Seoul stocks end nearly flat on US-China tensions

South Korean stocks closed nearly flat Tuesday, paring most earlier gains, in the face of elevating trade tensions between the world's two largest economies. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) edged up 1.41 points, or 0.05 percent, to close at 2,746.47 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 555 million shares worth some 11.6 trillion won ($9.7 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 544 to 313. Foreigners sold a net 97 b

Feb. 8, 2022

Samsung Biologics scoops up all 6 CMO Leadership Awards

Samsung Biologics has won the 2022 CMO Leadership Awards in all six performance categories of capabilities, compatibility, expertise, reliability, quality and service, the company said Tuesday. The awards, presented by Life Science Leader, Outsourced Pharma and Industry Standard Research, recognize the world’s top contract manufacturing organizations based on ratings and feedback from companies that utilize outsourcing services. The latest recognition marked the ninth consecutive year

Feb. 8, 2022

Krafton debuts virtual humans for metaverse platform

Gaming giant Krafton said Tuesday it has released artificial intelligence-based virtual human characters, who will appear as hyperreal game show hosts and virtual friends on the metaverse platform. The virtual human characters show human-like skin and hair, facial expressions and eye movements, according to the company. In Krafton’s virtual human demo video, a female character shows realistic wrinkles on her nose, forehead and around her eyes as she squints. “Unlike other local ga

Feb. 8, 2022

Korean Air adopts palm vein verification for domestic boarding

Korean Air customers flying on domestic routes can now pass through the boarding gate empty handed -- as the airline has adopted palm vein scanning to verify passengers’ identities.  According to the air carrier on Tuesday, those aged above 7 with Korean nationality can register their biometric information at Korean Air kiosks in Gimpo International Airport’s departure area. Passengers who do so can simply scan their palms at the boarding gate without having to show their board

Feb. 8, 2022

More people moving out of Seoul amid surging housing prices

Some 400,000 people were found to have left Seoul to move to neighboring metropolitan areas last year, government data showed Tuesday, with surging housing prices being cited as the key reason behind the exodus. According to Statistics Korea, a total of 406,975 people submitted change-of-address requests from Seoul addresses last year. Of the total, 362,116 moved to Gyeonggi Province, while 44,859 left for Incheon. The latest data corresponds with the Seoul city government’s data relea

Feb. 8, 2022

LG CNS, AWS bolster ties on corporate cloud service

LG CNS said Tuesday it has signed a strategic agreement with cloud giant Amazon Web Services to expand cloud services for corporate clients. Under the agreement, the two companies aim to meet demand for application modernization, by updating old software and modernizing their computing platform for clients in the fields of finance, manufacturing and e-commerce. Clients will be encouraged to build cloud-native applications independently to optimize their applications on cloud infrastructure pr

Feb. 8, 2022

Global appraisers concerned about fallout of S. Korea's debt growth pace: finance chief

South Korea's finance minister said Tuesday global credit appraisers are concerned about the growth pace of the country's national debt, which could negatively affect its sovereign rating over the medium term. Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki also reiterated his opposition to political parties' push for sharply jacking up a proposed extra budget of 14 trillion won ($11.7 billion), citing concerns about fiscal soundness. Ahead of the March presidential election, political parties are calling for a

Feb. 8, 2022

LG Chem eyes W60tr in sales by 2030

LG Chem Ltd., South Korea's leading chemical maker, said Tuesday it aims to boost its sales to 60 trillion won ($50.1 billion) by 2030 as it accelerates its push for a green transition with a focus on renewable energy and advanced materials. Unveiling its mid- to long-term business plans, LG Chem said in regulatory filings it is eyeing annual sales of 40 trillion won by 2026. The target figures exclude its two subsidiaries -- the battery-making unit LG Energy Solution Ltd. and LG FarmHannong C

Feb. 8, 2022

S. Korea to invest W12b in developing 100-ton liquid engine

South Korea plans to invest 12 billion won ($10 million) in developing high-performance, liquid-fuel engines by next year to ramp up the country's decadelong space project, the ICT and science ministry said Tuesday. In 2020, South Korea unveiled the "Space Challenge" program with the aim of investing 49.6 billion won until 2028 to secure future technologies and leadership in the space industry in 2030. Of the total, the ministry has set aside a budget of 4.5 billion won this year and

Feb. 8, 2022

LG Energy Solution turns to black in Q4 on strong EV battery sales

LG Energy Solution Ltd. said Tuesday it swung to the black in the fourth quarter from a year earlier on the back of strong electric vehicle (EV) battery sales. Net income came to 71.8 billion won ($59.9 million) in the October-December period, compared with the 436.4 billion-won loss the previous year, South Korea's top battery maker said in a regulatory filing. Operating profit reached 75.7 billion won, a turnaround from the 479.1 billion-won loss. Sales rose 1.9 percent to 4.4 trillion won

