[Photo News] Greetings

LS Group Chairman Koo Ja-yeol (right), who doubles as chairperson of the Korea International Trade Association, and Poongsang Group Chairman Ryu Jin, the new chairperson of the Federation of Korean Industries, shake hands after their first official meeting as the heads of the nation’s top business groups at the Trade Tower in Seoul, Wednesday. During the meeting, the two leaders exchanged opinions on the role of their organizations in creating social value, national agenda items and ways t

Aug. 23, 2023

EcoPro to set up joint venture with SK On, Ford in Canada

South Korean battery materials company EcoPro said Wednesday it is poised to set up a joint venture for a battery cathode materials manufacturing plant with SK On and Ford Motor Company in Quebec, Canada. Of the 1.2 trillion won ($897.3 million) investment, the joint venture, called EcoPro Cam Canada LP, plans to provide 600 billion won, while the Canadian government and Quebec will cover the other half in subsidies. EcoPro said the company will hold the largest stake in the joint venture compar

Aug. 23, 2023

[KH Explains] Kia eyes expansion into European defense market

Poland has decided to acquire military vehicles made by Kia, opening up more possibilities for the South Korean automaker’s defense products in Europe. The Polish Ministry of National Defense announced last week that it had approved the Polish Armaments Group’s 270 million euro ($293 million) contract to acquire 400 units of Kia’s Raycolt reconnaissance vehicles, called Kia Light Tactical Vehicles. PGZ is an arms procurement holdings company established by the Polish government

Aug. 23, 2023

LG's portable TV to debut in US, Europe

LG Electronics said Wednesday that its latest portable TV, called LG StandbyMe Go, will be officially launched in North America and across Europe later this month. The TV, housed in a suitcase with a built-in battery and speakers, allows users to bring a quality entertainment experience wherever they go without compromising convenience or quality. The product quickly sold out shortly after its debut at home in June. The portable touchscreen is user-friendly, requiring no separate assembly or i

Aug. 23, 2023

Dongsuh leads snack market with Oreo, Ritz

South Korean food and beverage manufacturer Dongsuh Foods is leading the domestic snack food market with globally recognized Oreo cookies and Ritz crackers through creative marketing strategies. Launched in 1912, the American sandwich cookie Oreo was introduced to South Korea in 2003. Dongsuh at first imported the cookies from China, but since 2010 it has produced them at its production plant at home. The company has enhanced marketing campaigns to maintain Oreo’s title as the “world

Aug. 23, 2023

[Photo News] Kia Ray EV

Kia will begin taking pre-orders for its Ray electric vehicle from Thursday with the car's official launch slated for next month. Equipped with a 35.2 kilowatt-hour battery, the Ray EV is capable of driving 205 kilometers per charge. The price of the four-person passenger model begins at 27.75 million won ($20,762). Kia said it expects the Ray EV to accelerate the automation trend in the Korean market as the vehicle provides an affordable city car option for customers. (Hyundai Motor Group)

Aug. 23, 2023

Biz outlook hits 6-month low in August amid uncertainties

South Korea's business sentiment fell to the lowest level in six months in August amid continued uncertainties over the economy and monetary tightening here and abroad, a central bank poll showed Wednesday. Manufacturers' business sentiment index for August came to 67, down from 72 tallied for the previous month, according to the survey by the Bank of Korea. The index marks the lowest since February this year, when the comparable reading was 63. The index measures corporate prospects f

Aug. 23, 2023

Corporate direct financing down 32.8% in July

Corporate direct financing in South Korea contracted 32.8 percent in July from the previous month, data showed Wednesday. Local companies raised a combined 16.07 trillion won ($12.03 billion) by selling stocks and bonds last month, down 7.85 trillion won from June, according to the Financial Supervisory Service. Direct financing refers to raising funds directly from the stock and bond markets without borrowing from banks and other financial institutions. Stock sales shot up 58.6 percent on-month

Aug. 23, 2023

Seoul shares open lower ahead of Nvidia's earnings results

Seoul shares opened lower Wednesday as investors await US chipmaking giant Nvidia Corp.'s earnings results. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 5.0 points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,510.74 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, Wall Street closed mixed, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average falling 0.51 percent but the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite inching up 0.06 percent. Nvidia's earnings results will likely have broader implications for stock markets as the tech st

Aug. 23, 2023

Korea’s fisheries worried about consumer fears

South Korea’s fisheries industry on Tuesday raised concerns over the business impact of Japan’s planned release of radioactive water from the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant into the ocean later this week. “Concerns are mounting among merchants here as the latest announcement will lead directly to decreases in the number of visitors to fish markets, as well as in the overall consumption of fish and seafood,” an official from the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperati

