Seoul shares end lower on Samsung woes; won slips for 7th day

Seoul shares closed lower Tuesday as Samsung and other market heavyweights came under heavy selling following overnight losses on Wall Street. The Korean won continued to slip against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 34.22 points, or 1.3 percent, to close at 2,570.70. Institutions and foreigners sold a combined 602 billion won ($436 million) worth of stocks, exceeding individuals' stock purchases valued at 582 billion won. Trade volume was moderate at 337.

Oct. 22, 2024

Hyundai Card chief's AI bet pays off for global expansion

Ten years and over a trillion won in investment — an extraordinary commitment to technology that few local finance companies can match. Hyundai Card Vice Chairman and CEO Chung Tae-young has shown that this massive bet was not a gamble but a visionary investment positioning the company for the next era as the world accelerates into the age of artificial intelligence. Last week, Hyundai Card signed a landmark deal with Japan’s Sumitomo Mitsui Card Co. to export its proprietary AI soft

Oct. 22, 2024

Hana Financial to lure seniors with Hana The Next

Hana Financial Group said Tuesday that it is ramping up efforts to offer more tailor-made services for senior customers under the new brand name Hana The Next. The new launch, a collaboration of its key affiliates including Hana Bank, Hana Securities and Hana Insurance, will cover both financial and non-financial areas from retirement planning to consultations on inheritance and gift taxes to health care. The first customer is TV celebrity Kang Ho-dong, who has also been named as the brand ambas

Oct. 22, 2024

KEF chief meets with EU ambassadors to beef up economic ties

Member companies of the Korea Enterprises Federation met with ambassadors of the European Union on Tuesday to elevate economic cooperation and discuss strategies for embracing the shift in the labor market induced by industrial restructuring. Top officials from 23 EU member nations’ embassies in Korea, including Maria Castillo Fernandez, the ambassador of the EU, attended the business roundtable event hosted by the KEF held at a hotel in Seoul on Tuesday. Sohn Kyung-shik, chairman of the

Oct. 22, 2024

APR expands K-beauty influence in Hong Kong

South Korean beauty company APR announced Tuesday that it has strengthened its presence in Hong Kong’s competitive market through strong sales from both a pop-up store and a major e-commerce platform. Earlier this month, APR’s flagship skincare brand, Medicube, launched on HKTVmall, Hong Kong’s largest online shopping platform, generating 180 million won in sales within just three days. The brand’s success continued with live broadcasts featuring popular products like the

Oct. 22, 2024

Hyundai Motor chief vows full-support for India’s mobility innovation

Expanding its footing in India, the world’s third-largest automotive market, Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Chung Euisun met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday to explore ways to enhance cooperation and advance the country’s mobility industry. After expressing gratitude for the Indian government’s continuous support to Hyundai Motor, Chung said during the meeting held at the PM’s office in Delhi, India, “Hyundai Motor Group has operated a successful bu

Oct. 22, 2024

Hyundai E&C to expand presence in South Australia

Hyundai Engineering & Construction said Tuesday that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with the government of South Australia at the company's headquarters in Jongno-gu, central Seoul. Hyundai E&C and the South Australian government will jointly carry out projects related to renewable energy, infrastructure and housing development. The agreement comes as South Australian government officials and company leaders visited Korea to promote cooperation on infrastructure for net

Oct. 22, 2024

Kumho Tire launches digital twin system in R&D push

South Korean tiremaker Kumho Tire announced Tuesday that it has officially launched its tire digital twin system, marking a major step in the company’s efforts to digitalize its tire development process. Shifting from traditional physical testing to virtual tire development, Kumho Tire said the new system enables the automatic design of multiple tire versions using digital data and big data-based performance predictions. With the help of artificial intelligence, the system then selects the

Oct. 22, 2024

Kakao’s AI service Kanana aims for ‘next KakaoTalk’

South Korean IT giant Kakao on Tuesday unveiled its new conversational artificial intelligence service Kanana at the annual developers conference dubbed "if kakaoAI 2024." “Kakao’s key competitive advantage lies in connecting relationships and in the era of generative AI. We aim to offer hyper-personalized AI services that consider individuals’ context and emotions in various relationships and conversations,” CEO Chung Shin-a said in her keynote speech at the ev

Oct. 22, 2024

Seoul shares open lower after Wall Street dip

Seoul shares opened lower Tuesday as US stocks took a breather after reporting their longest weekly rally this year. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 16.66 points, or 0.6 percent, to 2,588.26 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.8 percent to 42,931.60, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 0.3 percent to 18,540.01. In Seoul, large-cap stocks were mixed. Market bellwether Samsung Electronics Co. fell 1 percent, top carmake

