3 transport firms fined W4.9b over price fixing

South Korea's antitrust regulator said Sunday it has decided to impose a combined fine of 4.9 billion won ($4.1 million) on three transport companies for colluding to fix bidding prices. Sejoong Co. and two other companies colluded to fix their quotations to win  shipping engine transport and other bids that were put forward by Doosan Engine, the predecessor of HSD Engine, between 2008 and 2016, according to the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC). They colluded to set Sejoong as the prosp

Nov. 7, 2021

Recovery momentum 'feeble' due to manufacturing slowdown: KDI

South Korea's economic recovery momentum has weakened due to the slowdown in the manufacturing sector amid a global supply chain shortage and energy crisis, a state-run think tank said Sunday. "The recovery in manufacturing weakens as global supply chains remain clogged, since an improvement of external conditions lost steam," the Korea Development Institute (KDI) said in a monthly economic assessment report. The manufacturing firms' shipments have fallen, while the inventory-to-ship

Nov. 7, 2021

Exports of fishery goods up over 20% through October: data

South Korea's exports of fishery products grew 20.5 percent on-year in the first 10 months of this year, data showed Sunday. Outbound shipments of fishery products reached $2.24 billion during the January-October period, compared to $1.86 billion tallied a year earlier, according to the data by the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries. Exports to China rose 48.1 percent to reach $540 million, and those to the United States and the European Union surged 24.2 percent and 39.4 percent, respectively.

Nov. 7, 2021

With assessment of NFTs done, financial companies actively seek opportunites

Rather than discussing the question of whether non-fungible tokens are a fad, traditional financial institutions are instead asking how they can be incorporated within their business models, according to speakers from major financial firms who gathered at a three-day conference on NFTs. The tokens are digital counterparts of real-world assets, largely visual art and music. More importantly, each NFT is unique, with ownership being traced and protected through blockchain technology. Given that

Nov. 6, 2021

KOSPI likely to move in tight range next week on policy uncertainties

South Korea's benchmark stock index is likely to move in a tight range next week, although volatility may increase due to policy uncertainties, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (closed at 2,969.27 points Friday, nearly unchanged from 2,970.68 points a week ago. The KOSPI fluctuated as investors waited and digested the U.S. Federal Reserve's meeting results, particularly its stance over potential rate hikes. According to the FOMC meeting results, the US central b

Nov. 6, 2021

S. Korea calls for cooperation with global companies on climate goals

South Korea's Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo proposed Friday that South Korean and global companies join hands to address climate challenges as he met with leaders of major businesses, his office said. Yeo made the call at a meeting of the Alliance of CEO Climate Leaders, a platform under the World Economic Forum, in Glasgow, Scotland. The meeting brought together dozens of top officials of multinational firms and government officials who sought ways to help accelerate the transition to a net-zero

Nov. 5, 2021

KKR closes W2.4tr deal to invest in SK E&S in eco push

US investment firm KKR & Co. said Friday it has acquired newly issued redeemable convertible preferred shares of South Korean energy company SK E&S for 2.4 trillion won ($2 billion). The investment, via KKR‘s Asia Pacific Infrastructure Fund, will provide KKR with an opportunity to receive cash or in-kind redemption for repayment in the future, as well as an opportunity to convert the securities into common shares of SK conglomerate’s natural gas arm, according to KKR. The

Nov. 5, 2021

Mamamoo’s agency aims to morph into global content provider via IPO

Rainbow Bridge World, the South Korean entertainment agency behind girl group Mamamoo, said Friday that it is looking to spur growth globally by raising funds through its initial public offering scheduled for later this month.  “We will further accumulate experience in producing high-quality content by making active investments (after the IPO). We are poised for a leap in the global market as an integrated content provider,” Kim Jin-woo, co-chief executive officer at Rainbow Br

Nov. 5, 2021

[Newsmaker] Where Yoon stands on jobs, taxes and real estate

Yoon Seok-youl, the main opposition People Power Party’s standard-bearer for the next presidential election, has no known experience in economic matters. The novice politician was until March the country’s prosecutor general. But having been born to an economist father, Yoon has openly affiliated himself with two long-dead economists, Milton Friedman and Ludwig von Mises. Both were champions of free-market policies, minimal government intervention and laissez-faire capitalism. B

Nov. 5, 2021

Samsung Heavy Q3 net losses widen on one-time cost

Samsung Heavy Industries Co. said Friday that its net losses widened in the third quarter from a year earlier due to one-off costs. Its net losses widened to 124 billion won ($105 million) in the July-September period from a loss of 7.3 billion won a year ago, the company said in a regulatory filing. Its operating losses deepened to 110 billion won in the third quarter from an operating loss of 13.4 billion won a year earlier, and sales dropped 11.4 percent on-year to reach 1.49 trillion won o

