Hana Bank to expand art wealth management

Hana Bank said Sunday it will expand its wealth management services to trading art pieces -- both physical and digital -- amid growing retail demand for alternative assets. Hana Bank has forged a partnership with Seoul Auction Blue, an online auction house, to jointly work on developing new businesses such as nonfungible tokens and metaverse platforms, and operating online education and community platforms on art. The two will also provide traditional art services including artwork sales, art

Feb. 27, 2022

Posco Chemical to expand low-expansion anode production

Posco Chemical, the battery and chemical materials manufacturing arm of Posco Group, said Sunday it will expand investment in low-expansion anodes, a material needed for electric vehicle batteries. Low-expansion anodes are uniquely developed by Posco Chemical that enhance the safety, lifespan and charging speed but at a more affordable price, according to the company.  The production expansion plan from the current 7,000 metric tons to 35,000 tons was approved by the board of directors o

Feb. 27, 2022

[Photo News] ON VIENNA ROAD

Hyundai Motor Group’s hydrogen-powered fuel cell bus Elecity FCEV provides public transport in Vienna in this picture released Sunday.  Austria’s public transportation corporation Wiener Linien began running the eco-friendly bus on its most crowded bus route, according to Hyundai.  The Korean carmaker’s supply of Elecity FCEV is part of the Austrian government-led hydrogen infrastructure expansion project called HyBus Project. Starting with the delivery of three E

Feb. 27, 2022

LG Innotek vows shared growth with partners

LG Innotek Co. signed an agreement with some 100 partner firms on financial, technological, management and educational cooperation on Thursday in its annual event for shared growth which it has held since 2010. This year, the IT components maker said it will start providing partner firms with expert consultations on environmental, social and corporate governance, and increase financial support for partners’ factory automation. LG Innotek said it will also offer partner firms knowhow on i

Feb. 27, 2022

[MWC 2022] Samsung’s gadgets to clash with Chinese newcomers

Samsung Electronics expects the Mobile World Congress 2022 to become a proving ground for its newest 5G smartphones under the S22 series, with Chinese rivals heralding the launch of new phones in the same event in Barcelona, Spain. Samsung Electronics is the largest smartphone maker in Europe by shipments with a third of market share, but has seen its gap with Chinese competitors narrow. While Samsung‘s smartphone shipments in Europe surged 6 percent, its Chinese rivals such as Xiaomi

Feb. 27, 2022

Samsung Electronics to showcase new Galaxy Book and more at MWC

Samsung Electronics Co. said Sunday it will showcase a new lineup of goods from flagship smartphones to laptops during the upcoming global technology trade fair in Spain. The Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2022 is set to take place from Monday to Thursday in Barcelona. It is one of the top three annual tech events in the world, along with the Consumer Electronics Show in the United States and the IFA in Germany. First, Samsung will hold the virtual "Samsung Galaxy MWC Event 2022," which w

Feb. 27, 2022

[MWC 2022] Flying taxis, robots, XR: Korean telcos to unlock potential of future tech

One of the world‘s largest tech events, Mobile World Congress, is returning to Barcelona, and South Korea’s telecommunications firms this week are poised to showcase their future technologies for the next decade to come. Extending their network and connected intelligence technology with respective industrial partners, SK Telecom is set to boast underlying technology to enable flying taxis, while KT brings disinfection robots and LG Uplus presents Korean media contents that run on e

Feb. 27, 2022

[Weekender] Available at touch of button, mental care apps empower patients

Han Na-yeon, a pseudonym for a 34-year-old office worker, experienced an anxiety attack during a job interview six months ago, almost having a breakdown in front of interviewers. This encounter preceded a months long period of depression and repressed anger. Beginning to wonder if she had anxiety or some other issue, she delved into various online communities in an attempt to get to the bottom of her problem. Following a readily available online test, she was presented with a diagnosis of atten

Feb. 26, 2022

Trading of Seoul shares likely to be volatile next week amid Ukraine risks

South Korean stocks are expected to face highly volatile sessions next week as investors will pay keen attention to situations in Ukraine and the US Federal Reserve's updated stance on its monetary policy, analysts said Saturday. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) closed at 2,676.76 on Friday, down 2.45 percent from a week earlier, amid jitters over the escalating tensions in Ukraine as Russia launched a military offensive in the East European neighbor. KOSPI rebounded on

Feb. 26, 2022

Korea to launch W2tr biz support program to counter Russia-Ukraine crisis if needed

South Korea’s top financial regulator said Friday that a support program worth 2 trillion won ($1.66 billion) will be launched to cushion local businesses from economic woes stemming from the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, if needed. “We will thoroughly review the extent of damages and the financial state of our exporters and importers to prevent any difficulties stemming from the Ukraine crisis,” Financial Services Commission Chairman Koh Seung-beom said at a joint

