[KH Explains] Institutional investors in Korea take slower approach to crypto

Though the introduction of the bitcoin spot exchange-traded funds has paved the way for more institutional investors globally to embrace the cryptocurrency into their portfolios, Korean institutions are still taking a cautious approach. With the US Securities and Exchange Commission approving spot bitcoin ETFs earlier this year, more institutional investors overseas, from hedge funds to private equities, are growing their exposure to the coin. According to Coinbase, a major crypto exchange in th

Aug. 21, 2024

SKT, Lambda to open AI data center in Seoul

SK Telecom, South Korea's largest wireless carrier by membership, said on Wednesday that it will open an artificial intelligence data center in Seoul in December by joining hands with US-based graphics processing units-as-a-service provider Lambda. The decision comes as the two sides signed a partnership deal for a joint AI cloud business as they agreed to establish a large-scale Nvidia GPU cluster to support AI cloud business opportunities here, according to SK Telecom. Lambda is a company

Aug. 21, 2024

LG Energy Solution to expand battery safety software business

LG Energy Solution said Wednesday it is expanding its battery safety diagnostic software business in response to the rising demand from electric vehicle manufacturers for more advanced safety measures. "With the recent EV fires, automakers are under pressure to enhance battery safety, but developing reliable diagnostic software is both complex and resource-intensive. LG Energy Solution is in a strong position here -- we have the diagnostic capabilities, the patents, and the real-world data.

Aug. 21, 2024

Coex to host smart factory trade show in Vietnam next month

The inaugural Automation World Vietnam, a trade show dedicated to smart factory solutions and automation, will be held in Binh Duong Province, north of Vietnam's Ho Chi Minh City, from Sept. 25 to 27, event host Coex said Wednesday. The upcoming event will be the first Automation World expo held outside Korea. AW, hosted by Coex, which operates a convention center under the same name in Seoul, is one of the largest gatherings of the smart factory industry. The Seoul event in March this year

Aug. 21, 2024

Govt. to extend financial support for Tmon, WeMakePrice vendors

The South Korean government is ramping up financial aid to address the rapidly growing unpaid bills from Qoo10 Group’s e-commerce subsidiaries, which have now exceeded 800 billion won ($600 million). On Wednesday, the Finance Ministry announced that overdue payments to vendors on Tmon and WeMakePrice, the two struggling online marketplaces owned by Singapore-based Qoo10, have reached 818.8 billion won as of Monday. The unpaid bills have tripled in less than a month due to transaction delay

Aug. 21, 2024

[Photo News] Display of the year

LG Display's Meta Technology 2.0, the company's third-generation OLED technology, has been named the "Korea Display of the Year" at this year's International Meeting on Information Display symposium that kicked off its three-day run on Wednesday in Jejudo. The Meta Technology 2.0 enhances the peak brightness of OLED displays by 40 percent to the industry's brightest 3,000 units. (LG Display)

Aug. 21, 2024

CJ's Bibigo dumplings to hit shelves in New Zealand

CJ CheilJedang is boosting its presence in Oceania with its Bibigo K-food product line, recording a 51 percent on-year increase in its food product sales in the region during the second quarter this year. The company announced Wednesday the fresh launch of Bibigo mandu to New World and Pak'nSave, two major supermarket chains in New Zealand. The new offerings include "Bibigo Homestyle Mandu Pork Dumpling" and "Bibigo Pork & Kimchi Flavoured Dumplings," both of which

Aug. 21, 2024

[Photo News] Cheers to Paralympians

South Korea's national team for the 2024 Paris Paralympics departed for Paris on Wednesday, receiving enthusiastic cheers from supporters, including Hana Financial Group. In this photo, Hana Financial Group Vice Chairman Lee Eun-hyung (second row, fifth from left) stands with Korea Paralympic Committee Chairman Jung Jin-owan (second row, third from left), Bae Dong-hyun, head of the Paralympic national team (second row, fourth from left) and athletes at Incheon International Airport, celeb

Aug. 21, 2024

LG Innotek taps global talent to spur growth

LG Innotek, the advanced materials and components maker affiliated with LG Group, is speeding up efforts to recruit outstanding international students to enhance its global competitiveness. According to the company on Wednesday, a total of 31 international students either from foreign or Korean universities joined this year’s global internship program that was completed earlier this month. Under the five-week program, the students were allocated to diverse business divisions, including res

Aug. 21, 2024

Exports rise 18.5% from Aug. 1-20 on strong chip demand

South Korea's exports increased 18.5 percent on-year in the first 20 days of August, data showed Wednesday, on the back of solid outbound shipments of chips. Outbound shipments reached $33.1 billion in the Aug. 1-20 period, compared with $27.9 billion tallied a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. Imports grew 10.1 percent on-year to $34.6 billion during the period, resulting in a trade deficit of $1.47 billion. By sector, exports of semiconductors jumped 42.5

