KFS plants sandalwood in East Timor for better future

The Korea Forest Service on Friday celebrated East Timor’s National Day of Sandalwood and Forestry by planting sandalwood, the Southeast Asian country’s national tree, with local officials. Sandalwood, prized for its distinctive fragrance, is used for perfumes, incense, cosmetics, medicines, and furniture. The tree holds considerable cultural, economic, and historical importance for the Timorese people. Unlike other regions, sandalwood is widely distributed up to 1,300 meters above s

Jan. 15, 2024

Korea takes lead in sustainable forest management

The Korea Forest Service is ramping up its commitment to a green transition by consolidating efforts in the forest industry, now securing nearly 40 partnerships with foreign countries. The nation's forest agency has been actively establishing bilateral agreements for forest cooperation, starting with Indonesia in 1987. A total of 39 countries are now maintaining such cooperative relationships with Korea, and the number is expected to grow. The goals of the partnerships, at first, were to bo

Jan. 15, 2024

Catastrophic losses pile up from HK-tied ELS

The equity-linked securities fiasco is turning into a reality for South Korean banks as a load of the derivative products tied to the slacking Hong Kong's benchmark Hang Seng China Enterprises Index started maturing this month. As of Friday, around 106.7 billion won ($81.14 million) in principal losses have been confirmed from the sales of the Hong Kong index-tied ELS products sold by the five major Korean commercial banks, according to sources from the financial ring on Sunday. The five ba

Jan. 14, 2024

Samsung SDI outpaces Korean rivals in US tax credits

Samsung SDI has outpaced its Korean rivals by supplying batteries to the largest number of electric vehicles under the heightened US EV tax credit regulations that went into effect Jan. 1, according to industry sources on Sunday. Of the 19 EVs eligible for the new incentive rules this year under the Inflation Reduction Act, 15 car models will use Korea-made batteries, while China’s CATL and AESC Group, which made the cut last year, have been removed from the list. Samsung SDI topped the li

Jan. 14, 2024

[Photo News] Renault brand chief in Korea

Renault Brand CEO Fabrice Cambolive looks around the production lines of the French carmaker’s Busan plant last week. Cambolive was visiting Korea to inspect local operations, especially the development work of the “Aurora 1” project, the carmaker’s new hybrid sport utility vehicle. “Renault is preparing for a new phase in the Korean market this year. … (The Aurora 1) will certainly be a vehicle that meets the high expectations of Korean and international con

Jan. 14, 2024

Financial authorities rule out possibility of bitcoin ETFs after US authorization

Financial authorities in South Korea will not review the necessity of exchange-traded funds linked to the spot price of bitcoin after the United States' authorization of such ETFs, a senior official said Sunday. The US Securities and Exchange Commission approved trading of ETFs tied to the spot price of bitcoin last week, in a landmark decision for the cryptocurrency investment. The official at financial authorities said, "The direction has been arranged to see the trend without review

Jan. 14, 2024

Creditors to begin due diligence of Taeyoung for debt restructuring

Creditors of Taeyoung Engineering & Construction Co. were set to begin due diligence of the troubled builder as they voted to move forward with a debt restructuring program for Taeyoung, an industry source said Sunday. An accounting firm will be commissioned this week to carry out due diligence on the financial health of Taeyoung, the source said on the condition of anonymity. Taeyoung, the 16th-largest builder in South Korea in terms of construction capacity, applied for a debt restructurin

Jan. 14, 2024

LG Electronics opens 1st overseas EV charger plant in US

LG Electronics Inc. said Saturday that it has opened its first plant in the US for electric vehicle charging stations, as part of its strategy to advance into the fast-growing EV charging solutions business. The factory based in Fort Worth, Texas, has an annual capacity of over 10,000 units, according to LG Electronics. LG said earlier its 11 kilowatt wall-mounted and stand-type slow chargers, and 175 kW fast-charging models will be available in the US market in the first half of 2024. The compa

Jan. 13, 2024

China's exports rise 2.3% in December amid uneven recovery, while consumer prices edged lower

HONG KONG (AP) — China's exports grew slightly for a second consecutive month in December even as deflationary pressures persisted, according to official data released Friday that underscored the uneven nature of the country’s economic recovery from the pandemic. Demand for Chinese exports has been weak since the Federal Reserve and central banks in Europe and Asia began raising interest rates last year to cool inflation that was at multi-decade highs. Exports rose 2.3 p

Jan. 12, 2024

Tesla puts German factory production on hold as Red Sea attacks disrupt supply chains

BERLIN (AP) — Tesla says it's temporarily halting most production at its German factory because of attacks in the Red Sea, a vital global shipping corridor. The electric vehicle maker said in a statement Thursday night that its factory near Berlin, which makes Model Y vehicles and batteries, will pause from Jan. 29 to Feb. 11. It’s a fresh sign of how the hostilities in the Mideast are disrupting global manufacturing supply chains, with shipping companies reporting that th

