LG Chem signs $200m pediatric vaccine deal with UNICEF

LG Chem said Tuesday that the company signed a deal with the United Nations Children's Fund to supply two pediatric vaccines. Under the deal, LG Chem will supply $100 million worth of its polio vaccine Eupolio and $100 million worth of pentavalent vaccine Eupenta, which works for five different indications including tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis, hepatitis B and Haemophilus influenzae. LG Chem will supply Eupolio for two years from 2024, while the supply of Eupenta will begin this year and

March 14, 2023

Hyundai Motor Group donates W5.2b sleeper buses for firefighters

Hyundai Motor Group has decided to donate eight customized sleeper buses worth 5.2 billion won ($4 million) to the National Fire Agency for the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s first social responsibility project, the South Korean auto giant said Tuesday. As part of the project, Hyundai Motor Group, along with the KCCI and Hyosung Group, held a social event at a fire station in the southeastern port city of Ulsan. The KCCI’s Entrepreneurship Roundtable, a corporate gathering

March 14, 2023

Hyundai to acquire GM's auto plant in India

Hyundai Motor Group said Tuesday it is in the early stage of signing a deal to acquire General Motors’ car manufacturing plant in India, the world’s third-largest car market. The Indian unit of Hyundai Motor has signed a term sheet with GM to acquire its automobile plant in Talegaon, the western state of Maharashtra, India. It is the first time that the local unit is seeking an acquisition of its industry rival’s manufacturing facilities since it made foray into India in 1996.

March 14, 2023

LG CNS, SAP join hands for enterprise software innovation

South Korea’s IT solutions provider LG CNS said Tuesday it has signed a memorandum of understanding with SAP, the German software giant, to bolster their strategic partnership in building next-generation enterprise resource planning, or ERP, solutions. The MOU signing ceremony was held at SAP’s headquarters in Walldorf, Germany, on March 10, with LG CNS CEO Hyun Shin-gyoon and SAP CEO Christian Klein in attendance. Under the MOU, the two companies agreed to develop and operate new ER

March 14, 2023

Work culture, pandemic fuel Koreans’ craving for caffeine

South Koreans drink an average of two to three cups of coffee per day, with the overwhelming majority of coffee consumers in their 40s and 50s, a survey showed Tuesday. Experts explain that Korea's work culture, along with a slew of other factors, contributed to the nation's obsession with coffee. According to a survey conducted by the Korea Agro-Fisheries and Food Trade Corporation from March 2019 to May 2022, nearly half of the respondents (47.4 percent) said they drink two to three

March 14, 2023

Finance Minister says Korea will keep close eye on SVB collapse

Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho said the government will closely monitor the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, which has been sending shock waves across the world for the past few days, amid efforts to calm the local financial market. SVB, a major US bank largely focused on startup loans, went bankrupt on Friday. Signature Bank, one of the main banks in the cryptocurrency industry, also closed following concerns of a spreading banking crisis. Choo said that the SVB crisis stemmed from financial in

March 14, 2023

SPC Group names ex-Hotel Shilla exec as new PR chief

South Korean food and bakery giant SPC Group said Monday it has appointed Ha Joo-ho, former communications director of Hotel Shilla, as its new communications chief. Ha is a communications veteran who spent most of his career at Samsung companies. The 59-year-old graduated from Seoul National University with a degree in journalism. After joining Samsung Life Insurance in 1989, he served in diverse communications positions at Samsung’s key affiliates, including Samsung Group. He was promote

March 14, 2023

LG Uplus launches live chat service for foreign users

South Korean telecom operator LG Uplus announced Tuesday that it will launch a live chat customer service platform in foreign languages, including English, Chinese and Vietnamese, to better respond to a recent surge in visitors to Korea. The company said more than 1,000 customer consultations were carried out during the pilot operation period over two months, confirming the increased demand for foreign language services. According to recent immigration data, about 460,000 foreign nationals arriv

March 14, 2023

Apple Store to open near 'Samsung Town' in Gangnam

US tech behemoth Apple said Tuesday it will open its fifth retail store in South Korea later this month, expanding its presence in the country, home to its archrival Samsung Electronics. Named Apple Gangnam, the store will open near the Shinnonhyeon Subway Station in southern Seoul on March 31. The location is less than a kilometer away from three skyscrapers owned by Samsung Group. The three buildings are home to Samsung’s financial units after Samsung Electronics relocated to an office b

March 14, 2023

Toss Securities names TikTok marketing exec as new CEO

Toss Securities announced Tuesday that it has named Kim Seung-yeon, general manager of TikTok’s Southeast Asia global business solution, as its new CEO. Born in 1980, Korean American Kim is known to be a marketing expert with over 15 years of experience in the field. “Our current CEO Oh Chang-hoon wants to focus on his original CTO position and contribute to the firm further in that capacity. Although Oh still has remaining tenure, we have decided to name a new CEO,” a To

