Korea toughens rules on cryptocurrency amid market frenzy

The government is scurrying to implement new rules on users and operators of digital coins to effectively oversee the industry, which has been growing at a fast pace on the back of increasing appetite for risky assets. Starting from March 25, new penalty standards for cryptocurrency exchanges that infringe anti-money laundering rules will be implemented, according to the Financial Services Commission on Tuesday. Fines will be imposed on virtual asset service providers that fail to report s

March 16, 2021

State-run companies set for regular recruitment for this year

South Korea’s major public corporations in the energy and transportation sectors are to kick off a large-scale open recruitment process for this year, industry officials said Monday. The move is expected to offer rare employment opportunities in an ever-tightening job market, especially as major business groups in the private sector have turned to demand-based recruiting. But one company that shelved its recruitment plan for an indefinite period was the Land & Housing Corp., which i

March 16, 2021

BOK board members see growing worries over inflation: minutes

Members of the Bank of Korea's (BOK) monetary policy board saw growing worries over inflation, but they said it was too early to discuss normalization of monetary policy, minutes from their latest meeting showed Tuesday. In the last rate-setting meeting on Feb. 25, the seven-member board unanimously voted to keep the policy rate at a record low of 0.5 percent to support an economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. According to the minutes, some board members suggested that the BOK needs

March 16, 2021

Korea’s warring battery makers stung by VW’s battery move

While South Korea’s two battery makers continue to war over battery technology patents, a key, common client has decided to migrate to a new type of electric vehicle battery, in an apparent flight to a more stable supply market. Volkswagen, the world’s No. 1 automaker, announced Monday plans to power up to 80 percent of its electric vehicles with prismatic batteries from 2023, signaling a farewell from the pouch-type ones it currently sources from LG Energy Solution and SK I

March 16, 2021

Seoul stocks up on hopes for economic rebound

South Korean stocks finished higher Tuesday on optimism for a quick economic recovery in major economies. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 21.46 points, or 0.7 percent, to close at 3,067.17 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 1.1 billion shares worth some 12.8 trillion won ($11.3 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 558 to 279. Foreigners sold a net 28 billion won while institutions purchased a net 250 billi

March 16, 2021

Korea mulls introduction of multiple voting rights for startups

South Korea is mulling whether to introduce multiple voting rights for shareholders as a way to help local startups attract large-scale investment and maintain stable management, according to public officials and politicians on Tuesday. Vice Minister of SMEs and Startups Kang Sung-cheon said the government was working on ways to legalize differential voting rights, which are popular among countries with many unicorn startups. A unicorn startup refers to a fledgling company valued at over $1

March 16, 2021

Drive-thru, delivery push up sales at McDonald's Korea

Despite difficulties posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, McDonald’s Korea witnessed a 7 percent growth in sales last year, driven by strong drive-thru and delivery orders, the company said Tuesday. In a pre-recorded video, McDonald’s Korea Managing Director Antoni Martinez revealed that overall sales for McDonald’s and its franchises here topped 980 billion won ($866 million) in 2020, up 7 percent from a year earlier. Excluding franchise outlets, the revenue for stores directl

March 16, 2021

Tracing the beginning of SK Innovation’s battery business

This is the second installment of a three-part series looking into SK Innovation’s struggles to rise to the global leadership of lithium ion batteries, which have become a key enabler for a global shift toward sustainable mobility. The articles are sponsored by SK Innovation. - Ed.  SK Innovation’s journey into the battery business dates back to 1982, when SK Group acquired Korea Oil Corp. and changed its name to Yukong. After the acquisition, Yukong chose future businesses

March 16, 2021

Banks under pressure over tougher loan measures triggered by LH scandal

The intensifying scandal involving employees of the state housing developer Korea Land and Housing Corp. is likely to put banks under renewed pressure, as the nation’s financial authorities are mulling strengthening control over non-mortgage lending activities in all banking sectors. The scandal centers on LH officials who allegedly took out huge land-secured loans for speculative property purchases, sparking public criticism over the integrity of the state-run institution that contradi

March 16, 2021

K-water pledges ESG framework to tackle climate change

The state-run Korea Water Resources Corp., also known as K-water, pledged Tuesday to adopt an environmental, social and corporate governance framework to reform the way it operates. In a discussion with private experts, influencers and green activists on how water can reverse climate change, K-water CEO Park Jae-hyeon revealed that the company had joined the Renewable Energy 100, a global initiative to source 100 percent of the electricity that businesses consume from renewable energy source

