Seoul shares open higher ahead of Fed's policy meeting

Seoul stocks opened higher Tuesday ahead of the US Federal Reserve's policy meeting this week. The benchmark Korea Composite Price Index rose 14.34 points, or 0.63 percent, to 2,307.95 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight on Wall Street, stocks closed slightly lower as investors await the upcoming Federal Open Market Committee meeting scheduled this week. Investors expect the Fed to make another rate hike this week, but some cautiously believe that the central bank may go easy on a

Nov. 1, 2022

[Herald Interview] Strong intellectual property protection critical for drug innovation

Strong intellectual property protection is a key factor for pharmaceutical and biotechnology firms to become global household names, according to a high-ranking official at the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations. “Because our industry is one of the most highly regulated industries, so what’s necessary in order to excel in that situation is, of course, the ability to innovate first and foremost. But that is only allowed through very strong intel

Oct. 31, 2022

Corporate bank loans surge amid liquidity concerns

Loans taken out by South Korean companies this month from major local banks increased by 8.8 trillion won ($6.18 billion), the biggest monthly rise in 13 months, sparking concerns over fresh liquidity strains amid global headwinds sapping business confidence. Data from the five lenders -- KB Kookmin, Shinhan, Hana, Woori and NongHyup -- showed conglomerates or large companies holding at least 10 trillion won in assets accounted for 66 percent of the 8.8 trillion won surge in borrowing as of Thur

Oct. 31, 2022

Science Ministry mulls developing system to warn crowd crush

South Korea's science ministry is considering to develop a system that could warn authorities of potential crowd crush accidents by using digital data and technology to predict risk elements and the route of crowd movements. The new system was proposed at an emergency safety inspection meeting held by the Ministry of Science and ICT on Monday following the death of 154 people in a crowd crush that occurred Saturday evening during Halloween celebrations in Itaewon, central Seoul. “We h

Oct. 31, 2022

Land Ministry says plans ready to make Korea among world's top 4 builders

South Korea’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport will soon announce plans to make the country one of the world's top four in overseas construction capable of winning $50 billion in overseas deals per year by 2027, officials said Monday. Land Minister Won Hee-ryong is expected to emphasize active support in winning big overseas projects by working with the private sector and also support the technological development of the construction and equipment sectors. The government

Oct. 31, 2022

Inflation, lack of children's support and pension: reasons why more Korean retirees work, says BOK

SEJONG -- The number of seniors engaging in economic activities has increased, seemingly due to their worsened living conditions involving lower-than-expected annuity income as well as reduced cash support from their children, a central bank report showed Monday. According to an analysis on factors of rising employment rate among seniors from the Bank of Korea, the tally for employed people aged 60 or over increased by 2.66 million during the period of 2010-2021. This made up 82 percent of the

Oct. 31, 2022

Luxury resort brand Capella to land in S. Korea

Global resort brand Capella announced its South Korean debut in Yangyang, Gangwon Province, some 107 kilometers from Seoul. Under the 830 billion won ($584 million) project, the luxury beach resort will be constructed near Songjeon beach by the second half of 2025. The company said Capella Yangyang aims to become the largest wellness resort here with a total of 261 rooms. There will be restaurants, convention halls and a total of five swimming pools, a mixture of indoor and outdoor. The resort

Oct. 31, 2022

Naver to inject W5.2b for joint research on AI-based content with Univ. of Toronto

Naver said Monday it will inject 5.2 billion won ($3.6 million) over the next five years, along with Canadian social storytelling platform Wattpad which has become part of the company last year, to conduct joint research on AI-based content service platforms with the University of Toronto. South Korean internet giant said this study would allow application of advanced, exclusive technologies to Wattpad’s content platform leading to more innovative user experience. Naver bought Wattpad at

Oct. 31, 2022

Naver, Kakao open online spaces for mourning

Naver Corp. and Kakao Corp. opened online spaces to mourn the deaths of more than 150 people in a crowd crush that occurred Saturday evening in Itaewon, central Seoul, as some 100,000 people packed the nightlife district to celebrate Halloween. Naver placed an “Itaewon accident” tab next to the search box of its main page, where people can access related news, report missing persons or express condolences by clicking on a “black ribbon” button. Users cannot leave any mess

Oct. 31, 2022

Korea to launch 1st institute on nuclear plant dismantlement

South Korea’s Ministry of Energy said on Monday it would establish the nation’s first research institute dedicated to dismantling nuclear power plants, for the safe disposal of nuclear power plants whose operations have been permanently suspended. In a groundbreaking ceremony held in Ulju-gun, located on the border between the southeastern port cities Busan and Ulsan, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said that construction of the institute is expected to be completed by the

Oct. 31, 2022

SK hynix says Arm stake acquisition 'not underway'