March 14, 2023

Seoul stocks open sharply lower on SVB fallout woes

Seoul stocks opened sharply lower Tuesday as investors weigh the fallout from the collapse of two US banks and uncertainties over the Federal Reserve's monetary tightening. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 36.51 points, or 1.51 percent, to 2,374.09 in the first 15 minutes of trading. The failures of Silicon Valley Bank, the largest shutdown of a US bank since the 2008 financial crisis, and the New York-based Signature Bank fanned sell-offs by foreign and institutional in

March 14, 2023

Fitch keeps S. Korea's credit rating unchanged at 'AA-,' outlook stable

Global credit appraiser Fitch Ratings said Monday it has reaffirmed South Korea's sovereign rating at "AA-" with a stable outlook, while suggesting an economic growth of 1.2 percent this year. Fitch's rating for South Korea has been AA-, the fourth-highest level on the agency's table, since September 2012. "Korea's rating balances robust external finances, resilient macroeconomic performance and a dynamic export sector against geopolitical risks related to Nort

March 13, 2023

Swing launches mobility services for foreign users

South Korean personal mobility startup Swing said Monday that it is starting services for foreign users by diversifying identity verification methods to include passports and international driving licenses. In a recent mobile application upgrade, foreign nationals living or visiting Korea can register for a membership through a simpler identification process to use the company’s mobility services using electric scooters, bicycles, or boards. Currently, the app supports Korean and English,

March 13, 2023

How will SVB collapse affect Korea?

  President Yoon Suk Yeol said Monday that uncertainty in the financial market is growing due to the bankruptcy of Silicon Valley Bank, one of the largest banks in the United States. “The cause of the SVB collapse, the progress of the situation, the US authorities’ response, as well as their impact on the domestic financial market and the real economy should be closely examined by the deputy prime minister of economy and others,” he said at a meeting with senior secretarie

March 13, 2023

Amid continued inflation, Korea to review liquor tax system

The government will examine the liquor tax system, which has been propelling recent increases in beer prices amid the persistent inflation. According to the Korean Statistical Information Service’s data on Monday, the price index for beer products at restaurants and outdoor dining establishments has increased to 112.63 in February, up 10.5 percent compared to the same month a year ago. It was higher than the increase of the price index for beer products at discount and convenience stores:

March 13, 2023

Diplomacy urged to ease concerns over US CHIPS Act

South Korea's chip industry is feeling pressured to take a side between the United States and China in the two superpowers’ strategic rivalry, as Washington recently disclosed some "unusual" requirements for its $52 billion semiconductor funding program aimed at securing an upper hand against Beijing. Home to two of the world's largest memory chip makers, Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, the South Korean government has also raised concerns, as the US CHIPS and Scienc

March 13, 2023

[K-Financiers] Mastern aims to broaden US portfolio

This is the second installment of a series of interviews on chiefs who run overseas units of Korean asset management, banking and securities companies, examining their key strategies for global expansion. -- Ed. Mastern America, the US arm of Mastern Investment Management, plans to open up its business to individual investors to tackle new markets in real estate investment. Though real estate investment has conventionally been more focused on institutional investors, Joseph Oh, CEO of Mastern

March 13, 2023

[KH Explains] Will Apple Pay-backed Hyundai Card renew credit card rivalry?

Ahead of the long-awaited Korean debut of Apple Pay later this month, all eyes are on whether Hyundai Card, the official partner of the mobile payment service for iPhones, will raise its market share to outpace bigger rivals Shinhan Card and Samsung Card. Credit card companies compete head-on in a crowded market here. According to the Credit Finance Association, Shinhan Card was the largest credit card issuer with 19.6 percent as of the fourth quarter of last year, closely followed by Samsun

March 13, 2023

[Herald Interview] Able C&C going global with ‘fast beauty’ strategy

Korean beauty products have strong competitiveness in the overseas market with their affordable prices, quality and the ability to quickly reflect trends in the dynamically changing global cosmetics industry, says the CEO of Able C&C, a firm that manages a range of Korean budget cosmetics brands including Missha. "South Korea has a unique cosmetics ecosystem, as opposed to France and the United States -- the original powerhouses of the global cosmetics industry," said CEO Kim Eugen

March 13, 2023

[Newsmaker] Hankook Tire halts fire-hit Daejeon plant

Hankook Tire and Technology has stopped production altogether at its Daejeon plant after a fire burned some of the factory buildings and left severe damage, the South Korean tire manufacturer said Monday. Although buildings in one of the two factory complexes were not damaged by the fire, a Hankook Tire official explained that the company is shutting down its operation for the day as part of safety measures. "We don't know when the plant will resume operation at the moment," the o

March 13, 2023