- an index organized by Morgan Stanley Capital International which evaluates companies based on their environmental, social and governance performance. The MSCI ESG Index measures a company’s management of long-term, financially relevant ESG risks and opportunities relative to their peers, according to MSCI. The rating categor

March 29, 2023

[Korean History] From $10b to $680b: S. Korea’s glory road to export-driven prosperity

In 1977, a little over two decades after the war that hardened the division of the peninsula ended, South Korea celebrated an economic milestone with much fanfare: $10 billion in yearly export volume. It had been just a year since the country had stopped receiving US aid worth a colossal $12.6 billion from 1946 through 1976, which helped rebuild most modern infrastructure there had been before the war. “Our achievement of $10 billion in exports has a bigger meaning than just its size in

March 29, 2023

Trade minister vows support for global firms

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Lee Chang-yang pledged to make Korea a top investment-friendly country in the world during the 5th AmCham Doing Business in Korea Seminar 2023 held at the Grand Hyatt Seoul on Wednesday. “Through various efforts such as establishing a support system for boosting corporate investment and attracting foreign investment, the Korean government will make Korea a country where global companies can boldly plan future investments,” Minister Lee said during

March 29, 2023

Celltrion chairman hints at aggressive M&As this year

Celltrion's founder and returned chairman Seo Jung-jin said the company will be able to secure some 5 trillion won ($3.8 billion) for mergers and acquisitions of pharmaceutical and biotechnology firms, through which the company aims to boost its new drug development capability. The company also plans to build its fourth manufacturing plant in the US, according to the chairman. "After the first half this year, the number of M&A candidates will come down to around 10, and the company w

March 29, 2023