Aug. 22, 2023

Korea tightens regulations on foreigner real estate investment

Foreigners seeking to make real estate investments in South Korea are now obligated to hire a local entrusted manager if they don’t have a permanent residential address here, officials said Tuesday. Foreign investors who have resided in Korea for more than 90 days -- considered long-term residents -- must also submit detailed documents backing up their home address here. The latest changes in the nation’s real estate laws are part of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport

Aug. 22, 2023

Finance expert Bang Moon-kyu tapped as new industry minister

President Yoon Suk Yeol tapped Bang Moon-kyu, the existing government policy coordination minister, as the new minister for trade, industry and energy, his office said Tuesday. Born in 1962, Bang, a finance expert, passed the civil service exam in 1984, before spending most of his career as a public servant in the finance ministry and in the field of budget planning. Before being appointed as the policy coordination minister last year, he served as the head of the state-run Export-Import Bank

Aug. 22, 2023

Seoul shares end tad higher, erasing earlier tech gains

South Korean stocks closed slightly higher Tuesday but spent most of the session giving back their early tech gains. The Korean won went up against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 6.94 points, or 0.28 percent, to close at 2,515.74. Trading volume was slim at 462.1 million shares worth 9.05 trillion won ($6.77 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 498 to 373. Offshore investors and institutions bought a net combined 46.92 billion won worth of shares, whil

Aug. 22, 2023

[KH Explains] Did social upheaval fuel the superconductor hype?

The outsized reaction to the LK-99 superconductor in South Korea could very much be due to people’s desperate need to escape reality. In the past few weeks, young Koreans online fantasized about a unified nation with dominant global power, all thanks to the homegrown invention of a room-temperature superconductor. These whimsical scenarios, spreading like wildfire on online communities and social media, portrayed a world where South Korea gets a seat at the UN Security Council, the won b

Aug. 22, 2023

New FKI chief vows to ensure transparency to 'clean up dark past' as chaebol rejoin

The new chairperson for the Federation of Korean Industries vowed that the business lobby group would prevent government-business collusion and push for a transparent corporate culture to “clean up the dark past” of a massive influence-peddling scandal it was embroiled in 2016. In its ad hoc general meeting held Tuesday, the lobby group appointed Ryu Jin, chairman of Poongsan Group, as the new chairperson of the FKI. The meeting was an arena where it announced the kick-starting of th

Aug. 22, 2023

Researchers find hope in fight against age-related muscle loss

Researchers in South Korea have developed the world’s first technology with the potential for treating sarcopenia, an age-related disorder with progressive and generalized loss of muscle mass and strength, Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology said Tuesday. The research team led by Kim Min-seok, a biology professor at DGIST, turned to electrical stimulation as a solution to cope with sarcopenia. The scientists first developed an electrical stimulation screening platform that

Aug. 22, 2023

Asiana Airlines, Seoul Arts Center ink partnership

Asiana Airlines, South Korea’s second-biggest carrier, signed a memorandum of understanding with Seoul Arts Center on Tuesday to ramp up their partnership in promoting arts and culture. Held in SAC’s Opera Theater, the signing ceremony was attended by Asiana Airlines Vice President Won Yoo-suk and Seoul Arts Center President Chang Hyoung-joon. Under the agreement, Asiana Airlines will offer flight benefits for artists and artworks, provide in-flight screenings of SAC’s contents

Aug. 22, 2023

LS e-Mobility to supply W250b in EV parts to Hyundai, Kia

LS e-Mobility Solutions, an electric vehicle parts manufacturer under LS Electric, said Tuesday it has clinched a deal with Hyundai and its smaller affiliate Kia to supply EV battery management components worth 250 billion won ($186.5 million). The company’s products, called EV Relay, are used to maintain the safe operation of batteries in EVs by transferring battery current to inverters, while shutting it down in case of fire or current voltage overload. The company plans to supply EV Rel

Aug. 22, 2023

LG Electronics-made cosmetics products to debut next year

LG Electronics is considering launching cosmetics products in line with the release of a new model of its skin care device under the in-house home beauty brand Pra.L in the first half of next year, according to its recent semi-annual report on DART, the Financial Supervisory Service's electronic disclosure board. An LG Electronics official said Tuesday the company is in talks to collaborate with a local cosmetic manufacturer rather than producing the products itself. “We may go throug

Aug. 22, 2023

KB, Citibank launch first joint branch in Daejeon

KB Kookmin Bank, South Korea's leading commercial bank, and Citibank Korea inaugurated a joint branch in Daejeon on Monday, according to the Korean lender. Typically, when a bank's branch faces challenges in sustaining its operations while demand still exists in the area, the option of establishing a joint branch is contemplated, an official from KB Kookmin Bank explained. The joint branch will consist of a KB Kookmin Bank branch on the second floor of Citibank's current Daejeon J

Aug. 22, 2023