Korea Aerospace wins aircraft parts order in Israel

Korea Aerospace Industries Co., South Korea's sole aircraft manufacturer, said Thursday it has received a plane parts order from Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd. (IAI). KAI obtained an order to supply "future mid cabin fairing package parts" for Israel's largest aerospace and defense company's G280 twin-engine business jet, the company said in a statement. KAI didn't provide the contract's value and other details. KAI received aircraft parts deals for the G280 business jet in 2019 and

April 7, 2022

Seoul stocks open lower as Fed's minutes signal bolder rate hikes

South Korean shares opened lower Thursday, tracking overnight falls on Wall Street, as the US central bank hinted at faster rate hikes to curb inflation. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) fell 18.66 points, or 0.68 percent, to reach 2,716.37 as of 9:15 a.m. Overnight, the US stock market tumbled, after the Federal Reserve's minutes of its March meeting showed that the officials are considering raising rates by a half-percentage point, rather than the usual quarter-point, an

April 7, 2022

Private companies to take over role of securing raw materials

Private companies will take over from state firms in pursuing raw materials such as lithium, cobalt and nickel to better respond to supply shortages stemming from global political unrest, President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol’s transition committee said Wednesday. “The supply bottlenecks are getting worse because geopolitical unrest is taking place worldwide and supply chains are held hostage. Demand for raw materials is growing since more electric vehicles and renewable energy are using th

April 6, 2022

Seoul shares down on rate hike, Ukraine woes

South Korean stocks ended lower Wednesday, as the US central bank's more hawkish stance on rate hikes sparked worries about a global economic slowdown amid uncertainties surrounding Ukraine and China's growth. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index lost 24.17 points, or 0.88 percent, to close at 2,735.03 points. Trading volume was moderate at around 1.29 billion shares worth some 10.85 trillion won (US$8.90 billion), with losers outnumbering ga

April 6, 2022

KOMSCO, Kyrgyzstan sign MOU for digital cooperation

The state-owned Korea Minting, Security Printing and ID Card Operating Corporation said Wednesday it has signed a memorandum of understanding with Kyrgyzstan‘s Ministry of Digital Development to digitize government-issued documents, including identification cards and certificates of tax payment. In 2017, KOMSCO supplied Kyrgyzstan with IC chip-containing resident cards as part of its official development assistance efforts. The recent MOU aims to adapt these physical documents into mobile

April 6, 2022

Incheon airport to adopt new security screening system

Starting in September, passengers departing from Incheon International Airport won’t need to take out their laptops or liquid items from their carry-on bags.  According to Incheon International Airport on Wednesday, it will adopt a smart security screening system to shorten the entire departure process by applying advanced technology which will automatically detect prohibited liquids and hazardous items including weapons, radioactive materials and certain types of lithium batteries.

April 6, 2022

Rsquare to launch commercial real estate services in Vietnam

Korea’s real estate platform Rsquare said Wednesday it will provide commercial real estate services in Vietnam with Shinhan Bank’s branch in Vietnam. The firm will offer brokerage service, asset management, interior construction, residential property consulting and property inspection for Shinhan Bank Vietnam clients. According to Rsquare, it has compiled data on over 10,000 offices and commercial buildings in major Vietnamese cities including Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi. “U

April 6, 2022

Kakao to expand overseas revenue by 30% by 2025

South Korean IT platform giant Kakao will expand its overseas revenue by 30 percent in the next three years to diversify its heavily domestic business-reliant income source, the company said on Wednesday. “The 56 overseas branches aim to boost their sales revenue by 40 percent this year. By 2025, we plan to increase overseas revenue to account for 30 percent of total sales, compared to the current 10 percent,” said Kim Sung-su, co-head of Kakao’s corporate alignment center.

April 6, 2022

Hyundai Motor invests in Netmarble’s virtual human projects

Metaverse Entertainment, a subsidiary of Netmarble F&C, has attracted 2 billion won ($1.6 million) in investment from Hyundai Motor Group’s tech fund Zer01ne, according to Netmarble on Wednesday. Netmarble F&C is a development arm of the nation’s top mobile game developer. Netmarble said the latest funding was based on the auto giant’s tech fund’s valuation of the metaverse company at 100 billion won. With the investment, Netmarble said virtual humans being

April 6, 2022

Instagram taps S. Korea as test bed for expanded Reels

Instagram has picked South Korea as a test bed for its expanded Reels service, the social media platform said Wednesday. The new Reels feed will include videos that can be up to 15 minutes long. The previous Reels feed only showed short clips up to 60 seconds, according to Instagram. Korea, along with Brazil, was one of the only two countries to be selected for the trial run of the more inclusive Reels service. As the video tab will be removed from each account’s profile page, all vid

