Producer prices up for 9th month in July

South Korea's producer prices gained 0.7 percent on-month in July due to a modest rise in prices of food and energy, extending their monthly gains for the ninth straight month, central bank data showed Friday. The producer price index, a barometer of future consumer inflation, stood at 110.02 in July, compared with 109.22 a month earlier, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). The July index advanced 7.1 percent from the previous year, the BOK data showed. The prices of agricultural goods rose

Aug. 20, 2021

‘Mergepoint saga could speed up passage of e-payment act revision’

Politicians have started to look closely into a snowballing fiasco of prepaid discount service Mergepoint on Thursday, raising expectations that it could help speed up the passage of a revision to the controversial e-payment law. The revised Electronic Financial Transaction Act (EFTA) has been pending at the National Assembly for nine months. Park Wan-joo, the policy committee chairman of the ruling Democratic Party, said the government and the ruling party were taking the case very seriously

Aug. 19, 2021

Coupang slapped with W3.3b fine for unfair trade practices

Coupang on Thursday has been slapped with fines totaling 3.29 billion won ($2.8 million) for unfair business practices, losing a case which pitted decades-old consumer goods brands against the e-commerce platform operator. The Fair Trade Commission, in announcing the decision, said Coupang has abused its position as a major online marketplace to coerce vendors, including LG Household and Healthcare, to slash the prices of products sold on its platform. Coupang violated several terms of the

Aug. 19, 2021

Seoul stocks dip nearly 2 pct on US tapering jitters

South Korean stocks tumbled nearly 2 percent Thursday on concerns over the US Federal Reserve minutes that hinted at the possibility of an earlier-than-expected tapering timeline. The Korean won steeply fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) slumped 61.1 points, or 1.93 percent, to close at 3,097.83 points. The figure marks the index's biggest daily loss since Feb. 26, and the closing price marks the lowest since early April. Trading volume was mode

Aug. 19, 2021

Hanwha, a living testament to tycoon’s era in Korea

In 2014, just 10 kilometers southeast of Baghdad, the capital of war-torn Iraq, hundreds of Hanwha Engineering & Construction workers were toiling away to build a new city worth $10.1 billion to provide new homes for some 600,000 Iraqis. Far away from home and exhausted by the desert heat, the workers craved fresh flatfish sashimi, a cheap dish in South Korea but impossible to find in Iraq. When Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-youn heard the news, he ordered chefs to prepare flatfish sas

Aug. 19, 2021

[Behind the Wheel] Land Rover’s iconic Defender 90 comes back stronger

First launched in 1948, Jaguar Land Rover’s legendary off-roader Defender has made a grand comeback with a completely new look. At first glance, the makeover gives the Defender 90 a futuristic look yet embraces enough of its original features to retain its identity as the iconic sport utility vehicle specializing in off-road driving. One of the most noticeable changes was the round edges of the four-wheel car’s contour, which used to be sharp and angular in the original models.

Aug. 19, 2021

[News Focus] Is Lee Jae-yong working at Samsung or not?

South Korean Justice Minister Park Beom-kye on Thursday reiterated his stance that Samsung Group’s de facto chief Lee Jae-yong is not technically working at Samsung and so is not breaking a work ban imposed on him. “It is hard to say Lee is employed at this moment,” Park told reporters on Thursday, repeating what he said a day before. “Lee has not been paid for years, does not have a permanent position and is not a registered executive.” Park then added, &ldquo

Aug. 19, 2021

NH NongHyup to work with Samsung Electronics for digital transformation

South Korea’s NH NongHyup Bank said Thursday it is collaborating with Samsung Electronics to accelerate digital transformation of its financial businesses. One of the country‘s top commercial banks and the global tech behemoth signed a memorandum of understanding on Wednesday that will help NH NongHyup efficiently utilize key emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, blockchain and the metaverse. Designing digital, yet consumer-friendly brick-and-mortar branches, de

Aug. 19, 2021

HHI acquires Doosan Infracore after Chinese arm dispute resolution

Hyundai Heavy Industries Group has closed an acquisition deal of a 30 percent stake in South Korean machinery manufacturer Doosan Infracore for 850 billion won ($722.5 million), a filing submitted to the Financial Supervisory Service showed Thursday. The business conglomerate‘s midtier holding company Hyundai Genuine has bought 23.4 million common shares in Doosan Infracore from the debt-saddled Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction, which will use about 690 billion won in proceeds t

Aug. 19, 2021

Retail investors’ ownership of Samsung Electronics stock doubles

Amid massive foreign sell-offs of Samsung Electronics, South Korea’s most valuable company, domestic retail traders’ stock ownership in the tech giant doubled this year, surpassing 13 percent for the first time, data showed Thursday. Individual investors’ stock holdings of Samsung accounted for an all-time high of 13.08 percent of the total as of Wednesday. The previous record -- set at end-December last year -- was 6.48 percent, according to data compiled by the Korea Securit

