Samsung releases new automotive image sensor

Samsung Electronics Co. on Tuesday released a new automotive image sensor as the tech giant eyes to expand its presence beyond the mobile sector. The ISOCELL Auto 4AC will be used for rear-view cameras and surround-view monitors of a vehicle and offer high-definition resolution images. Samsung's latest image sensor comes in an optical format of 1/3.7-inch with 1.2 million 3.0-micrometer pixels. Samsung said it applied CornerPixel technology for the first time, which will help reduce blind ar

July 13, 2021

S. Korea expands shipping service for farms goods

South Korea said Tuesday it has agreed with HMM Co., the country's largest shipper, to provide shipping services to North America for agricultural exporters amid rising demand for cargo services that stemmed from the global economic recovery. Under the agreement, HMM will offer 265 TEUs of cargo space for agricultural and fishery products every month, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. TEU, or twenty-foot equivalent unit, refers to the unit of the capacity of a c

July 13, 2021

Lotte Chemical to invest W4.4tr in hydrogen business by 2030

Lotte Chemical Co., a major South Korean petrochemical company, said Tuesday it will invest 4.4 trillion won ($3.8 billion) in the hydrogen business by 2030 to cut its carbon emissions and foster the new growth driver. The petrochemical unit of Lotte Group said it aims to generate 3 trillion won in annual sales and achieve 10 percent of its operating profits from the hydrogen business over the next decade. Lotte Chemical said it will pump out about 600,000 tons of clean hydrogen using its eco

July 13, 2021

KT to unveil mmWave 5G services at baseball stadium

KT Corp., a South Korean telecom giant, said Tuesday it will make millimeter wave (mmWave) 5G services available at a baseball stadium in a move to step up efforts to commercialize the technology. Although local mobile carriers offer 5G networks on the mid-band spectrum, they have yet to commercialize services on the high-band spectrum, also known as mmWave, which unlocks the fastest speeds on 5G. KT said it will showcase a range of 5G services that use the technology at KT Wiz Park in Suwon,

July 13, 2021

LG Electronics unveils indoor-outdoor delivery robot

LG Electronics Inc. on Tuesday unveiled a new delivery robot that can serve both indoor and outdoor environments as the South Korean tech giant tries to expand its competitiveness in the robotics sector. LG introduced its indoor-outdoor delivery robot at the 18th International Conference on Ubiquitous Robots in Gangneung, some 240 kilometers east of Seoul. The four-wheel robot boasts enhanced mobility as it can self-adapt to terrain changes. The company plans to test run the latest robot at

July 13, 2021

Seoul stocks open higher on US rallies

South Korean stocks opened higher Tuesday, tracking overnight rallies on Wall Street that stemmed from optimism for strong corporate earnings in the second quarter. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 20.14 points, or 0.62 percent, to trade at 3,266.61 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. The KOSPI got off to a bullish start despite concerns about the toughened social distancing measures in the greater Seoul area. Strong earnings reports by US financial giant

July 13, 2021

LG Electronics' TV factory in South Africa burns down after riots

LG Electronics Inc. said Tuesday its TV factory in South Africa has burned down as rioters turned violent there. LG said its TV manufacturing and distribution facilities in Durban, eastern South Africa, were plundered Monday (local time) by protestors who are against the imprisonment of former President Jacob Zuma. "We've notified the South Korean Embassy and requested local authorities to mobilize their forces to extinguish the fire," a LG official said. "But we were told it is

July 13, 2021

S. Korea vigilant over market volatility from virus resurge: official

South Korea will closely monitor the financial market as a flare-up in COVID-19 cases and the spread of more contagious virus variants could increase market volatility, a senior government official said Tuesday. First Vice Finance Minister Lee Eog-weon said the government will beef up the monitoring of financial risks as the global economic recovery could be slowed due to the spread of the more transmissible delta variant, first identified in India. "As (economic) uncertainty, such as COV

July 13, 2021

Insurers see jump in mortgage loans

Major South Korean insurers saw their mortgage loans grow at a fast clip over the past year on rising demand, industry data showed Tuesday. Mortgage lending by top life insurer Samsung Life Insurance surged 17.2 percent on-year to 21.3 trillion won ($18.6 billion) at the end of March this year. In the first quarter of the year alone, its home-backed loans surged by more than 1 trillion won. No. 2 industry player Hanwha Life Insurance saw its mortgage loans jump 17.3 percent on-year to 4.9 tril

July 13, 2021

Korea signs 20-year LNG procurement deal with Qatar

South Korea’s state-run Korea Gas Corp. has signed an agreement with Qatar to purchase an additional 2 million metric tons of liquefied natural gas for 20 years starting from 2025, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said Monday. Qatar supplies 9 million tons of LNG to Korea annually through multiple long-term deals with Kogas, the country’s sole LNG wholesaler. In 2024, contracts worth 4.9 million tons will end. The new deal starting from 2025 will make up for some of tho