April 6, 2022

S. Korean banks eye trust fund market amid aging society

South Korean banks are eager to branch out into the trust fund market here, as the country’s demographic shift to an aging society has accelerated demand for it. While it is common in the US and other countries to establish a trust fund for inheritance and keep assets within the family with minimal legal issues, a majority of Korean families still prefer passing on assets through wills. But today, more Koreans are seeking to manage their assets through trust funds, which gives grantors mo

April 6, 2022

Pokemon Bread sales to reach 10 million

South Korean confectionery SPC Samlip said Wednesday that it has nearly sold 10 million rolls of Pokemon Bread, less than two months after its release in February. As of Tuesday, it had sold 9.5 million rolls, and surpassing 10 million appears to be only a matter of time, as it continues to sell out. Pokemon Bread, which debuted in 1999, made its comeback two months ago, appealing to young adults who grew up watching the animation series. Amid explosive demand for the nostalgia-provoking prod

April 6, 2022

Pessimism grows over Korea’s 3% growth targets

SEJONG -- Skepticism is growing over the Korean economy’s growth targets due to a variety of downside risks at home and abroad, though the government had predicted the economy would expand by 3.1 percent this year. The gloomy situation could be seen from the recent announcement of international organizations and rating firms, who started revising down their outlooks on the 2022 gross domestic product growth for Korea. In March, Moody’s Investors Service and Fitch Ratings both slash

April 6, 2022

LG Energy Solution expects no more EV battery recalls from renewed probe

South Korean electric vehicle battery maker LG Energy Solution said Wednesday it does not expect any more recalls as a result of a probe by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, a federal auto safety agency in the United States. “In regards to the major recalls of General Motors’ Bolt, Hyundai Motor’s Kona and Ioniq, an NHTSA procedure has been completed and settlements with auto makers have been reached, so we expect no more issues regarding the battery recall,&

April 6, 2022

After GOS scandal, Samsung touts Galaxy S22 sales, calls it ‘smooth ride’

Samsung Electronics said Wednesday its latest smartphone Galaxy S22 is highly likely to see 1 million unit sales at home this week, calling its sales performance a “smooth ride” despite unfavorable market conditions such as supply chain constraints and slowing domestic smartphone sales. According to the company’s preliminary estimates, the phone’s sales exceeded 900,000 units early this month, and the figure is expected to hit the 1 million mark on Friday, six weeks afte

April 6, 2022

Nanox begins producing digital X-ray chips in Korea

An Israeli medical imaging technology company said it began producing digital X-ray chips at its semiconductor plant in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, on Tuesday. The Nasdaq-listed Nanox said its Yongin facility will be the main production site of its microelectromechanical systems, or MEMs, called Nanox.Source chips, a key component of the company’s Nanox.ARC, a 3D medical imaging system that has the potential to bring X-ray technology to two-thirds of the world without meaningful access.

April 6, 2022

S. Korea's senior citizens suffer high rate of relative poverty: report

The relative poverty rate of South Korean senior citizens has been on the decline, but is still high among member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) amid rapid aging, a report showed Wednesday. The relative poverty rate of South Koreans aged 66 or older came to 40.4 percent in 2020, down from 43.2 percent the previous year and 47.8 percent in 2011, according to the report on sustainable development goals by Statistics Korea. Relative poverty rate refers

April 6, 2022

S. Korean shipbuilders rank first in Q1 new global orders

South Korean shipbuilders won half of new global ship orders in the first quarter of the year to take the top spot in the world, industry data showed Wednesday. Local shipyards, led by Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., clinched 4.57 million compensated gross tons (CGTs) in new orders in the January-March period, or 50 percent of the global total at 9.2 million CGTs, according to data from global market researcher Clarkson Research Service. It represents the first time in seven years that South Korea

April 6, 2022

Internet-only K-Bank flies high after 5 yrs of operation

K-Bank, a South Korean internet-only bank, said Wednesday that it garnered more than 7.5 million customers in five years of its launch thanks to a steep increase in mid- and low-credit loans and the rising popularity of mobile banking. K-Bank has enjoyed brisk business growth in the recent years, as during the pandemic customers increasingly sought mobile banking, which provides easier access than offline branches. K-Bank's loans grew 1.56 trillion won ($1.28 billion) per year on average since i

April 6, 2022

Galaxy S22 sales expected to top 1 million in S. Korea this week

Samsung Electronics Co. said Wednesday the sales of its latest Galaxy S series are expected to surpass 1 million units in South Korea later this week, two weeks faster than its predecessor did. The Galaxy S22 series was launched on Feb. 25 with three models -- the Galaxy S22, Galaxy S22 Plus and Galaxy S22 Ultra -- promising stronger performance for daytime and nighttime shooting, among others. Samsung said its latest flagship smartphone series passed 900,000 in sales earlier this month on its h

April 6, 2022