Seoul stocks open steeply higher on eased woes over Fed's rate hike

South Korean stocks opened sharply higher Thursday, as the US Federal Reserve's monetary meeting results largely fell within expectations. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 44.5 points, or 1.67 percent, to trade at 2,703.73 points as of 9:15 a.m. Stocks lifted, taking a cue from the overnight stock rallies. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite surged 3.77 percent, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 2.55 percent. The Fed raised its key interest rates by a quarter

March 17, 2022

Fed's rate hike to have limited impact on financial market: official

The US central bank's decision to deliver its first rate hike since 2018 is expected to have a limited impact on South Korea's financial market as the move is in line with market expectations, a senior government official said Thursday. The Federal Reserve on Wednesday (local time) raised the federal funds rates by a quarter percentage point to 0.25-0.5 percent to fight high inflation, after freezing borrowing costs at near zero since March 2020 to cushion the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic.

March 17, 2022

S. Korean battery makers to present latest technologies, future visions at Seoul exhibition

Major South Korean battery makers are showcasing their latest technologies and visions for future growth during an international battery exhibition in Seoul this week, the companies said Thursday. SK On Co., LG Energy Solution Ltd. and Samsung SDI Co. were among some 250 battery and battery parts manufacturers and automotive companies around the globe participating in the three-day InterBattery 2022, taking place in the Convention and Exhibition Center (COEX) through Saturday. The InterBattery

March 17, 2022

S. Korea to stabilize FX market if won's fall is excessive: finance minister

Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Thursday the government will step up its efforts to stabilize the foreign exchange market if the South Korean currency's slide against the U.S. dollar is deemed excessive. Hong's verbal intervention came as the Korean won has sharply weakened against the dollar because Russia's invasion of Ukraine prompted investors to chase safer assets. The Korean won fell to end at the 1,240 level against the greenback for the first time in nearly two years Monday. "If w

March 17, 2022

Hyundai to produce IONIQ 5 in Indonesia plant

South Korea's Hyundai Motor Co. said Wednesday it will produce the IONIQ 5 all-electric model in its first manufacturing plant in Southeast Asia. Hyundai Motor completed the 150,000 unit-a-year plant in the Deltamas industrial complex near Cikarang, 40 kilometers east of Jakarta, in December. The Indonesian plant is already producing the compact Creta SUV, a strategic model for the region, and is expected to churn out the Santa Fe SUV in the first half and a small multi-purpose vehicle in the

March 16, 2022

Renault‘s Korean unit carves out Samsung from its brand name

Renault’s Korean unit announced Wednesday that it has started the process of removing Samsung from its name and rebranding itself as Renault Korea Motors. The carmaker explained that it hopes to enhance its brand image as a domestic carmaker with its new name by replacing Samsung with Korea despite being part of Renault Group and the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance. “Under the new name Renault Korea Motors, we will revise product and service competitiveness to meet the high sta

March 16, 2022

[Photo News] Ring the bell

(From left) Lee Jane, president of the Korea Women Startup Forum, Kim Sang-kyung, chairperson of the Korea Network of Women in Finance, EU Ambassador to Korea Maria Castillo-Fernandez, Sohn Byung-doo, chairman and CEO of the Korea Exchange, Kwon Choon-taek, secretary-general of the UN Global Compact Network Korea, Lee Bok-sil, president of the Women Corporate Directors Korea, and British Ambassador to Korea Colin Crooks, participate in “Ring the Bell” event designed to raise business

March 16, 2022

Korea backs US economic framework for Indo-Pacific

South Korea‘s trade minister and businesses on Tuesday voiced their support for the new US economic framework for the Indo-Pacific, saying that the 10-year-old bilateral trade agreement between the two countries should be the foundation for the new economic order. At an occasion held to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Korea-US FTA on Tuesday in Washington, D.C., Woo Tae-hee, executive vice chairman of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry said the free trade agreement should co

March 16, 2022

Price of imported grains hits 8-year high

SEJONG -- The price of imported grains reached the highest in more than eight years, fanning hikes in the price tags of processed food and fodder in the nation, state data showed Wednesday. According to the Korea Customs Service, the nation’s monthly grain imports came to 1.96 million metric tons, which is worth $758 million in February. This indicates that the price per ton came to $386, up 26 percent from $306 a year earlier. Compared to $262 in February 2020, the growth posted 47.4 pe

March 16, 2022

'Samsung's India deal won't affect white goods plants in China'

Samsung Electronics’ latest announcement to invest 15.88 billion rupees ($207.8 million) to set up a new refrigerator parts plant in India will not affect its household appliance factory operation in Jiangsu province, China, according to the consumer electronic goods company Wednesday. Samsung’s plan in conjunction with the provincial government of Tamil Nadu for the plant comes after former chief minister of Tamil Nadu, Edappadi Palaniswami, in 2020 called on global tech giants inc