Oct. 22, 2024

8 out of 10 companies support raising retirement age: survey

Eight out of 10 businesses support a proposal to raise the mandatory retirement age for employees, currently set at 60, according to a survey released Monday. The survey, conducted by online recruiter Saramin among 461 companies, also found that the preferred new retirement age averages 65.7 years, with more than half of respondents, 57.9 percent, choosing 65 as the ideal age. Support for allowing older workers to stay in the workforce longer is gaining momentum in South Korea, as the country is

Oct. 22, 2024

Doosan attempts business restructuring plan again

Doosan Group announced Monday a revised business realignment plan to go ahead with its earlier bid to incorporate Doosan Bobcat into Doosan Robotics as a subsidiary as the conglomerate looks to create better synergy between its affiliates to expand businesses. The two boards of Doosan Enerbility, the parent company of Doosan Bobcat with a 46 percent stake in Doosan Bobcat, and Doosan Robotics approved the plan to spin off a new company that will own Doosan Bobcat’s shares from Doosan Enerb

Oct. 21, 2024

WGBI inclusion boon for FX market reform: ministry

The recent inclusion on the World Government Bond Index, a global benchmark for bond investments, proves South Korea is headed in the right direction in its efforts to improve its foreign exchange market, an official from the Finance Ministry said Monday. On Oct. 9, the Financial Times Stock Exchange Russell announced that Korea has been added to the WGBI. The inclusion came more than two years after Korea was put on the watchlist in September 2022. In the announcement, FTSE Russell stated that

Oct. 21, 2024

Seoul shares snap 3-day fall on bargains; won at over 2-month low

Seoul shares closed higher Monday to snap their three-day slide as investors scooped oversold stocks after US gains. The Korean won fell to the lowest in over two months against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 11.1 points, or 0.43 percent, to close at 2,604.92. Trade volume was moderate at 235.86 million shares worth 7.6 trillion won ($5.5 billion), with gainers outpacing losers 434 to 427. Institutions and foreigners bought a combined 284 billion won, exceedi

Oct. 21, 2024

SK hynix CEO visits Europe to explore chip partnerships

SK hynix CEO Kwak Noh-jung recently traveled to Europe to explore future chip technologies, meeting with key officials of the Interuniversity Micro Electronics Center, according to industry sources Monday. During his visit to the IMEC, headquartered in Leuven, Belgium, Kwak met with his counterpart Luc Van den Hove and Max Mirgoli, executive vice president in charge of worldwide strategic partnerships, at IMEC, among others. “It is fantastic when partnerships are based on friendship and tr

Oct. 21, 2024

LG chief to hold monthlong meetings with key affiliates

LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo will reportedly receive business reports from major affiliates sequentially over the next month, starting with the electronic affiliates on Monday to establish next year’s business plans, according to industry sources, Monday. LG holds strategic meetings in the first half of each year to discuss future strategies. Business meetings in the second half focus on business performance and plans for the following year, with an emphasis on enhancing customer value a

Oct. 21, 2024

[From the Scene] Hyundai Motor offers sneak peek at software-driven manufacturing

UIWANG, Gyeonggi Province – Hyundai Motor Group on Monday unveiled its 200 key automotive solutions powered by artificial intelligence, big data and robotics, aimed at transforming the carmaker’s auto manufacturing plants from hardware-centered facilities to software-driven smart factories. “Like software-defined vehicles, which add functions and services through software updates, (auto) manufacturing bases can turn into agile and intelligent smart factories with data-based ope

Oct. 21, 2024

KG Mobility, China’s Chery to develop plug-in hybrids

KG Mobility, a South Korean sport utility vehicle maker, has teamed up with China’s Chery Automobile to co-develop a range of vehicles including plug-in hybrid cars to expand its global presence. According to a KG Mobility regulatory filing on Monday, the auto brand signed a platform technical license agreement with Chery Automobile on Friday to collaborate in areas as such the design and development of vehicles as well as car manufacturing and distribution. The deal includes sharing the i

Oct. 21, 2024

Tariffs top US election agenda for Korean firms

Whether Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris or Republican candidate Donald Trump takes the White House, US tariff policy for the next four years is the top concern for Korean firms, according to Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry poll results on Monday. In a survey conducted on 300 Korean manufacturing companies from Oct. 2-11, over a quarter of Korean companies, or 25.6 percent, said Trump's plan of “expanding universal and reciprocal tariffs” grabbed their at

Oct. 21, 2024

[Herald Interview] Hanjin scion readies for big leap

Emily Cho, president and chief marketing officer of Hanjin Logistics Corporation, visited 11 countries in the first half of this year alone as she continued adding impetus to extending the global shipping network of the company her grandfather founded 79 years ago. "I try to be present in meetings with our global clients, hoping to help foster long-term, solid partnerships with them," Cho told The Korea Herald in a recent interview at her office in central Seoul, a day before her busin

Oct. 21, 2024