Nov. 5, 2021

Eyes on Apple after Google changes in-app payment policy in Korea

After Google’s move to allow a free choice of payment options for digital purchases made on its app store in South Korea, attention is turning to Apple, the other global tech giant targeted by a new law here. As of Friday, Apple remained silent on how it plans to comply with the law, which was passed by the National Assembly in August as the world’s first aimed at curbing the dominance of Google and Apple in the app ecosystem. On Thursday, the Korea Communications Commission said

Nov. 5, 2021

Gaming giant Netmarble’s development unit pulls IPO plan

Netmarble Neo, the development unit of South Korea’s top gaming company Netmarble, has scrapped its plan to go public, on the back of its lackluster performance and underperforming gaming stocks listed on the local market, according to investment banking sources on Friday. The company withdrew its preliminary application for an initial public offering a day earlier, which was submitted to the Korea Exchange in June. Blaming “stagnant market situation” for the thwarted plan,

Nov. 5, 2021

Seoul stocks retreat on institutional sell-offs

South Korean stocks retreated on Friday, led by institutional sell-offs. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) lost 13.95 points, or 0.47 percent, to close at 2,969.27 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 676 million shares worth some 12.4 trillion won ($10.5 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 608 to 269. Institutions sold a net 446 billion won, while retail investors purchased 388 billion won. Foreigners bought a ne

Nov. 5, 2021

SK Bioscience reports positive results from phase 1, 2 clinical trials

SK Bioscience announced Friday positive results from phase 1 and 2 clinical studies of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate GBP510, increasing the prospect of Korea’s first homegrown coronavirus vaccine debuting next year. The Korean firm said people who received the vaccine candidate had neutralizing antibodies at levels 3-6 times higher than those of people who recovered from COVID-19. No severe side effects were reported during the clinical studies, it added. The phase 1 and 2 clinical

Nov. 5, 2021

Korea Shipbuilding grabs W748b order for 3 LNG carriers

Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co. (KSOE) said Friday it has obtained a 748 billion-won ($632 million) deal to build three LNG carriers. The vessels will be delivered to an Oceania customer from the second half of 2024, the company said in an emailed statement. With the latest deal, KSOE has bagged orders worth $20.9 billion so far this year, far exceeding this year's order target of $14.9 billion. KSOE, the subholding company of Hyundai Heavy Industries Holdings Co., operates

Nov. 5, 2021

BGF shares hit price ceiling on takeover of engineering plastic maker Kopla

Convenience store chain operator BGF has confirmed Friday its plan to acquire a stake in engineering plastic resin maker Kopla for at least 180.8 billion won ($152.6 million), in a strategic move to enter into a new business, sending its shares jumping nearly 30 percent at some point. According to filings with the Financial Supervisory Service, BGF is poised to acquire 11 million common shares of Kopla from Kopla President Han Sang-yong and his affiliated parties and through a new rights offer

Nov. 5, 2021

KCC chairman test positive for COVID

Korea Communications Commission Chairman Han Sang-hyuk tested positive for COVID-19 Friday, after one employee from the commission was found to be infected with the virus.  Han was fully vaccinated, local reports said. As Han attended a National Assembly session Tuesday, attendees have been told to get tested by the health authorities, among them Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum. Following chairman Han’s test results, the government requested the National Assembly Budget Settlement Co

Nov. 5, 2021

LG Uplus Q3 net profit down 47.7% to W211b

LG Uplus Corp., South Korea's third-largest mobile carrier, said Friday its third-quarter net profit fell 47.7 percent from a year earlier due mainly to the sale of its business unit. Net profit for the three months that ended in September fell to 211 billion won ($177.1 million) from a profit of 403.4 billion won in the year-ago period, the company said in a regulatory filing. Operating profit increased 10.2 percent to 276.7 billion won, the highest quarterly figure since 2010, while sales in

Nov. 5, 2021

Global DRAM sales forecast to remain largely flat next year: report

The global DRAM market for 2022 is expected to log similar yearly sales on solid demand despite falling prices, a recent report has said. Market researcher TrendForce said in its latest report released Thursday DRAM sales are expected to grow 0.3 percent to reach $91.54 billion next year. DRAM bit supply and demand are expected to increase by 18.6 percent and 17.1 percent year-on-year, respectively. The average selling price of DRAM is predicted to fall by 15 percent, with the drop being more

Nov. 5, 2021

Jeju Air to resume flights to Guam amid vaccine campaign

Jeju Air Co., South Korea's biggest budget carrier, said Friday it will resume flights to Guam later this month amid the country's accelerating vaccination campaign. Jeju Air plans to operate 38 flights on the Incheon-Guam route from Nov. 25 to Jan. 31 before it begins regular flights, depending on the country's vaccination and infection rates, the company said in a statement. The low-cost airline suspended most international routes in March last year following the outbreak of COVID-19 here in

Nov. 5, 2021