Thailand's Line Man Wongnai snaps ups $265m in funding

Global messaging app provider Line Corp. said Tuesday that Line Man Wongnai, its delivery platform operated in Thailand, has raised $265 million in a funding round led by Line Corp. and Singapore's sovereign wealth fund GIC. Other investors in the Series B funding include BRV Capital Management, PTT Oil and Retail Business Public Co., Bualuang Ventures and Taiwan Mobile. With the new investment, Line Man Wongnai's value topped $1 billion, becoming Thailand's largest tech startup unicorn. The

Sept. 27, 2022

SK chief renews commitment to shared growth with local community

SK Group on Monday launched the Ulsan Forum, a regional communication channel where SK companies, experts, academics and the local community talk about the future growth direction of the city and the provincial economy. The launch comes as SK Innovation marked the 60th anniversary of its Ulsan CLX, the nation’s first oil refinery built in the industrial city, some 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, back in 1962. Succeeding the annual Icheon Forum launched in 2017 in Icheon, Gyeonggi Provin

Sept. 27, 2022

Brokerages earn W23.6b in short selling fees in H1: data

Brokerages in South Korea raked in a combined 23.61 billion won ($16.5 million) in fees from handling stock short selling in the first half of this year, data showed Tuesday. The amount compared with 29.28 billion won they earned from short selling-related fees throughout last year, according to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service. The Seoul branch of Morgan Stanley earned the largest amount at 6.44 billion won, while the Seoul office of Credit Suisse brought in 3.15 billion won in s

Sept. 27, 2022

Asiana to expand flights to Japan as visa-free travel resumes

Asiana Airlines Inc., South Korea's second-biggest carrier, said Tuesday it will expand flights to Japan from late October on Japan's decision to ease travel restrictions despite the COVID-19 pandemic. Japan announced last week it will lift the ban on the number of inbound passengers and resume visa-free travel for visitors from specific countries, including South Korea, from Oct. 11. Currently, Japan only allows package tours and requires visas for all visitors in a move to control th

Sept. 27, 2022

SK Telecom, KT raise Galaxy Z Flip 4 subsidies ahead of iPhone 14 launch

South Korean mobile carriers SK Telecom Co. and KT Corp. have raised the amount of subsidies for the high-end model of Samsung Electronics Co.'s latest foldable smartphone ahead of next month's scheduled launch of new iPhone models in the country, according to industry sources Tuesday. SK Telecom, the country's largest wireless carrier, raised its subsidies for the 512-gigabyte model of Samsung's Galaxy Z Flip 4 last Friday to range between 380,000 won ($266) and 520,000 won

Sept. 27, 2022

Seoul shares open tad higher after Monday's plunge

Seoul stocks came off to a choppy start Tuesday after an over two-year trough the previous day amid rising woes over a global recession in the wake of aggressive monetary tightening moves in major economies. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 5.59 points, or 0.25 percent, to 2,226.53 in the first 15 minutes of trading. The KOSPI dipped 3.02 percent and the secondary KOSDAQ sank 5.07 percent on Monday as investors were increasingly concerned about a global recession caus

Sept. 27, 2022

Inflation expectations fall for second consecutive month in Sept.: BOK data

South Korea's inflation expectations declined for a second straight month in September amid falling oil prices, a central bank survey showed Monday. Ordinary people expected consumer prices will grow 4.2 percent over the next year, down 0.1 percentage point from 4.3 percent of the previous month, according to the poll conducted by the Bank of Korea (BOK). The inflation expectations index has shown a gradual decline since July, when the monthly figure peaked at an all-time high of 4.7 percen

Sept. 27, 2022

Korea, Japan airport officials pledge all-out efforts for travel recovery

Airport officials of South Korea and Japan on Monday pledged to make all-out efforts to facilitate travels between the two countries, with the resumption of visa-free, individual tours to Japan starting Oct. 11. According to the Korea Airports Corp., the state-run agency’s President and CEO Yoon Heyong-joon traveled to Japan to hold talks with airport- and tourism-related officials in Tokyo and Osaka. On Monday, Yoon met with Isao Takashiro, chairman and CEO of Japan Airport Terminal, at H

Sept. 26, 2022

S. Korea nears currency crisis, but officials downplay concerns

Fears are growing that the South Korean won could continue to lose its value against the US dollar close to the level it suffered during the 2008 global financial crisis, but authorities have dismissed speculation over a repeat of such nightmare, saying the currency reserves are strong enough to fight dollar shortages. The dominant dollar, prompted by aggressive US policy tightening to corral inflation, is draining the country’s dollar reserves as it does other countries’, but a defa

Sept. 26, 2022

Korea to rank 12th among G-20 nations in 2022 growth: OECD

SEJONG -- The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development forecast Monday that South Korea will rank 12th among members of the Group of 20 for 2022 gross domestic product growth, hinting that the nation will see weakened momentum for economic growth. In its Interim Economic Outlook, the France-based OECD predicted that Korea will post a 2.8 percent growth this year. This is lower than the organization’s forecast for other G-20 members, including 4.1 percent growth in Australia,