Aug. 19, 2021

Listed firms' H1 earnings more than triple amid global economic recovery

South Korea's listed companies saw their earnings more than triple in the first half of 2021 from a year earlier as the global economic recovery from the pandemic steeply increased their sales, data showed Thursday. The combined net profit of 587 out of 664 firms, which are listed on the main Kospi bourse and close their books on Dec. 31, totaled 85.13 trillion won ($72.34 billion) on a consolidated basis in the January-June period, up 245.5 percent from 26.4 trillion won a year earlier, accord

Aug. 19, 2021

Samsung to sell stake in Renault Samsung Motors after 21 years

Credit card company Samsung Card will divest all of its 19.9 percent stake in automaker Renault Samsung Motors, in a sale that would pull the plug on its parent Samsung Group’s old, botched auto dream. The company said the decision was made recently and has tapped Samsung Securities, Samsung Group’s financial investment arm, to lead the exit. “Though we are pursuing the stake sale, details such as the method of sale, the buyer and the process have yet to be decided,” t

Aug. 19, 2021

S. Korea’s conflict index ranks 3rd among OECD countries: report

The level of national conflicts in South Korea ranked third among members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, raising calls for government efforts to strengthen its conflict management capacity, a report showed Thursday.  According to a report by the Federation of Korean Industries, a major business lobbying group here, Seoul’s comprehensive conflict index presenting scores running from zero to 100, stood at 55.1 as of August. It was the third highest amo

Aug. 19, 2021

Land-based workers of top shipper HMM defy wage increase proposal

Unionized land-based workers of South Korea's largest shipper HMM Co. have voiced opposition to a company wage increase proposal, raising the possibility of its first strike, industry sources said Thursday. After talks with its creditors, the company has put forward a wage negotiation proposal, including an 8 percent increase in wages, plus bonuses of 500 percent. According to the sources, some 95 percent of unionized HMM longshore workers voted against the wage proposal. Union members demand

Aug. 19, 2021

Coupang fined 3.3 bln won for unfair biz practice

South Korea's antitrust regulator said Thursday it has decided to fine e-commerce giant Coupang Inc. 3.3 billion won ($2.8 million) for alleged unfair business practice. Between 2017 and 2020, Coupang demanded its suppliers raise sales prices of products trading at its rival online malls if one-off sales promotion events drove down such prices, according to the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC). The company also pressed contractors to buy ads on its site and passed on the costs of sales promo

Aug. 19, 2021

SK Telecom's metaverse platform to go global

SK Telecom Co., South Korea's largest wireless carrier, said Thursday it will launch its virtual meeting platform ifland in around 80 overseas markets by the end of this year in a move to join the global metaverse rush. The carrier launched the platform last month that allows users to interact with others using personalized avatars in a range of online settings from stadiums to cafes. The metaverse platforms have grown in popularity over the past year, especially from tech-savvy teenagers, as

Aug. 19, 2021

Residents' FX deposits fall in July

Foreign currency deposits at banks in South Korea fell in July from the previous month as individuals withdrew their FX holdings, central bank data showed Thursday. Outstanding foreign currency-denominated deposits held by residents amounted to $92.13 billion as of end-July, down $910 million from June, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). Residents include local citizens, foreigners staying here for more than six months and foreign companies. The data excludes interbank foreign currency depo

Aug. 19, 2021

S. Korea's overseas financial assets touch new high in Q2

South Korea's overseas financial assets hit a new high in the second quarter, mainly due to increased stock investments, central bank data showed Thursday. The nation's external financial assets came to $2.07 trillion at the end of June, up $85 billion from a quarter earlier, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea. The net international investment position came to $490.7 billion as of the end of June, up $12 billion from a quarter earlier, the data showed. The position refers to

Aug. 19, 2021

Banks' loan delinquency rate falls in June

The delinquency rate for South Korean banks' won-denominated loans fell to a record low in June due to a decline in overdue corporate loans, the financial regulator said Thursday. The rate for bank loans more than 30 days overdue stood at 0.25 percent at the end of June, down from 0.32 percent the previous month, according to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). Compared with a year earlier, the rate was down 0.08 percentage point in June. The delinquency rate for corporate loans declined

Aug. 19, 2021

[News Focus] Korea ranks 12th of 15 OECD members in Q2 growth

SEJONG -- South Korea’s economy underperformed in the second quarter of this year compared with those of major countries, recent GDP growth data showed. Korea posted 0.7 percent GDP growth in the second quarter of 2021, which placed the country 12th out of the 15 members -- including the US, Germany, France and Italy -- of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Though the OECD has yet to compile the corresponding figures for the other 22 of the total&n

Aug. 19, 2021