Feb. 8, 2022

S. Korea, Britain agree to launch talks on FTA revision

South Korea and Britain have agreed to launch talks this year to upgrade their free trade deal in a move to deepen ties in digital trade and other new issues, Seoul's trade ministry said Tuesday. The agreement was made during an initial meeting of the South Korea-Britain free trade agreement (FTA) committee in London on Monday. The meeting was attended by South Korea's Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo and Britain's Secretary of State for International Trade Anne-Marie Trevelyan. The two nations cli

Feb. 8, 2022

Soaring refining margin bodes well for oil firms

South Korean oil refiners' key profitability measure has been rising sharply this year on a global economic recovery, boding well for their earnings, industry sources said Tuesday. The benchmark Singapore complex gross refining margin (GRM) stood at $7.5 per barrel for the first week of this month, up sharply from the $1-2 range a year earlier. Usually, South Korean refiners turn a profit if the refining margin is above at least $4 per barrel. Hit by a plunge in oil demand due to the coronavi

Feb. 8, 2022

S. Korea’s top financial regulator contracts COVID

South Korea’s top financial regulator has contracted COVID-19, the Financial Services Commission said Monday. Financial Services Commission Chairman Koh Seung-beom tested positive for the novel coronavirus before noon despite having received three doses of a vaccine, the FSC said in a statement. Koh has no plans to be hospitalized at the moment and is currently self-isolated at home. He has yet to show any signs of severe symptoms, according to the FSC. The financial regulator has supp

Feb. 7, 2022

SK Bioscience logs record high sales

SK Bioscience saw record sales of 929 billion won ($774 million) and operating profits of 474 billion won from last year, on the back of strong businesses in its contract manufacturing of the AstraZeneca and Novavax COVID-19 vaccines, the company said Monday. Compared to 2020 yearly figures, SK Bioscience’s annual sales and operating profits went up by 311 percent and 1,158 percent, respectively. About half of the annual numbers came in the fourth quarter alone as the company logged 451

Feb. 7, 2022

Average foreign workers‘ annual pay likely to surpass W30m

SEJONG -- The average yearly wage for foreign workers in South Korea is estimated to have surpassed 30 million won ($25,000) for the first time in 2021, state data showed. The prediction is based on the year-end tax adjustments of foreign employees for their earnings in 2020 and 2019. According to the National Tax Service, about 545,000 foreign employees in the nation carried out year-end tax adjustments for their earnings in 2020. Their average wage posted 29.26 million won per annum, with th

Feb. 7, 2022

L‘Oreal Korea to launch make-your-own lip tint device

L’Oreal Korea said Monday it will launch an at-home device that creates customized lip tint colors, to serve the growing needs of personalization in the beauty market. The newly launched product, Yves Saint Laurent Rouge Sur Mesure, delivers thousands of color schemes using its four-ingredient cartridges -- red, nude, orange and pink. Customers can play with the palette using a mobile application to design their own shade of the day, it said. The device also offers color recommendations

Feb. 7, 2022

Kia to launch 6 EVs by 2027 via joint venture renewal in China

Kia, South Korea’s second-largest automaker, will launch six electric vehicle models by 2027 in China by renewing its joint venture in the country, where it has been losing presence in recent years over soured bilateral ties between Seoul and Beijing. Starting with the EV6 next year, Kia will bring new battery-powered vehicles each year and realign its strategic models with bigger vehicles that are more globally popular such as the Carnival and Sportage. The new China plan was released

Feb. 7, 2022

Seoul stocks snap 3-day winning streak on profit-taking

South Korean stocks ended their three-day winning streak on Monday, largely as investors attempted to cash in profits from recent stock rallies. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) retreated 5.2 points, or 0.19 percent, to close at 2,745.06 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 410 million shares worth some 11.1 trillion won ($9.2 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 467 to 385. Institutions sold a net 834 billion

Feb. 7, 2022

As Kospi rally nears end, money moves to safer options

Korean investors are pulling out money from their investment accounts to reallocate it to safer options such as money market funds as they seek to ride out volatility gripping the local stock market, data showed Sunday. As of Thursday, credit-backed loans for stock investments stood at 21 trillion won ($17.5 billion), down about 4 trillion won from a record high of 25 trillion won in September last year. Since then, the deposit borrowed from brokerages on investors’ credit has been shri

Feb. 7, 2022

Stock assets of chaebol leaders hit hard by Kospi loss

The nation’s top chaebol leaders saw their stock assets fall sharply in January, as the nation’s benchmark Kospi entered a bear market, while some firms grappling with controversies also took a beating. The total value of stocks owned by the nation’s top 33 chaebol owners was estimated at 55.43 trillion won ($46.19 billion) in January, down 13.8 percent from a month ago, according to data from market tracker Korea CXO Institute Monday. Hyundai Development Co. Chairman Chung

Feb. 7, 2022