Seoul shares open lower on US rate hike woes

South Korean stocks got off to a weak start Thursday, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street, on lingering concerns over the US Federal Reserve's aggressive policy tightening and a global economic slowdown. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) lost 39.89 points, or 1.61 percent, to trade at 2,432.16 points as of 9:15 a.m. The stock market has lost steam in recent sessions, after Fed Chair Jerome Powell stressed his determination to tame inflation during the annual Jacks

Sept. 1, 2022

Exports up 6.6% in August; trade deficit extended for 5th month

South Korea suffered a trade deficit for the fifth consecutive month in August for the first time in nearly 14 years on high global energy prices, though its exports rose 6.6 percent on-year, data showed Thursday. Outbound shipments stood at $56.67 billion last month, up from $53.2 billion a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. It is the highest tally for any August since the ministry began compiling related data in 1956. The previous record

Sept. 1, 2022

Won seesaws amid mixed signals

The South Korean won fluctuated sharply Wednesday, reaching a 13-year intraday low at 1,352.3 won per US dollar in the onshore market before closing at 1,337.6, 0.68 percent stronger than the Tuesday’s close, as the dollar continued its rally and the euro pared losses later the day. The search for safe-haven assets like the dollar is still strong, as investors reassess the prospect for higher US rates in light of a more hawkish tone on inflation set by the US Federal Reserve over the week

Aug. 31, 2022

Korea calls on US to cooperate in resolving conflict on EVs

SEJONG -- South Korea’s Industry Minister Lee Chang-yang called for the US to take a cooperative stance on resolving the backlash from the local automobiles industry over the US Inflation Reduction Act, which is targeted to scale back subsidies to electric vehicles not assembled on American soil. Lee delivered the nation’s position during his meeting with US Ambassador to Korea Philip Goldberg in Seoul on Wednesday. He said worries among local carmakers as well as the Korean governm

Aug. 31, 2022

Industrial giants boast hydrogen tech at H2 Meet

The world’s largest exhibition exploring the potential of hydrogen in the field of mobility kicked off in Korea on Wednesday, bringing industrial giants from in and out of the country with their latest technological achievements. H2 Mobility Energy Environment Technology, or H2 Meet in short, is the world’s only hydrogen industry exhibition. It was organized to bolster the country’s technological innovation in the hydrogen sector ranging from the energy’s production, stor

Aug. 31, 2022

Korean IT leaders shy of expansion, investment: survey

South Korean corporate decision makers in the field of information technology have shown a lackluster appetite for expansion and investment compared with the global peers, a survey showed Wednesday. Fifty-five out of 100 Korean decision makers responded that their organizations are planning to expand in a new city, country or region within the next 12 months, which was lower than the global average of 72 percent, according to Nasdaq-listed digital infrastructure investment firm Equinix. Those wh

Aug. 31, 2022

K-water inaugurates Chungju Dam's third floating solar power plant

South Korea’s state-funded Korea Water Resources Corp. hosted Wednesday a ceremony marking the completion of Chungju Dam’s third floating photovoltaic power plant at Chungju Lake located in the North Chungcheong Province. Floating photovoltaic power plants are installed on buoys that float on bodies of water. They inflict less damage to the surrounding environment, and the water acts as a natural coolant, increasing solar panel efficiency by 10 percent, according to experts. The Ch

Aug. 31, 2022

Korean economy suffers triple decline in July

SEJONG -- Korea posted a triple decline in industrial output, consumption and investment in July amid the ongoing negative factors, such as spiraling raw material prices and a glitch in global supply, state data showed Wednesday. Further, consumption decreased for the fifth consecutive month, which marked the first time in 1995 since the nation started compiling the relevant figures. According to Statistics Korea, industrial output declined by 0.1 percent in July on-month, private consumption

Aug. 31, 2022

[Herald Design Forum 2022] EVs offers opportunity for car design innovation, says Ian Callum

Ian Callum, a British car designer who led design team of Jaguar Land Rover until recently, believes that electric vehicles open up more flexibility for designers. “Many electric cars still have a conventional look currently. But they don’t need to. Again, it is down to the designers to create this difference. Being electric is not a hindrance but an opportunity, as long as the company’s management and directors allow this freedom,” said Callum in an email interview wit

Aug. 31, 2022

Retailers race to make next Pokemon Bread

Piggybacking on SPC Samlip’s Pokemon Bread craze, South Korean food companies are using animated characters on their product packaging to appeal to customers with a desire to collect nostalgic items. Convenience store chain 7-Eleven said Wednesday it has sold more than 250,000 rolls of its recently launched Digimon Bread in a week. The pastry comes with a sticker of one of 182 characters from the Japanese anime television series “Digimon Adventure” -- a key rival of the Poke

