Kospi hits new intraday high on hopes of fast economic rebound

South Korea's benchmark stock index hit a new intraday high Thursday on hopes of a quick economic rebound. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 10.73 points, or 0.33 percent, to 3,274.61 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Tech gains led the KOSPI's advance despite lingering market concerns about how soon the US Federal Reserve would start tapering its accommodative policies. Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.21 percent as investors digest th

June 24, 2021

Mercedes-Benz Korea launches its most luxurious sedan, Maybach S-class

Mercedes-Benz Korea has brought its most luxurious sedan, the Mercedes-Maybach S-Class, to the Korean market, as the automaker marks the 100-year anniversary of the launch of its first Maybach vehicle, the company said Wednesday. The newly-launched Mercedes-Maybach S 580 4Matic has undergone a complete makeover from the model that was first launched in 2015, and will strengthen its leadership in the luxury flagship sedan segment, the automaker said. Since its introduction, more than 60,000

June 24, 2021

Korea looks to new era as market value nears W3,000tr

Amid continued rallies and a series of blockbuster initial public offerings, the value of South Korea’s stock market is anticipated to reach 3,000 trillion won ($2.65 trillion) soon, raising hope for the market’s advancement on par with other global players. According to Korea Exchange, the combined valuation of the local stock market stood at 2,719 trillion won -- 2,294 trillion won worth of main bourse Kospi market and 425 trillion won worth of tech-heavy Kosdaq market -- as of We

June 23, 2021

Korea District Heating Corp. pledges to turn plastic waste into hydrogen

The Korea District Heating Corp. said Wednesday that it will launch a circular economy project to turn plastic waste into hydrogen. According to the KDHC -- one of the world’s largest district heating companies that serves over 1.5 million customers here -- it has partnered up with the Korea Energy Agency, SK Ecoplant and GS Power to develop a city model of the circular economy where plastic waste is converted into oil, then finally into hydrogen. The project will heat plastic waste u

June 23, 2021

[Contribution] Ministers urge green and inclusive future at OECD

Ko Hyoung-kwon is the ambassador and permanent representative of Korea to the OECD. -- Ed. The 2021 OECD Ministerial Council Meeting, chaired by the United States with South Korea and Luxembourg as vice chairs, was held May 31-June 1 under the theme of “Shared Values: Building a Green and Inclusive Future.” The meeting, at which ministers from 38 member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development shared their responses to COVID-19 and plans for a better

June 23, 2021

Winia to launch vaccine refrigerator in S. Korea.

Winia Dimchae, a South Korean home appliance brand specializing in kimchi fridges, announced Wednesday that the company would begin local sales of its ultra-low temperature freezer for COVID-19 vaccines, named Medibox. According to Winia, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety has recently granted approval for the company’s Medibox, developed by WInia‘s telecommunications apparatus affiliate Dayou Plus. The new vaccine storage system has been categorized as a blood bank refrigerato

June 23, 2021

Seoul stocks up for 2nd day on Fed chief's soothing comments

South Korean stocks advanced for the second consecutive day Wednesday as investor concerns of fast tapering was partially eased by the US Federal Reserve's comments that support its accommodative policy. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) rose 12.31 points, or 0.38 percent, to close at 3,276.19 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 1 billion shares worth some 17.4 trillion won ($15.3 billion), with losers outnumbering gaine

June 23, 2021

Local AI startup VoyagerX raises $27m from SoftBank, others

SoftBank Ventures Asia said Wednesday that it has injected $9 million into the series A funding of VoyagerX, a South Korean artificial intelligence software developer. SoftBank was joined by Altos Venture and Yellowdog in the round, which chipped in $9 million each making the total investment at $27 million. VoyagerX will use the funds to develop more advanced AI services and hire 100 more employees by next year. Founded in 2017, VoyagerX builds AI solutions and tools that leverage deep lear

June 23, 2021

Gap in market cap between Kakao, SK hynix narrows

Kakao, the operator of South Korean messenger app KakaoTalk, is on a record run on the domestic stock market Wednesday, narrowing the gap in terms of market capitalization with the incumbent No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix. Kakao rose 6.6 percent in closing from the previous day, bringing its total market capitalization to an all-time high of around 75.2 trillion won ($66.1 billion). This solidified Kakao’s position as a No. 3 by market cap on the Korea Exchange after electronics goods maker Sa

June 23, 2021

Hanwha Defense showcases localized weapons at Korea Defense Component and Equipment Fair

Hanwha Defense on Tuesday displayed weapons that have localized key parts at the Korea Defense Component and Equipment Fair 2021 held in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, on Wednesday. At the event, the defense affiliate of Hanwha Group showcased Cheonma, South Korea’s first short-range surface-to-air missile system deployed since 1999. Since this year, Hanwha Defense localized parts that are no longer produced and some of imported parts such as power suppliers, providing business opp