Sept. 26, 2022

SK Innovation to initiate forestation upon anniversary

Leading refiner SK Innovation said on Monday it held a tree planting ceremony for SK Ulsan Forest of Happiness, in celebration of the company’s 60th year anniversary on Monday. The ceremony, held in light of the company’s initiative to achieve net-zero emissions, was held in the forest fire-damaged area of Ulju. The company will be planting 180,000 wild cherry trees in 60 hectares of land there with a budget of 1 billion won ($690,000) for the forestation. Participants of the ceremon

Sept. 26, 2022

Hanwha signs conditional takeover deal with DSME for W2tr

  South Korea's defense-to-energy conglomerate Hanwha Group said Monday it has signed a conditional memorandum of understanding with Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering to acquire a controlling stake of 49.3 percent and managerial control of the shipbuilder, which has been under the state supervision for 21 years. Under the memorandum, Hanwha’s six affiliates -- including its defense unit Hanwha Aerospace and an energy equipment company, Hanwha Systems Co. -- will purchase D

Sept. 26, 2022

Seoul stocks, Korean won in tailspin amid growing recession fears

Seoul stocks dropped to the lowest level in over two years and the Korean won also continued to tumble Monday amid growing fears of a global economic recession caused by combative monetary tightening in major economies. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell by 69.06 points, or 3.02 percent, to end at 2,220.94, the lowest since July 27, 2020. The market slid for a fourth consecutive session. Trading volume was moderate at 611.4 million shares worth 9.18 trillion won (US$6.4

Sept. 26, 2022

Mirae Asset backs out of W4.1tr IFC deal

South Korea’s Mirae Asset Global Investments is pulling out of a 4.1 trillion won ($2.86 billion) deal to acquire IFC Seoul, a landmark complex in Yeouido, western Seoul, from Canada’s Brookfield Asset Management, industry sources said Monday. In May, Mirae Asset was picked as the preferred bidder to acquire the IFC Complex, which consists of three office towers, after fierce competition with a consortium led by retail giant Shinsegae Group. “Mirae Asset has filed a dispute s

Sept. 26, 2022

[Herald Interview] Kyoto-inspired KiNoBi gin aims to elevate at-home bar experience

  Pernod Ricard's Kyoto dry gin KiNoBi made its South Korean debut earlier this month, targeting a growing number of drinkers here who may drink less but are willing to spend more to elevate at-home bar experience after pandemic years. “COVID-19 has reduced opportunities for people to mingle and socialize, so people looking for a luxury experience started to choose to enjoy them at home, trying out geekier types (of premium liquor) as they have more budget while staying in. With

Sept. 26, 2022

Startups after pandemic: Winners and losers

Over the last few years, pandemic-triggered market volatility has provided great business opportunities for South Korean startups. But in the face of a deteriorating market outlook driven by Russia's invasion of Ukraine and inflation, only a handful of startups with strong business portfolios could keep their title as “the next unicorn” with a corporate value of some $1 billion or more. RSquare, a commercial real estate platform, said its sales had surged on-year by 61 percent to 1

Sept. 26, 2022

Korea Ginseng Corp. to aid malnourished children in Vietnam

Korea Ginseng Corp., the country’s leading ginseng manufacturer, said Monday it will work with nongovernmental relief agency World Vision to help malnourished children in Vietnam. By donating part of its revenue from sales, KGC will provide food and health supplements to malnourished children under 5 in two of Vietnam’s most impoverished districts -- Huong Hoa and Da Krong. Some 28 percent of children in these two districts were underweight while 10 percent suffered from poor growth

Sept. 26, 2022

Seoul braces for energy crisis this winter

The South Korean government is getting the country’s 30 biggest energy consumers to join efforts to tackle the looming energy crisis this winter amid unstable global energy supply, exacerbated by the war in Ukraine and Korea’s growing trade deficit. About 55 percent of Korea’s energy consumption last year was for industrial use, over 60 percent of which was consumed by the country’s 30 largest companies. The government is set to sign a deal with those 30 companies, includ

Sept. 26, 2022

Inflation to stay in 5-6% range for considerable period of time: BOK chief

South Korea's consumer inflation is likely to stay in the 5-6 percent range for a considerable period of time amid high energy and food prices and the local currency's sharp weakness against the US dollar, the chief of the country's central bank said Monday. Asia's fourth-largest economy is expected to see slowing growth momentum into next year due to China's slowdown and heightened external conditions, Bank of Korea Gov. Rhee Chang-yong told a parliamentary committee me

Sept. 26, 2022

Seoul shares open sharply lower on rising recession fears

Seoul stocks opened markedly lower Monday on growing concerns about a global economic recession caused by combative monetary tightening policies in major economies. The benchmark Kopsi dropped 40.27 points, or 1.76 percent, to 2,249.73 in the first 15 minutes of trading. On Friday, US stocks ended lower, with investors fleeing for safety and cashing out of the stock market on fears that aggressive rate hikes could seriously hurt the global economy. The S&P500 fell 1.7 percent, the Dow Jones Indu

Sept. 26, 2022