Jan. 12, 2024

[CES 2024] [Herald Interview] SK Telecom to bolster AI ties with big tech firms

LAS VEGAS -- South Korea's largest telecom carrier SK Telecom is seeking to expand cooperation with big tech firms to fulfill its vision of becoming a "global AI company," according to its AI assistant service chief on Wednesday. "SK Telecom’s AI services are anticipated to achieve effective results based on various possibilities and capabilities both here and abroad. To accelerate our global business expansion, we’ve formed a global tech alliance and cooperated w

Jan. 12, 2024

Celltrion's Yuflyma, Remsima win multiple bids in Europe

Celltrion said Friday that the company’s biosimilar products for autoimmune diseases -- Yuflyma and Remsima -- are set for further expansion in key European markets following the multiple bids it has secured there. Celltrion said that Yuflyma, a copycat version to AbbVie’s Humira, won state bids for adalimumab in Friuli-Venezia Giulia and Sicily, Italy, last year. Celltrion will supply Yuflyma for four and a half years in FVG and for two years in Sicily. Including the recent deals, Y

Jan. 12, 2024

With nod from creditors, Taeyoung chief vows utmost self-rescue efforts

Taeyoung Group founder and Honorary Chairman Yoon Se-young urged its employees to make all-out efforts to bring its debt-ridden builder Taeyoung Engineering & Construction back on track, after creditors confirmed Friday their approval for a debt restructuring program. "The debt workout has begun, backed by the strong support of creditors. This is because (the creditors) saw a high possibility of Taeyoung E&C's normalization," Yoon announced in a statement uploaded on the

Jan. 12, 2024

Coupang resumes partnership with LG H&H

South Korean e-commerce giant Coupang said Friday it will resume delivery service of LG Household & Health Care products, reinstating their partnership which has been severed for nearly five years due to a feud between the two companies. LG H&H's household brands including Elastin, Perioe and CNP, as well as its cosmetic line-ups such as O Hui and Sum 37º, will be available on Coupang's delivery service starting mid-January, the e-commerce firm said. A specific date was

Jan. 12, 2024

Water debuts EV-charging station at Burger King

Water, a Korean electric vehicle charging network operated by Brite Energy Partners, said Friday that it has installed fast chargers for EVs at a Burger King in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province, as part of its collaborative efforts with retail brands. Established in 2017, BEP finances, acquires and develops clean energy projects such as those in solar and renewable energy, while running clean energy producers and selling electricity. BEP has drawn about 330 billion won ($251 million) in in

Jan. 12, 2024

[CES 2024] SK attracts over 60,000 visitors to 'theme-park' showroom of AI, net-zero future

SK Group showcased its artificial intelligence and carbon-neutrality visions at its "theme-park" concept exhibition at CES 2024, attracting over 60,000 visitors in the four-day tech show. Wrapping up the exhibition on Friday, SK Group said it received more than double the number of visitors at its pavilion set up at Las Vegas Convention Center compared to last year. SK's seven affiliates, including SK Inc., SK Innovation, SK hynix, SK Telecom, and SK E&S, participated in setti

Jan. 12, 2024

Seoul shares down for 8th day on faster than expected US inflation, weak earnings

South Korean shares extended their losing streak to eight consecutive sessions Friday, marking the longest losing streak in more than 18 months following stronger than expected inflation in the United States. The Korean won fell slightly against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index lost 15.22 points, or 0.60 percent, to close at 2,525.05. It marked the first time since May 2022 that the Kospi had dropped for eight consecutive sessions. Trade volume was moderate at 772.4

Jan. 12, 2024

DGB chairman offers to step down

The chief of DGB Financial Group, the holding firm of leading regional lender Daegu Bank, decided to step down from his post Friday after being acquitted of bribery and embezzlement charges tied to the group’s overseas expansion plan this week. After about five years at the helm of the company, DGB Financial Group Chairman Kim Tae-oh, expressed his intent to not to seek a third term. His current two-year term ends in March. “The group needs new leadership capable of achieving sustain

Jan. 12, 2024

[CES 2024] GS Group leader calls for acceleration of future business

GS Group Chairman Huh Tae-soo has called on the conglomerate’s affiliates to take their respective technologies to the next level and move toward future businesses, during his visit to the CES 2024 held at the Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, from Tuesday to Friday. According to the Korean energy, retail and construction giant, Huh looked around the exhibition booths of not only Korean conglomerates such as Samsung, Hyundai Motor and LG, but also those of global firms such as Goog

Jan. 12, 2024

SK Networks invests W25b in Upstage

SK Networks on Friday announced that it will invest 25 billion won ($19 million) in Upstage, a Korean startup specializing in generative AI solutions, as it seeks to expand its business in the emerging technology. The company, a general trading affiliate of SK Group, said it forged the deal to support Upstage, which is leading in the private large language model market, becoming the lead investor in the startup's Series B funding. “We are looking to back Upstage's market expa

Jan. 12, 2024