Yoon’s pledge signals a U-turn from nuclear-free power policy

South Korea is likely to see a major change in its nuclear-free power policy with President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol‘s campaign pledge to bolster energy policies in use of atomic power. Yoon has vowed to make a U-turn from the Moon Jae-in administration’s nuclear energy phase-out policies, citing plans to use nuclear to account for 30 percent of total energy generation. “(I’ll make sure) Sin-Hanul No. 3 and No. 4 resume construction and operate old nuclear reactors after e

March 13, 2022

War in Ukraine raises salmon prices in supermarkets

As Russia’s invasion of Ukraine threatens key supplies of energy and food, salmon has proven to be no exception. A ban from flying over Russian airspace is forcing Norway-farmed salmon to take a major detour to reach Asia, driving up freight costs, and ultimately retail prices. In one supermarket, 100-gram salmon filet prices increased by 15.5 percent, from 3,880 won to 4,480 won. The same day another supermarket lifted prices of its Norway-farmed fresh salmon by 26.4 percent. A 100-gram

March 13, 2022

NPS to vote against Samsung’s new chip CEO nominee

The National Pension Service, the second-largest shareholder of South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics, is poised to vote against Kyung Kye-hyun, who was named head of Samsung’s chip business in December, a disclosure showed Sunday. As the public pension fund of Korea with 8.53 percent voting rights, NPS cited Kyung’s “history of undermining the enterprise value or violating shareholders’ rights,” without elaborating further. Kyung was one of three board mem

March 13, 2022

Hyundai Motor’s subscription service expands to Seoul with Ioniq 5

Hyundai Motor Group’s flagship electric vehicle model Ioniq 5 is now available for mobility subscription service from Hyundai Selection in metropolitan areas including Seoul. The Korean automaker said Sunday that Ioniq 5 will be offered as an option in the monthly program Regular pack. The model was only offered for the daily-subscription plan Special pack subscribers in Jeju and Busan.  Hyundai Motor said such service expansion will allow more customers to experience Ioniq 5, which

March 13, 2022

6 in 10 firms pick job creation as top policy priority for new govt.: poll

Six out of 10 South Korean companies want the incoming government of President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol to focus on creating jobs to support the economic recovery, a survey showed Sunday. Of 157 local companies, 95, or 60.5 percent, picked job creation as the top policy priority for the new government, according to the Mono Research poll commissioned by the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI), the country's top business lobby. The Feb. 18-March 1 survey also showed resolving social conflicts ranked

March 13, 2022

[Herald Interview] When quantum tech marries 5G

BARCELONA, Spain -- The early 5G rollout in South Korea brought Switzerland-based ID Quantique’s quantum-safe technology to life on smartphones, backbone networks and will potentially be on mobile camera modules and cars. With outcomes and prototypes in Asia keen on 5G penetration, primarily with its controlling shareholder SK Telecom, IDQ looks to take its aim back at Europe as its continent-wide quantum network infrastructure project is starting to crystalize. “The first deploym

March 13, 2022

Foreign stock ownership hits 6-year low on Ukraine risk, US rate hike jitters

Foreign ownership of South Korean stocks fell to a six-year low, bourse data showed Sunday, as overseas investors preferred safer assets in the wake of the Ukraine crisis and ahead of a widely expected US rate hike. As of Friday, foreign investors held 666 trillion won (U$538 billion) worth of local stocks on the main KOSPI, accounting for 31.86 percent of the entire 2,091 trillion-won market capitalization, according to the data compiled by the Korea Exchange (KRX). The foreign ownership shrank

March 13, 2022

Legal hurdle cleared for Hana vice chief to seek chairmanship

Hana Financial Group Vice Chairman Ham Young-joo has been cleared of any wrongdoing in the flagship bank’s hiring scandal, removing a major hurdle for him to take the reins of one of the biggest financial groups here. On Friday, the Seoul Western District Court found Ham not guilty of receiving favors in exchange for getting his friend’s son hired at Hana Bank, when he was CEO in 2015. 　 The latest court decision puts an end to a four-year trial which kicked off in June 2018 when

March 11, 2022

Yoon’s pledge to ease mortgage rules draw attention

SEJONG -- The real estate market could see a boost in the second half of this year, as the coming Yoon Suk-yeol administration is seeking to ease mortgage rules for homebuyers. President-elect Yoon had pledged to raise the loan-to-value ratio up to 70 percent in Seoul and other regions, which is the same level during the Park Geun-hye administration from 2013-2017. But skyrocketing apartment prices have also put into question the proposal’s feasibility. Under a 70 percent loan-to-value c

March 11, 2022

[Newsmaker] Giant Saudi wealth fund gobbles up stakes in Korean game makers

Saudi Arabia is pouring money into South Korean game makers NCSoft and Nexon, doubling down on its bet in the gaming industry. Public Investment Fund, the Middle Eastern country’s sovereign wealth fund, acquired an additional 563,566 shares of NCSoft for about 290 billion won ($240 million) through six transactions between Feb. 8 to 16., according to a regulatory filing submitted to the Financial Supervisory Service on Thursday. With the latest investment, PIF has become NCSoft’s s

March 11, 2022

A win-win: Korea-US FTA marks 10th year

South Korea and the US have seen their trade volume surge almost 70 percent since a free trade pact was signed in 2011, with their economic ties being enhanced as a key partnership to resolve the current supply chain disruptions. According to a report released Friday by the Korea International Trade Association that marks the 10th anniversary of the Korea-US Free Trade Agreement, trade volume between the two countries soared 67.8 percent to $169.1 billion last year from $100.8 billion in 2011.