South Korean memory chip maker SK hynix said it is not pursuing a plan to acquire a minority stake in the United Kingdom-based semiconductor intellectual property firm Arm, a filing showed Monday. "(SK hynix) has put various strategic options on the table to strengthen our competitive edge and enhance shareholder value, but we hereby notify that there is no ongoing process for consortium-based acquisition of Arm as of now," read the firm's recent filing with the Financial Supervis

Oct. 31, 2022

Hyundai Oilbank expands cooperation to bolster ESG management

Hyundai Oilbank has been cooperating across industries to improve its environmental impact, the company said in a statement Monday. The South Korean oil company said it has signed a business agreement with petrochemcial firm Lotte Chemical and retailer LG Household & Health Care on Oct. 17 to kick off its joint ecofriendly plastic project. According to the agreement, the three companies will jointly launch plastic products created solely from materials derived from pyrolysis of waste plastic

Oct. 31, 2022

Samsung Biologics looks to woo global clients at CPhI Worldwide

FRANKFURT -- Samsung Biologics, the world’s largest contract manufacturing and development organization by production capacity, is looking to attract global customers at this year’s Convention on Pharmaceutical Ingredients Worldwide, officials said Monday. CPhI is one of the biggest international pharma industry events that draws leading businesses and professionals from across the globe. Taking place in major European cities each year, this year’s event is held in Frankfurt, G

Oct. 31, 2022

Tax revenue up W43.1t through Sept.

South Korea's tax revenue grew 43.1 trillion won ($30.3 billion) in the first nine months of 2022 from a year earlier, data showed Monday, due to improved corporate income tax. Tax revenue amounted to 317.6 trillion won in the January-September period, compared with 274.5 trillion won tallied the previous year, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. In September, the government collected 28.3 trillion won in taxes, up 2.1 trillion won from a year earlier. The ministry attributed

Oct. 31, 2022

Exports of passenger cars up 30% in Q3

Exports of passenger cars advanced 30.1 percent in the third quarter of the year from a year earlier, data showed Monday, on the back of growing demand for eco-friendly vehicles. Carmakers here shipped passenger cars worth a combined $12.6 billion during the July-September period, up from $9.7 billion a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Korea Customs Service. The number of cars shipped came to 590,000, also up 26.8 percent over the period. South Korea's imports of passenge

Oct. 31, 2022

Seoul shares open higher ahead of FOMC meeting

Seoul stocks opened higher Monday tracking Wall Street gains last week, as investors await the upcoming rate-setting meeting by the US Federal Reserve. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 14.72 points, or 0.65 percent, to 2,283.12 in the first 15 minutes of trading. US stocks surged Friday, despite weaker than expected earnings results from tech heavyweights, like Amazon and Meta, as investor woes over higher inflation eased. The Dow Jones Index added 2.6 percent, the S&P500

Oct. 31, 2022

Industrial output falls for 3rd month; retail sales, facility investment retreat in Sept.

South Korea's industrial output fell in September for the third month in a row, data showed Monday, with retail sales and facility investment also losing ground, hinting the country's economic recovery may be losing steam. Industrial production declined 0.6 percent on-month in September, following a 0.1 percent on-month decrease the previous month, according to the data from Statistics Korea. From a year earlier, however, the output rose 3.1 percent. Output in the mining, manufacturing

Oct. 31, 2022

S. Korean job market faces bleak outlook next year: KCCI

South Korea’s employment elasticity to GDP growth is expected to fall drastically next year amid a widespread of recession fears and corporate belt-tightening across industries, a report found Sunday. According to the report released by the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the nation’s employment elasticity -- the percentage change in employment associated with a 1 percent growth in GDP -- posted a record high this year. Based on Bank of Korea estimates, this year Korea is exp

Oct. 30, 2022

Halloween disaster dims Itaewon's hopes of revival

Restaurants, cafes and clubs in Seoul's popular nightlife district of Itaewon seemed to be on a smooth road to recovery at last after years of pandemic disruptions -- before Saturday. But now its hopes of revival have been set back again following a disastrous overnight crowd surge. The neighborhood -- once mainly the realm of expats and American soldiers -- has transformed into a culturally diverse and trendy area beloved by locals and visitors alike in recent years. Its “Brooklyn-type&r

Oct. 30, 2022

Biz groups express condolences to Halloween victims, urge to rebuild safety system

South Korea’s major business groups on Sunday offered condolences to victims and their families following an overnight crowd surge that killed more than 150 people celebrating Halloween in the bustling district of Itaewon in Seoul on Saturday, also calling for the reestablishment of the public safety system. The Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the largest business lobby here, representing some 180,000 large and small companies, released a statement saying it shares the same view

Oct. 30, 2022