Aug. 21, 2024

Fuel tax cut to be extended by 2 months on Middle East tensions

The finance ministry said Wednesday it will extend the tax cut on fuel for automobiles by another two months until the end of October as concerns linger over the Middle East crisis. South Korea has been applying a 20 percent discount on gasoline consumption and a 30 percent discount on diesel and liquefied petroleum gas consumption, which were supposed to expire at the end of this month. While the country previously applied a 25 percent and a 37 percent cut on gasoline and diesel prices, respect

Aug. 21, 2024

Seoul shares open lower on Wall Street losses

South Korean stocks opened lower Wednesday, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street ahead of the Jackson Hole meeting later this week. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) dropped 5.28 points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,691.35 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, major US indexes lost ground to take a breather from a recent rally, with AI chip giant Nvidia down more than 2 percent. Investors' eyes are on Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's speech at the upcomi

Aug. 21, 2024

KG Mobility to sell new Actyon SUV on Naver shopping platform

Korean sport utility vehicle dark horse KG Mobility (KGM) unveiled a refreshed brand strategy Tuesday as it launched its new SUV Actyon, with eyes set on expanding its presence in the global market. “KG Mobility has a history that always pursued being the first during its 70-year-long history, including the launch of the Korando and Musso -- the beginnings of traditional SUVs -- and the Chairman, Korea’s first luxury sedan,” said KGM Chairman Kwak Jea-sun during a media event a

Aug. 20, 2024

Why Korean Air, Asiana Airlines in rush to shed unused mileage points

South Korea's top two airlines, Korean Air and Asiana Airlines, are recently ramping up efforts to encourage their passengers to use up their mileage in an apparent move to ease financial burdens ahead of their planned merger later this year. Korean Air recently announced a strategic partnership with GS Retail, a local retailer operating GS25 convenience stores, to allow customers to use their Korean Air points at GS25 outlets. Asiana Airlines also plans to launch an online shopping site ex

Aug. 20, 2024

Percentage of younger employees drops at major Korean companies: report

Major South Korean companies are seeing an increase in the percentage of employees aged 50 or older, while that of employees in their 20s is declining, a recent report by corporate analysis firm Leaders Index showed Tuesday. The firm analyzed 2021-23 data of 141 companies among the top 500 in the country in terms of sales, compiling the report on 123 companies that also revealed the ages of their employees. The total number of employees at those companies went from 1.38 million in 2021 to 1.42 m

Aug. 20, 2024

Seoul shares rebound ahead of Fed chief's speech this week

South Korean stocks rebounded on Tuesday following a rally in the US market ahead of this week's Jackson Hole symposium. The local currency gained against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 22.27 points, or 0.83 percent, to close at 2,696.63. Trade volume was moderate at 473 million shares worth 8.69 trillion won ($6.52 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 644 to 245. Foreigners bought a net 254.2 billion won worth of shares, while individuals offload

Aug. 20, 2024

SK in talks to sell specialty gas unit

SK Group, the country's chip-to-energy conglomerate, is considering the sale of its gas supplier SK Specialty, amid the massive reshuffle across its affiliates to focus on future growth drivers. The company is "considering diverse strategies, including the sale of a stake in SK specialty" but "nothing has been decided in detail yet," SK Inc. said through a regulatory filing made Tuesday. SK Inc., the holdings company behind SK Group, owns a 100 percent stake in the gas u

Aug. 20, 2024

As Daum sinks in search, experts doubt AI is solution

Daum, once solidly the No. 2 player in the online search market in Korea, has lost ground to foreign rivals here. Its parent company Kakao is betting heavily on artificial intelligence to revive the ailing portal site, but industry watchers remain skeptical of its strategy, which has yet to be made public. According to web log analysis site Internet Trend on Tuesday, Daum ranked No. 4 in the domestic web search market as of Friday, with its market share falling from 4.41 percent a year ago to 3.

Aug. 20, 2024

[Herald Interview] Jeep Avenger looks to repeat European success in Korea

Jeep is launching its first all-electric vehicle, the Avenger, in Korea next month. “The Avenger was the first Jeep nameplate offered with an all-electric power train. It marks the Jeep’s brand entrance in the (battery electric vehicle) arena in Korea,” said Matt Nyquist, vice president of global product planning at the Jeep brand, in an online interview with a group of reporters Tuesday. The Jeep official pointed out that the country’s sports utility vehicle segment was

Aug. 20, 2024

Qxpress to split from cash-strapped Qoo10

Singapore-based logistics company Qxpress is set to separate from its financially troubled parent, Qoo10 Group. According to the local investment industry Tuesday, private equity firms that have invested in Qxpress are reportedly gearing up to convert their holdings of exchangeable bonds and convertible bonds into common stock on a large scale, initiating the procedure to take over management control of the logistics subsidiary from Qoo10 to restore normal operations. Investments totaling approx

Aug. 20, 2024