March 11, 2022

Samsung Heavy wins W609b order in Europe

Samsung Heavy Industries Co., the world's third-biggest shipbuilder by order backlog, said Friday it has received a 609 billion-won ($494 million) container ship order in Europe. Samsung Heavy obtained the order to build four liquefied natural gas-powered container carriers from an unidentified European shipper by 2024, the company said in a statement. With this latest order, Samsung Heavy has already achieved $1.3 billion, or 15 percent, of its order target of $8.8 billion this year. In 2021, t

March 11, 2022

10 years after KORUS FTA, bilateral trade soars nearly 70 percent

Trade volume of goods between South Korea and the United States grew nearly 70 percent, and bilateral investment more than doubled over the past decade since their free trade agreement, Seoul's industry ministry said Friday. The Korea-US Free Trade Agreement (KORUS FTA) marked its 10th anniversary this month, as the trade deal came into force in March 2012. The bilateral trade of goods stood at $169.1 billion last year, up 67.8 percent from $100.8 billion logged in 2011, according to the Ministr

March 11, 2022

Korea Shipbuilding wins ship orders worth W290b in Asia, Oceania

Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co. (KSOE) said Friday it has won ship orders totaling 290 billion won ($235 million) in the Asia and Oceania regions. KSOE obtained orders to build one liquefied natural gas carrier for an Asian shipper by the first half of 2024 and four container ships for an Oceania-based shipper by March 2024, the company said in a statement. Hyundai Heavy Industries Holdings Co. has KSOE as a subholding company under its wing. KSOE has three affiliates -- Hyunda

March 11, 2022

Exports grow 15% in first 10 days of March

South Korea's exports rose 14.9 percent in the first 10 days of March from a year earlier on the back of demand for chips and petroleum products, customs data showed Friday. The country's outbound shipments stood at $18.7 billion in the March 1-10 period, compared with $16.3 billion a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. Imports gained 15.3 percent on-year to $20.1 billion, resulting in a trade deficit of $1.39 billion during the cited period, the data showed. By s

March 11, 2022

S. Korea's current account surplus dives in January amid soaring oil, commodity prices

South Korea continued to post a current account surplus in January, but the surplus sharply declined compared with a year earlier as imports expanded sharply amid soaring oil and commodity prices, central bank data showed Friday. The current account surplus came to $1.81 billion in January, marking the 21st straight month that the current account has remained in the black, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). The figure, however, was much smaller than the same month a

March 11, 2022

At Semicon to raise W10.1b via stock offering

At Semicon Co. on Friday announced that it will sell stocks to raise 10.1 billion won. The proceeds from the stock sale will be used mainly to finance its operations. According to a regulatory filing, the company will issue some 9.28 million common shares at a price of 1,089 won per share. The stocks will be sold to the investors that the firm designated. (Yonhap)

March 11, 2022

S. Korean regulator unveils guideline on world‘s 1st in-app payment law

South Korea‘s telecommunications regulator on Thursday unveiled a guideline to clarify potential violations of a revised law banning store operators, like Apple and Google, from forcing developers to use their own in-app payment systems. 　 　Earlier this week, the country’s Cabinet approved an enforcement decree revision of the Telecommunications Business Act that went into effect in September. South Korea became the first country in the world to introduce such curbs on in-app billin

March 10, 2022

Chaebol reform not on Yoon’s agenda

Chaebol reform had been a key agenda in previous presidential campaigns, but it was no longer present in this year’s election. Except for Justice Party candidate Sim Sang-jung, none of the major presidential contenders mentioned chaebol reform in their campaign pledges. With more pressing economic issues such as runaway home prices, small business owners struggling from the pandemic and inflation, chaebol reform was pushed aside in campaigns. “There seems to be a consensus that is

March 10, 2022

Bio, game, tech industries mixed over Yoon’s campaign pledges

With Yoon Suk-yeol set to be South Korea’s next president, the country’s biopharmaceutical and gaming industries are paying vigilant attention as the president-elect pledged to increase support for the bio and health sectors while vowing to tighten regulations on game makers’ random box items. The pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical industries on Thursday welcomed Yoon’s campaign promise to set up a prime ministerial control tower called the Pharmaceutical Bio Innovati

March 10, 2022