March 16, 2021

Kosdaq lobby group chief calls for incentives to lure blue-chip firms

The new chief of an association representing listed firms on South Korea’s tech-heavy bourse said Tuesday that the second-tier Kosdaq needs various incentives to attract more blue-chip companies and investors and prevent the exit of unicorn companies to bigger markets. “The Kosdaq market has been regulated stricter than the Kospi market. Regulations such as issuing an ‘investment alert’ to protect investors unintentionally cause the market to be undervalued,” said

March 16, 2021

Daewoo Shipbuilding wins W265b order for 3 LPG carriers

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. said Tuesday that it has signed a 265 billion-won ($234 million) deal to build three liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carriers. Under the deal with a European company, Daewoo Shipbuilding will deliver the 91,000-cubic meter LPG carriers by October 2023, it said. With the latest order, the shipbuilder has obtained orders worth $1.79 billion to build 19 ships, representing 23 percent of its 2021 order target of $7.7 billion. (Yonhap)

March 16, 2021

Global LCD capacity to fall in 2023 on Korean makers' shutdown: report

The global capacity of liquid crystal displays (LCD) is likely to fall in 2023, a report showed Tuesday, as major South Korean display panel makers will exit from the business dominated by Chinese players. Samsung Display Co. and LG Display Co. -- South Korea's top 2 players -- have announced they will scale down their LCD businesses, with the former pushing its migration to quantum-dot displays, while the latter expands its organic light-emitting diode production. Such moves are expected to d

March 16, 2021

Card spending growth slows sharply in 2020 due to pandemic

The pace of growth of payments made with cards in South Korea slowed sharply last year as consumer spending remained tepid amid the coronavirus pandemic, central bank data showed Tuesday. Spending made with credit, debit and prepaid cards reached a daily average of 2.52 trillion won ($2.22 billion) in 2020, up 0.6 percent from a year earlier, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). The growth rate slowed from a 5.7 percent on-year gain in 2019, the BOK said. The central bank said card spending

March 16, 2021

Residents' foreign currency deposits rise in February

Foreign currency deposits at banks in South Korea rose in February, mainly due to a gain in corporate holdings of US dollar deposits, central bank data showed Tuesday. Outstanding foreign currency-denominated deposits held by residents amounted to $90.03 billion as of end-February, up $650 million from the previous month, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). Residents include local citizens, foreigners staying here for more than six months and foreign companies. The data exclude

March 16, 2021

20 ready-mixed concrete producers fined W2.5b over price fixing

South Korea's antitrust regulator said Tuesday it has decided to fine 20 ready-mixed concrete manufacturers a combined 2.51 billion won ($2.2 million) for colluding to fix prices of construction-related material. Sanha Industry Corp. and 19 other companies colluded to fix their sales prices and supply of ready-mixed concrete between 2012 and 2017 that was used to build houses in the greater Seoul area, according to the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC). The commission ordered them to take cor

March 16, 2021

S. Korea creates 12-inch chip wafer test bed

South Korea's ICT ministry said Tuesday a 12-inch semiconductor wafer test bed was established here in line with the country's efforts to boost development of homegrown chip technology. Previously, the absence of the test bed had led many local small and medium-sized chip component companies to rely on overseas testing facilities, according to the Ministry of Science and ICT. The country's major chipmakers, such as Samsung Electronics Co. and SK hynix Inc., require evaluations of chip componen

March 16, 2021

Number of stock investors soars 49% in 2020 amid market rally

The number of stock investors jumped nearly 49 percent in 2020 from a year earlier amid a bullish market run, industry data showed Tuesday. A total of 9.19 million investors held shares in 2,352 companies listed on the country's main and secondary bourses, up 48.5 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Securities Depository. Those investors owned a combined 99.1 billion shares, with per-capita holdings standing at 10,779 shares. Retail investors in those firms closi

March 16, 2021

S. Korean air exports soar amid pandemic

South Korea's airfreight exports jumped to account for 36 percent of the country's overall exports last year, industry data showed Tuesday, on higher demand for chips and biohealth products. Of the country's combined exports of $512.5 billion in 2020, air transport accounted for $183 billion, according to the data compiled by the Korea International Trade Association (KITA). While maritime transport still accounted for the majority of $325.8 billion, the portion of air cargo rose 5.4 percentag

March 16, 2021

S. Korea to help exporters further utilize FTAs with new support centers

South Korea on Tuesday said it will open new facilities overseas to help exporters better capitalize on free trade agreements (FTA) amid the coronavirus pandemic. Under the plan, the country plans to spend 11.9 billion won ($10.4 million) this year to open new FTA support centers in Southeast Asia and provide customized consulting programs, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The country currently operates 18 FTA support centers for exporters nationwide, along with 15 othe

March 16, 2021