March 16, 2022

Seoul stocks snap 3-day losing streak on eased concerns over oil prices, rate hikes

South Korean stocks rebounded Wednesday on the back of a steep fall in oil prices, ending a three-day losing streak. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index closed up 37.70 points, or 1.44 percent, at 2,659.23 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 727 million shares worth some 9.2 trillion won ($7.4 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 734 to 128. Institutions bought a net 365 billion won, while foreigners sold 133 billion won and r

March 16, 2022

Toss Bank to pay daily deposit interest

Toss Bank, South Korea’s internet only bank, said Wednesday it will pay daily deposit interest to its customers for the first time in the banking industry. Toss Bank account owners can simply click on the “receive now” button to be paid with daily deposit interest, instead of receiving it monthly. With the service, users can withdraw their money including the deposit interest at any time they want. For instance, if customers deposit 1 million won ($805) into the account, the

March 16, 2022

LG Innotek vows to achieve carbon neutrality by 2040

LG Innotek announced on Wednesday a set of plans to achieve carbon neutrality by 2040. The IT components maker said it will fulfill all of its electricity needs from renewable energy sources by 2030, and reach a state of net-zero carbon dioxide emissions in 2040. Electricity accounts for more than 90 percent of LG Innotek’s greenhouse gas emissions. To meet its target, the company said it will introduce more solar power generation facilities to its domestic establishments, sign power p

March 16, 2022

Daewoo E&C CEO to put safety first

Baek Jung-wan, new chief of Daewoo Engineering & Construction, said Wednesday that he would make worker safety a top priority as the builder seeks a synergistic alliance with parent company Jungheung Group, whose acquisition was greenlighted a month ago. “We’ll focus on our social responsibilities and to do that, the life of our workers comes first,” Baek said at an inauguration ceremony. The builder recently named a chief safety officer to ensure its safety guidelines are

March 16, 2022

Hyundai Motor's Jakarta plant opens as part of SE Asia drive

South Korean carmaker Hyundai Motor Group opened its first Southeast Asian manufacturing plant in Indonesia on Wednesday, gearing up its drive to expand its presence in a region long dominated by Japanese rivals.  The plant, located in the Deltamas industrial complex 40 kilometers east of the capital city of Jakarta, has started mass production of Hyundai's flagship electric vehicle Ioniq 5, the first EV to be manufactured in the country, the carmaker said. It plans to invest 1.92 trillio

March 16, 2022

Samsung CEO apologizes for stifling phone performance

Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman and co-CEO Han Jong-hee on Wednesday apologized over the escalating disputes surrounding performance issues of the tech giant’s latest flagship Galaxy S22. “We were unable to properly consider our consumer’s needs,” Han said as he bowed deep in apology in front of some 1,600 shareholders attending an annual general meeting both in-person and online. It was the first time that a top Samsung executive has offered an apology to the publi

March 16, 2022

Keyeast to raise W1.3b via stock offering

Keyeast Co. on Wednesday announced that it will sell stocks to raise 1.3 billion won($1.1 million). The proceeds from the stock sale will be used mainly to finance its operations. According to a regulatory filing, the company will issue 104,773 common shares at a price of 12,466 won per share. The stocks will be sold to the investors that the firm designated. (Yonhap)

March 16, 2022

S. Korea's auto exports up 5.1% in February

South Korea's car exports expanded more than 5 percent in February on increased production capacity, despite a global shortage of automotive chips, data showed Wednesday. Outbound shipments of automobiles stood at 167,682 units last month, up 5.1 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. In terms of value, auto exports also increased 9.1 percent on-year to US$3.84 billion last month. Industry watchers attributed the solid gain in exports

March 16, 2022

Banks' 2021 net profit jumps 40% amid rate hikes

Banks in South Korea saw their combined net profit surge about 40 percent in 2021 thanks to increased interest income from the central bank's rate hikes, data showed Wednesday. The combined net profit of 20 local banks came to 16.9 trillion won ($13.6 billion) in 2021, up 39.4 percent from 12.1 trillion won tallied a year earlier, according to the preliminary data from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). The rise stemmed mostly from increased interest income in line with the central bank'

March 16, 2022

SK Siltron to spend W1tr on new 300mm wafer plant

SK Siltron, South Korea‘s sole silicon wafer maker for chips, plans to spend a combined 1.05 trillion won ($845.61 million) to build a new fab that manufactures 300-millimeter wafers in order to address a chip shortage due to wafer supply constraints, a filing showed Wednesday. With a board approval Tuesday, the key silicon wafer supplier to the country’s chip powerhouses Samsung Electronics and SK hynix aims to embark on the fab construction in the first half at a 42,716 square-me

March 16, 2022