Feb. 25, 2022

Nuri rocket’s 2nd launch set for June

South Korea’s first homegrown rocket Nuri will go for a second launch in June, aiming to complete the full launch sequence this time, the Ministry of Science and ICT said Friday. The first liftoff, which took place in October last year, came short of a successful mission as the rocket’s third stage engine shut down earlier than planned. The dummy satellite could not reach sufficient orbital speed as a result. The early stages of the launch were deemed successful as the three-stage

Feb. 25, 2022

Korea, India agree to block double taxation

SEJONG -- The tax administrative agencies of South Korea and India have agreed to closely coordinate on easing tax burdens for businesses by holding a bilateral meeting of chiefs, the National Tax Service said Friday. The two also have decided to exchange know-how in uncovering practices of offshore tax evasion. During their meeting in New Delhi on Thursday, NTS commissioner Kim Dae-ji expressed gratitude to his counterpart Tarun Bajaj for the Indian tax authority’s recent policy to prev

Feb. 25, 2022

Biden’s Russia sanctions to indirectly hit Korea’s chip, auto industries

As the US Biden administration imposes economic sanctions against Russia for invading Ukraine, South Korean firms including Samsung Electronics and SK hynix are expected to take collateral damage. On Friday, President Joe Biden unveiled comprehensive economic sanctions to cripple the Russian economy. The sanctions would limit the export of products that can potentially increase Russia’s ability to advance its military and aerospace sector. The sanctions would prohibit companies from s

Feb. 25, 2022

S. Korea to support companies to minimize impacts from Ukraine crisis

South Korea said Friday it plans to provide financial support to local exporters in an effort to minimize their potential damage from international sanctions against Russia over Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. The United States announced new sanctions against Russia, including export controls, over Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in a bid to restrict Russia's ability to do business in major currencies. South Korea said Thursday it will join the international community in imposing sanctions against Ru

Feb. 25, 2022

Hyundai partners with Shell to accelerate transition into carbon-neutral mobility

Hyundai Motor said Friday that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with US energy giant Shell to speed up the popularization of electric vehicles and achieve carbon neutrality. Through this MOU, the South Korean auto giant hopes to actively promote its carbon-neutral goals and Shell hopes this serves as momentum for it to expand its green energy business. The two companies agreed to cooperate in establishing infrastructures for EV charging, coming up with low carbon-emitting solutions,

Feb. 25, 2022

S. Korea's fisheries output rebounds in 2021

South Korea's fisheries output rebounded last year from the previous year on the back of increased fish stocks and expanded fishing grounds, data showed Friday. Total fisheries output amounted to 3.82 million tons last year, up 2.9 percent from a year earlier, according to Statistics Korea. The 2021 tally rebounded from 3.71 million tons in 2020 when fisheries output hit a four-year low. Last year, aquaculture production increased and fisheries output from inland fishing also gained ground. By v

Feb. 25, 2022

S. Korea's arable land dips for 9th year in 2021

South Korea's total arable land dropped for the ninth consecutive year in 2021 as rice paddies shrank amid falling consumption of rice, data showed Friday. The country's arable land totaled 1.55 million hectares -- slightly more than three times the size of the U.S. state of Delaware -- as of end-2021, down 1.2 percent or 18,000 hectares from the previous year, according to the data by Statistics Korea. Arable land in Asia's fourth-largest economy has been on the decline since 2013 due to declin

Feb. 25, 2022

S. Korea's central bank joins BIS Asian green bond fund

The Bank of Korea (BOK) said Friday it has invested part of the country's foreign exchange reserves in a green bond fund for central banks in a bid to expand its investment in green projects. The BOK said it took part in the Asian Green Fund that was launched by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) on Thursday to invest in dollar-denominated green bonds issued in the Asian region. The BOK did not specify the amount of its investment. Green bonds are meant to raise money to support enviro

Feb. 25, 2022

Trade terms decline for 10th consecutive month in January

South Korea's terms of trade fell for the 10th straight month in January as import costs rose at a faster clip than export prices, central bank data showed Friday. The nation's net terms-of-trade index for goods -- a gauge of overall trade terms -- stood at 89.42 last month, down 6.8 percent from a year earlier, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). The figure has marked on-year declines each month since April when the index fell 0.6 percent from a year earlier. Compared wi

Feb. 25, 2022

Samsung Galaxy S22 launched globally

Samsung Electronics on Friday launched its latest flagship smartphone Galaxy S22 as well as its tablet Galaxy Tab S8 in some 40 countries. According to the South Korean tech giant, the new devices will be available in major markets including Korea, the US, Canada, the UK and France. In March, the high-tech gadgets will be available in more than 130 countries. The Galaxy S22 and the Galaxy Tab S8 series enjoyed greater preorders than previous models. Preorders for both the Galaxy S22 and Galax

Feb. 25, 2022