July 12, 2021

[News Focus] Korea to curb malicious reviews on food delivery apps

South Korea plans to introduce a set of policy measures aimed at protecting restaurant owners against malicious food app reviewers, amid a rapid increase of online food orders due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the country’s top telecom regulator said. The Korea Communications Commission said Sunday it would push for new guidelines to prevent malicious reviews on food delivery apps and step up monitoring of major platform operators involved. “Now that people carry out many activities

July 12, 2021

Kospi faces short-term volatility in face of 4th wave

Now that the government has placed the Greater Seoul area under Level 4 social distancing rules, the toughest level there is, South Korean stocks are likely to face increased volatility, according to market watchers Monday. Despite investor sentiment worsening, they say the impact on the market will be limited amid hopes for strong second-quarter corporate earnings and promising economic indicators. Major brokerage houses foresee the Kospi falling within the range of 3,220 and 3,350 points this

July 12, 2021

Auto chip shortage expected through 2022, reliance on TSMC to surge: report

A global shortage of automotive chips is expected to last through next year, while efforts to localize production are not advancing fast enough, a local auto industry think tank said Monday. The Seoul-based Korea Automotive Technology Institute, in a report, predicted the situation will slowly get better for automakers, starting in the second half of this year. But, the supply will remain constrained by 2022. A global lack of chips has forced many automakers to suspend car production, includ

July 12, 2021

LG Group in Vietnam left out from COVID-19 vaccine support despite donation

LG Group affiliates operating in Vietnam have yet to receive any COVID-19 vaccines despite donating billions of won to help the Southeast Asian country secure the jabs, Korean media outlets reported Monday. Citing sources in Vietnam, the reports said LG Group employees working at the home appliance plants in Haiphong City have not received any vaccines. The parent group has contributed 1.55 billion won ($1.4 million) to Vietnam’s national vaccine fund. This is in stark contrast to oth

July 12, 2021

Executives at top Korean conglomerates getting younger

One in 4 executives at South Korea’s top conglomerates is 50 or younger, according to a report released Monday. According to local market analysis company Leaders Index, the number of executives under 51 increased to 3,360 at 334 companies that reported financial results in the first quarter of the year. They made up 24.7 percent of the total, an increase of 1 percentage point on-year. The 334 firms are among the country’s top 500 companies. The proportion of executives under 5

July 12, 2021

KakaoBank’s success threatens traditional banks: Moody’s

KakaoBank’s rapid growth underscores the threat Big Tech poses to incumbent banks in Korea, Moody’s Investors Service on Monday said. The global credit rating agency said that local lenders face mounting competition and will have to strengthen their online platforms as KakaoBank expands its loan portfolio and capital base. Moody’s said KakaoBank, the banking arm of mobile giant Kakao, now has the largest number of users and attributed the internet-only bank’s rapid as

July 12, 2021

[ESG Talk] Expediting Korea’s ESG capacity

South Korean corporates and government authorities are dynamically reorienting toward environmental, social and governance factors. Yet, this enthusiasm can quickly turn into a myopic facade if not channeled effectively. To establish truly impactful ESG practices, a deep-thought approach to transforming the individual lifestyles of consumers is necessary. Achieving this change is possible only if companies and governments align business and policy priorities that cater to the fundamental needs o

July 12, 2021

Shinhan invests W77b into delivery, pet grooming services

Shinhan Financial Group will invest in a delivery service provider and an autonomous transportation service startup to upgrade its banking platform and find new revenue streams amid increasing competition in the financial industry for digital transformation, the banking group said Monday. The lender has pledged to make an investment worth 77 billion won ($67.21 million) into three digital platform companies by using a 300 billion-won fund launched by Shinhan affiliates including its credit ca

July 12, 2021

Seoul stocks snap 3-day losing streak on bargain hunting, recovery hopes

South Korean stocks rebounded to snap a three-day losing streak Monday as investors sought to buy oversold stocks after the benchmark index took a breather the previous session amid escalating virus concerns. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) advanced 28.52 points, or 0.89 percent, to close at 3,246.47 points. Trading volume was light at about 1.1 billion shares worth some 11.1 trillion won ($9.7 billion), with gainers outnumberi

July 12, 2021

[Feature] Bus of the future could charge itself while moving

It has been some time since wireless charging became a part of the everyday life of smartphones users, which begs the question: Could the same be possible for electric cars? In the early 2010s, a team of South Korean researchers took up this question seriously and developed what’s called the online electric vehicle system, enabling cars to source power from the very roads they drive on. In August 2013, the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology team led by professor Yoon

July 12, 2021