Aug. 31, 2022

Hyundai E&C opens Hillstate Wonju Restige apartment sales

Hyundai Engineering ＆ Construction said Wednesday it has opened a model house to initiate sales of its Hillstate Wonju Restige apartment. Located in Wonju, Gangwon Province, the apartment complex consists of 976 households, ranging in size from 84 square meters to 136 square meters. After receiving applicants between Sept. 5 and 7, the company will announce the selected residents on Sep. 15. The move-in date is scheduled for some time in January 2025. Hyundai E＆C said since the apartment com

Aug. 31, 2022

[Market Eye] Lone Star verdict sheds light on Korea’s systematic flaws, experts say

An international dispute settlement body’s order Wednesday that South Korea must pay a “smaller-than-expected” $216.5 million to Lone Star may seem like a reasonable resolution to a decadelong battle between the government and the US-based private equity firm. But the verdict and the 10-year-long battle itself have revealed flaws in Korea’s financial and legal system that must be fixed before it can make the progress it aspires to, experts said. “The dispute has

Aug. 31, 2022

GS E&C develops bioethanol using cassava

GS Engineering and Construction said it has joined hands with a Finnish energy company to produce bioethanol using cassava peels waste in Thailand. Cassava is a nutty tasting, starchy root vegetable that looks like sweet potatoes and is grown in tropical regions. Huh Yoon-hong, president of GS E＆C’s new businesses unit, and Patrick Pitkanen, director of St1 Renewable Energy (Thailand) Ltd, signed a memorandum of understanding on Monday in Bangkok on technological cooperation to produce b

Aug. 31, 2022

S. Korea introduces 2 numbers in 1 phone service with eSIM

South Korea will begin embedded subscriber identity module, known as eSIM, services from Thursday, allowing Koreans to have two different numbers in one mobile device, the Ministry of Science and ICT said Wednesday. The eSIM service, an upgrade from the universal subscriber identity module, is based on downloading the electronic profile of subscribers to each device. Therefore, it does not require a physical USIM card change. The ministry said Koreans can now choose between the two types of SI

Aug. 31, 2022

Nexon’s HIT2 opens new world of MMORPG

HIT2, a recently-launched massively multiplayer online role playing game developed by South Korean game developer Nexon, is looking to change the nature of how MMORPGs are played by offering players chances to revise the playing rules. According to Nexon, HIT2 players get to vote on the rules of their game server under the name of “Altar of the Coordinator” each week. Players can obtain their voting rights by completing simple quests in game. The players can also opt to sell their v

Aug. 31, 2022

Samsung's connected home app SmartThings to power 13 home appliance brands

Samsung Electronics' integrated home appliances solution SmartThings is poised to be applied to Samsung plus 12 other major white goods brands by the first half of 2023, the company said Wednesday. This comes as Samsung's SmartThings is to make consumer electronics goods and mobile apps interoperable under the standard provided by the 13-member Home Connectivity Alliance, through an update of Samsung's smart home solution next year. The update will allow users of 13 HCA member bra

Aug. 31, 2022

Hyundai Oilbank accelerates next-generation energy development

Hyundai Heavy Industries Group’s refining affiliate Hyundai Oilbank said it has been bolstering efforts in developing next-generation energy, it said in a statement Wednesday. The refiner said it has been constructing a biodiesel production plant with an annual production capacity of 130,000 metric tons in Seosan, South Chungcheong Province, since last year, as part of its “White Bio” project. The plant is expected to be completed by 2023. White bio refers to carbon reduction

Aug. 31, 2022

Number of startups drops 4.7% in H1

The number of startups in South Korea fell nearly 5 percent in the first half of the year due mainly to a plunge in new real estate businesses, government data showed Wednesday. A total of 696,000 new companies were set up in the country in the January-June period, down 4.7 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Ministry of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises and Startups. The number of newly established real estate companies sank 18.9 percent on-year, with that of hospitalit

Aug. 31, 2022

Seoul shares open lower on US rate hike woes

South Korean stocks opened sharply lower Wednesday, tracking a continued drop on Wall Street that stemmed from concerns about the US Federal Reserve's aggressive policy tightening. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) dropped 23.83 points, or 0.97 percent, to trade at 2,427.1 points as of 9:15 a.m. Stocks have been in a slump in the wake of the Fed chairman's reaffirmation in Jackson Hole that the US central bank would continue its fight against four-decade high infl

Aug. 31, 2022

S. Korea suffers fall in production, consumption, investment in July

South Korea's industrial output, retail sales and investment declined together for the first time in three months in July amid heightened external uncertainty, data showed Wednesday. Industrial output fell 0.1 percent in July from the previous month, compared with a 0.8 percent on-month increase in June, according to the data from Statistics Korea. Compared with a year earlier, industrial production grew 3.8 percent. Retail sales, a gauge of consumption, fell for the fifth straight month in July

Aug. 31, 2022