June 23, 2021

More Canadian investors betting on Korean real estate market

South Korea is the fastest-growing property investment destination for Canadian investors among the Asia-Pacific countries, data showed Wednesday. Canadian investors’ real estate transactions in Korea from 2016 to 2020, excluding deals smaller than $10 million, came to $3.5 billion, according to data from market intelligence firm Real Capital Analytics. The figure was 12.4 times higher than it was during the previous five-year period, from 2011 to 2015, showing the sharpest uptrend among

June 23, 2021

Toss operator mulls IPO in 2025, possibly in US

Viva Republica, operator of financial technology app Toss with more than 20 million registered users, said Wednesday it is considering an initial public offering in 2025, hinting at a possible market debut in the US. “We‘re not in a hurry and we will consider an IPO in earnest three years down the road, and could go public around 2025,“ said Lee Seung-gun, founder and CEO of Viva Republica, adding that the IPO could take place either in Korea or overseas. The company expe

June 23, 2021

Samsung offers 6G vision, private network

Through its first event to introduce an array of 5th generation network technologies late Tuesday, Samsung Electronics has put its emphasis on preemptive investments in 6G to cement its position in the global network industry. Samsung is increasing its efforts on the 6th generation of wireless connections, to bring hyper-connected experiences to users, the tech giant announced during the virtual event streamed live from Seoul to the world. Called “Samsung Networks: Redefined,”

June 23, 2021

A Lotte company introduces ‘workcations,’ allowing remote work from Jeju hotel

Big data consulting firm Lotte Members said Wednesday that it has begun a “workcation” program for its staff this month, offering the opportunity to work from Jeju Island. Some 10 employees will work from one of the country’s most popular holiday destinations for a week during each round of the eight-round program. During the week, participants will only work Monday to Thursday between 8 a.m. and 3:30 p.m., the company said. For safety reasons, workers who are part of the pr

June 23, 2021

KRX’s overseas ETFs boost trading of foreign securities

Responding to South Korean investors’ growing interest in direct trading of foreign securities, the nation‘s bourse operator Korea Exchange has listed a wide range of popular overseas exchange-traded funds as well as exchange-traded notes, according to the KRX Wednesday.  As of May this year, a total of 257 overseas exchange-traded funds and exchange-traded notes are listed on the KRX, officials said.  Local investors trading ETFs and ETNs listed on the KRX are not subjec

June 23, 2021

No. of S. Korean millionaires rises despite COVID-19: report

Despite the economic fallout of COVID-19, the number of South Korean millionaires sharply increased, largely due to an overheating phenomenon in asset markets following the government’s pandemic-era stimulus measures, a report showed Wednesday.  According to the “Global Wealth Report 2021,” released by Swiss banking giant Credit Suisse, the number of people with financial assets worth more than $1 million, or nearly 1.1 billion won, rose by 140,000 on-year to 1.05 million

June 23, 2021

S. Korea’s financial assets in US hit record high in 2020

The value of South Korea’s financial assets in the United States hit a record-high last year, backed by local retail investors’ increased interest in the US stock market, central bank data showed Wednesday. As of end-2020, Asia’s fourth-largest economy’s outstanding financial assets invested in the US gained $114.8 billion on-year to $534.5 billion, preliminary data from the Bank of Korea showed. This marks both record-high total annual investment by South Korean entit

June 23, 2021

Manufacturing sentiment drops for 3rd month in June: poll

South Korea's manufacturing confidence fell for the third straight month in June amid the prolonged coronavirus pandemic, a poll showed Wednesday. The Korea Institute for Industrial Economics & Trade (KIET) said its professional survey index (PSI) for the manufacturing sector's business conditions came to 123 for this month, down from 127 the previous month. Yet the country's PSI remained above the benchmark 100 for 13 months running since June last year. A PSI reading above 100 means opt

June 23, 2021

Population mobility falls for 5th month in May

The number of South Koreans who moved to different residences in the country fell for the fifth straight month in May as housing transactions shrank, data showed Wednesday. The number of people who changed their residences fell 2.2 percent on-year to 557,000 last month, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. It marked the fifth consecutive month of decline after population mobility rose for the seventh month in December 2020 amid skyrocketing home prices. The decline was mainly a

June 23, 2021

S. Korea to speed up efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions from old ships

South Korea's oceans ministry said Wednesday it plans to speed up efforts to cut the emissions of greenhouse gases from older ships in line with new environmental regulations from an international body. Last week the International Maritime Organization (IMO) announced its plans to adopt tougher environment rules on ships built before 2013, according to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries. Previously, the restrictions on greenhouse gases from ships were applied to those built after January 201

June 23, 2021