Countdown on for S. Korea's self-developed satellite launcher Nuri

South Korea will test its first domestically-developed satellite launch vehicle this week, which, if successful, will mark a major step forward in the country’s space program. The three-stage liquid fuel rocket, also known as Korean Space Launch Vehicle II or the Nuri, will lift off at 4 p.m. on Thursday from the Naro Space Center in Goheung, South Jeolla Province, carrying a 1.5-ton dummy payload. If all things go well, the payload will enter into low orbit 600 to 800 kilometers above

Oct. 17, 2021

S. Korea’s car production drops in Q3 on global chip shortage

South Korea’s car production in the third quarter this year dropped, marking the lowest level since the 2008 global financial crisis, according to a local industry report, Sunday. According to Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association’s report, the combined number of automobiles domestically manufactured during the July-September period reached 761,975, down 20.9 percent on-year. The figure was the lowest since 2008, when local carmakers’ production reached 760,121 during

Oct. 17, 2021

Boxed-in Kospi leads to surge in forced liquidations

As South Korea’s benchmark Kospi plunged below 3,000 points last week for the first time in nearly seven months, the daily volume of forced selling of stocks by local brokerages reached a 14-year high. The daily average amount of forced liquidations marked 26.5 billion won ($22.4 million) from Oct. 1 to Thursday, according to data compiled by the Korea Financial Investment Association. It marked the highest level since April 2007, when the daily average volume came to 29 billion won. The

Oct. 17, 2021

[Law Talk] Trademark issues in the world of the metaverse

The word “metaverse,” a portmanteau of the prefix “meta” (meaning beyond) and “universe,” is typically used to refer to a communal and interactive cyberspace where content, commerce and networking exist with increasing permeability with the real world. With new technical capability and accelerated cultural shift to online due to the COVID-19 crisis, the metaverse is creating innovation that transcends time and space in all areas of industry and society. In par

Oct. 17, 2021

More firms ease virus rules as vaccination speeds up

South Korean companies are ending strict pandemic-era rules and restrictions, resuming overseas trips and in-person meetings, as offices prepare to gradually shift to the “living with COVID-19” phase set to start next month. The move is also in line with rising vaccination rates across the country.  According to data from the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, 78.7 percent of the population had completed at least a first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, while 64.6 perce

Oct. 17, 2021

Tightened credit lending continues despite eased rules on housing loans

South Korea‘s major banks are set to loosen control on extension of “jeonse” loans for homes, but their tightened grip over personal credit loans will continue under pressure from financial authorities, industry sources said Sunday. Jeonse is a housing lease system unique to Korea whereby tenants pay a lump-sum deposit instead of monthly rent on a two-year contract. NH NongHyup Bank, which in August decided to temporarily stop offering jeonse loans until Nov. 30, will resume

Oct. 17, 2021

Homegrown private equity firm STIC Investments to go public in December

South Korean private equity firm STIC Investments is poised to carry out a backdoor listing to start trading on the domestic stock market in December, a filing showed Sunday.  Following the move, STIC Investments will become the first Seoul-based private equity investment manager to be listed in three years. Seoul is home to high-profile buyout powerhouses including MBK Partners, Hahn & Co. and IMM Private Equity -- none of which are listed on the stock market. According to the f

Oct. 17, 2021

[Newsmaker] Starbucks Korea to hire 1,600 new staff this year

Stung by its employees‘ first collective action, Starbucks Korea said Sunday that it will hire 1,600 more baristas and store staff by the end of this year and improve working conditions. The hiring plan is part of the firm’s package of measures announced in response to recent complaints from in-store staff that they were overworked and underpaid. “We plan to hire in order to secure more staff and enhance work efficiency at stores nationwide. The company is also reviewing p

Oct. 17, 2021

Porsche Korea builds playground in Seoul

Porsche Korea just built an indoor playground in Seoul as part of its Porsche Dream Playground program. The carmaker said Thursday that it has completed construction of the playground on the premises of Seokgwan Elementary School in Seongbuk-gu, northern Seoul. Holger Gerrmann, CEO of Porsche Korea, and officials from the school and ChildFund Korea attended a ceremony on Wednesday to mark the project’s completion. Through its community outreach program, Porsche Dream Playground, the c

Oct. 15, 2021

Samsung Electronics shares reenter 70,000 won range

South Korea’s market bellwether Samsung Electronics increased 1 percent to 70,100 won ($59.28) on Friday, after remaining below the sensitive threshold for four consecutive days. The benchmark Kospi climbed 0.88 percent to 3,015.16 points in the same day. Samsung Electronics, Korea’s largest company by market cap, has the biggest group of retail investors -- some 4.54 million -- as of the end of June. Samsung’s stock prices soared to as high as 91,000 won on Jan. 11 but li

