[CRYPTO FEVER] Amid mix of concern and hope, retail investors back on crypto rollercoaster

This is a part of a series of reports, analyses and interviews on the cryptocurrency market and its future. This is the first installment. -- Ed. After the crypto market crashed in 2018, Lee Ji-hoon, a 35-year-old office worker, kept his distance. But amid the recent market frenzy surrounding cryptocurrencies, Lee felt the urge to reopen an account he had nearly forgotten about for three years. As soon as the account was reopened at Bithumb’s offline customer center last week, he was i

May 19, 2021

Hyundai struggles to expedite Ioniq 5 production

Pressed by the prolonged semiconductor shortage and the rapidly diminishing state subsidy balance, South Korea’s top automaker Hyundai Motor is pushing to expedite the release of its new all-electric vehicle Ioniq 5 at all costs. The automaker, which had earlier underlined passenger comfort and various safety functions of the new model, is now suggesting that purchasers compromise some of these options in order to speed up their order. “We are considering various scenarios for c

May 19, 2021

Gold prices rise amid inflation concerns

Gold prices in South Korea have continued to gain as investors seek to park their money in safer destinations amid escalating inflation concerns, while high-risk cryptocurrency Bitcoin saw its price drop, data showed Wednesday.  On Tuesday, the price for a gram of gold rose 0.56 percent from the previous session to 68,200 won ($60.50) on the local bourse, maintaining an upward trend for the fourth consecutive day, according to the Korea Exchange. The figure was the highest since it hit a

May 19, 2021

More water bottles go label-free as retailers ramp up green marketing efforts

More retailers are joining the trend to go label-free on their water bottles amid growing environmental awareness and green marketing efforts in the industry. South Korean supermarket chain Homeplus said on Wednesday that it has so far sold some 1.34 million label-free bottles of water, which were released as part of its premium private brand Homeplus Signature late last month. Described as an “ethical consumption” product, the supermarket estimated the label-less water bottles red

May 19, 2021

SK’s Chey departs for US, raises expectations for new investments

SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won on Wednesday departed for the United States, raising expectations about his visit to SK Innovation’s battery plant in Georgia, and a possible pledge for additional investments. Chey boarded a plane bound for a US city, with a handful of group officials. SK Group declined to reveal the destination of Chey’s flight. He is among the several Korean business leaders who are visiting the US in time for the first summit meeting between Presidents Moon

May 19, 2021

S. Korea among unhappiest countries in OECD

South Korea is one of the unhappiest countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, largely because of its long working hours and high poverty rate for senior citizens, state-run think tank the Korea Development Institute said Wednesday.  The country’s happiness level between 2018 and 2020 on average stood at 5.85 points out of 10, placing Korea at No. 35 out of the OECD’s 37 members. Only Greece and Turkey were unhappier with 5.72 points and 4.95 poi

May 19, 2021

Major tour agencies cut 15% of workforce over COVID-19 fallout

South Korea's six major travel agencies cut some 15 percent of their workforce over the past year as travel demand has taken a massive hit from the COVID-19 pandemic, data showed Wednesday. At the end of March, six listed travel firms had a total of 4,268 employees, down 15.4 percent from a year ago, according to the data by the Financial Supervisory Service. Industry leader HanaTour shed 13 percent of its workforce, and Mode Tour cut 10.7 percent, the data showed. In the first quarter of thi

May 19, 2021

[Graphic News] Majority of S. Koreans support taxing gains from cryptocurrencies: poll

　More than half of South Koreans support taxing capital gains from the trading of cryptocurrencies, a poll showed. 　The government plans to impose taxes on gains from investment in virtual assets starting next year. 　A poll by Realmeter showed 53.7 percent of respondents back the plan while 38.3 percent are opposed. The survey, commissioned by the news channel YTN, was conducted on 500 people aged 18 or older across the country April 29. (Yonhap)

May 19, 2021

South Korean firms to forge vaccine alliance in anticipation of patent waiver

A group of South Korean biopharmaceutical companies are in talks to forge a consortium for co-production of COVID-19 vaccines in anticipation of a patent waiver, industry sources said Tuesday. According to the bio industry insiders who declined to be named, the talks involve about 10 local firms including Hanmi Pharmaceutical, Genexine, GC Pharma, GeneOne Life Science, ST Pharm, as well as Seoul National University, Pohang University of Science and Technology and Myongji Medical Foundation. T

May 18, 2021

GC Pharma’s plasma treatment still in demand, even after failing to get approval

Local demand for biotech company GC Pharma‘s experimental plasma treatment against the new coronavirus remains even after the company failed to receive conditional use approval here, according to industry sources Tuesday. According to sources, Kyungpook National University Hospital on Friday received an emergency use authorization for the treatment, just three days after the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety rejected GC Pharma‘s application for conditional use. In South Korea, expe