Oct. 15, 2021

KDB’s W10tr investment in fossil fuels contradicts green pledge: lawmaker

The state-run Korea Development Bank extended or guaranteed loans worth a combined 10.3 trillion won ($8.7 billion) for fossil fuel projects in the last decade, data showed Friday, reflecting growing concerns about greenwashing in the nation’s financial sector. From 2011 to 2020, the KDB extended loans worth a total of 6.9 trillion won and guaranteed a further 3.3 trillion won worth of loans for natural gas or oil projects, data submitted by the state-run bank to ruling Democratic Party

Oct. 15, 2021

LG Electronics launches tiiun, a smart plant growing device for home gardeners

LG Electronics has added a plant germinator to its smart home appliance portfolio, targeting people with black thumbs wishing to grow plants and flowers indoors.   "While many South Koreans attempt to grow plants at home these days, more than 60 percent have expressed difficulty in keeping them alive. LG tiiun was launched to resolve this pain point prevalent among consumers,” said Sprout Company CEO Shin Sang-yoon at the media event held Thursday.  Sprout Company is part

Oct. 15, 2021

[Newsmaker] Plane ticket sales to Europe spike

Sales of air tickets to Madrid increased 625 percent on-month in September amid growing hopes for a resumption of overseas tourism, as vaccination speeds up in South Korea. According to Interpark Tour, a leading travel agency here, demand for flights to European destinations sharply increased last month, compared with a month earlier. Sales of plane tickets to Zurich soared 275 percent, while those for Amsterdam grew 250 percent. Paris saw a jump of 76.3 percent, followed by Istanbul at 68 p

Oct. 15, 2021

Fiscal chief voices concerns over US request to share chip info

South Korea’s Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki voiced concerns about the US’ request that Korean chipmakers share information about their supply chains, during his meeting with US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen in Washington on Thursday, Eastern time. Hong said, “We do admire the US government’s attempt to resolve global competition to secure a foothold for supply chains,” but at the same time relayed Korean chipmakers’ concerns about sharing private information

Oct. 15, 2021

Hanwha Energy launches ESG committee to beef up sustainable management

Hanwha Energy Corp., a South Korean renewable energy company, said Friday it has launched a committee to beef up sustainable management in light of the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) principles. The ESG committee, established within its board, will serve as the company's key division tasked with devising and reviewing mid- to long-term objectives and strategies in line with the ESG factors, which refer to business behaviors and practices that determine a company's future sustainabi

Oct. 15, 2021

Daewoo Shipbuilding wins W640.8b order for 4 container carriers

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. (DSME) said Friday that it has signed a 640.8 billion won ($542 million) deal to build four container carriers. Under the deal with a European country, DSME will deliver the vessels by November 2024, it said in a regulatory filing. In the first nine months, DSME posted $8.04 billion in new orders, surpassing its annual order target of $7.7 billion won. It is the first time for the company to achieve its annual order target since 2014, when the

Oct. 15, 2021

Nonghyup chairman urges embrace of metaverse

Nonghyup Financial Group Chairman Son Byung-hwan on Friday highlighted the group’s efforts to incorporate the metaverse into its businesses. “Many experts predict that the era of the metaverse is what will come next after this smartphone era,” Son said, urging the company’s executives to “study the possibility of commercialization with interest in the metaverse.” In accordance with Son’s vision, the group said it plans to set up a metaverse task force

Oct. 15, 2021

Battle for smartwatch market likely to intensify with release of new Apple product

Apple Inc. on Friday released its new smartwatch -- Apple Watch Series 7 -- in South Korea in the latest move to further boost its presence in the growing smartwatch market. The release came as the pandemic-driven stay-at-home trend and rising health concerns have fueled the popularity of smartwatches fitted with health care and fitness features. The latest Apple smartwatch comes with a 20 percent bigger screen and a 40 percent thinner body than the Apple Watch Series 6. Its battery runs for

Oct. 15, 2021

Central bank chief refutes rumors of government intervention in rate hike

South Korea’s monetary policy chief on Friday denied that the central bank’s latest rate hike was aimed at boosting the government’s real estate measures, which have failed to cool down the nation’s heated property market. In a parliamentary audit held Friday, Lee refuted rumors that the Bank of Korea’s first pandemic-era rate hike carried out in August, was a move pressured by the government. The latest rate hike by 25 basis points to 0.75 percent ended more th

Oct. 15, 2021

Samsung Electronics shares reenter 70,000 won range

South Korea’s market bellwether Samsung Electronics increased 1.3 percent to 70,300 won ($59.46) during Friday morning trade, ending a price slide that lasted four consecutive days. The benchmark Kospi climbed 0.89 percent to 3,015.14 points. Samsung Electronics, the largest company in the nation by market cap, has the biggest group of retail investors, who amassed 2.78 trillion won worth of its shares in the 10 trading days ending Wednesday. Friday’s increase followed an indust

Oct. 15, 2021