May 18, 2021

Kogas to establish world’s first hydrogen equipment inspection center

State-run Korea Gas Corp. said Tuesday that it will build the world’s first hydrogen equipment inspection support center in Wanju, North Jeolla Province. The 50 billion-won ($44.2 million) inspection center, set for completion by 2023, will be responsible for safety checks on four types of hydrogen equipment manufactured domestically and imported from overseas -- stationary fuel cell, portable fuel cell, electrolysis equipment and hydrogen extraction equipment. In February, South Kore

May 18, 2021

Bithumb Korea’s net profit soars 876% in Q1

Bithumb Holdings, the operator of cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb, saw a surge in sales and net profit in the first quarter of 2021, its largest shareholder’s financial results showed on Tuesday. According to Vidente’s regulatory filings, Bithumb logged 250.2 billion won ($220 million) in sales in the first quarter this year, jumping 458 percent from the same period last year. Its net profit soared 876 percent to 222.5 billion won in net profit during the same period. The company&

May 18, 2021

EV subsidy funds running out

While demand for eco-friendly electric vehicles prolonged rapid growth, anxiety has also escalated among plausible purchasers as the government’s subsidy balance is showing signs of swift exhaustion. Despite the government’s hurried move to allocate more budget and to alleviate the subsidy payment conditions, some customers are even considering turning to alternative choices currently available, instead of waiting for the new models amid a stalled manufacturing timeline. According

May 18, 2021

HiteJinro renews advertising partnership with LA Dodgers

South Korean distiller HiteJinro said on Tuesday it has extended an advertising partnership with Major League Baseball team LA Dodgers for another three years. First signed in 2012, the ongoing deal will help promote the company’s products and boosts its global brand awareness among local baseball fans during the Major League Baseball season, the company said. With the deal in effect until 2024, the two will have teamed up for more than a decade following the new signing. The move will

May 18, 2021

Samsung Display chief: OLED will lead metaverse era

Samsung Display CEO Choi Joo-sun said Tuesday that OLED displays, which use organic light-emitting diodes, will spearhead a digital transformation to what people in the industry call the metaverse era. At Display Week 2021, an annual symposium and trade show organized by the Society for Information Display that runs Monday through Friday in the US, Choi gave a keynote speech on “the metaverse and the great future of displays.” The global display industry faces a turning point, he

May 18, 2021

S-Oil wins world’s first ISO compliance management system certification

S-Oil said Tuesday that it received the world‘s first compliance management system certification from the International Organization for Standardization. The ISO 37301 is an international standard for compliance management officially adopted by the international rule-setting body last month. The new standard combines ISO standards with international agencies’ guidelines, including those from the International Chamber of Commerce, the OECD’s best practice guidelines for ethi

May 18, 2021

[#WeFace] ESG investing: Not just about financial performance, but also social responsibility

The Korea Herald is publishing a series of interviews with executives of South Korea’s leading corporations on their response to environmental, social and corporate governance, or ESG, issues, which have become central factors globally in measuring the sustainability of an investment or business decision. -- Ed. Despite South Korea’s relatively short history of investing related to environmental, social and governance issues, local financial companies have been jumping on the ESG b

May 18, 2021

SK hynix mulling complete acquisition of former foundry unit of Magnachip

SK hynix is considering a complete takeover of domestic foundry company Key Foundry, of which it holds a 49.8 percent stake in, industry sources said Tuesday. Key Foundry was separated from Magnachip last year, and become an independent 8-inch wafer foundry firm operating in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province. SK hynix currently controls 49.8 percent of the company via a private equity fund set up by Magnus PEF. The rest – a 50 percent stake plus one share-- is held by the fund&rsquo

May 18, 2021

Seoul stocks rebound on tech and chip gains

South Korean stocks closed higher Tuesday, rebounding from a decline the previous session, on bargain hunting for tech and semiconductor shares. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) advanced 38.53 points, or 1.23 percent, to 3,173.05. Trading volume was moderate at 774.38 million shares worth some 13.71 trillion won ($12.07 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 571 to 279. Foreigners sold a net 347.2 billion won, and retail in

May 18, 2021

Posco International partners with Korea Midland Power on overseas renewable energy biz

Posco International has agreed to supply tools and materials for Korea Midland Power’s overseas renewable energy business under a new partnership agreement, the company said Tuesday. The trade arm of Posco, the country’s leading steelmaker, signed a memorandum of understanding with KOMIPO for the supply agreement, with Posco International President and Chief Executive Officer Joo Si-bo and KOMIPO President Kim Ho-bin in attendance. “We wish for the country to gain a footho

May 18, 2021