Seoul stocks open tad lower on inflation worries

South Korean stocks opened slightly lower Monday, weighed down by investor concerns of early post-pandemic inflation. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 3.13 points, or 0.1 percent, to 3,153.29 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. The KOSPI got off to a weak start as accelerating inflation may sap demand for risky assets. Top cap Samsung Electronics traded flat, and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix lost 1.22 percent. Internet portal operator Naver shed 1.39 percent, w

May 24, 2021

[Contribution] June is time to report your overseas financial accounts

It has been a long time since the hide-and-seek of foreign property by some wealthy people has become a serious problem worldwide. As most of them aim not to pay taxes, tax authorities around the world are focusing their capabilities on finding foreign hidden properties of tax evaders. The representative case took place in Switzerland in 2009. In 2009, the US Internal Revenue Service found that UBS Bank had concealed assets of wealthy Americans in secret accounts and helped tax evasion. The US

May 24, 2021

[Herald Interview] ‘Keeping forests young is key to net-zero emissions’

With the Earth’s rapidly changing climate and its consequences being felt around the world, calls are growing for nations to take immediate action to tackle the issue. To play its part in the global fight against climate change, South Korea is implementing measures to become a net-zero emitter of greenhouse gases. Among them is a plan to plant 3 billion trees by 2050, and the key is to keep the country’s forests young, Choi Byeong-am, the minister of the Korea Forest Service tol

May 23, 2021

Business bodies welcome outcome of summit

Major business associations in South Korea welcomed the outcome of President Moon Jae-in’s visit to the US, and praised announced partnerships on strategic business areas including semiconductor chips and batteries. The Federation of Korean Industries, a major business lobbying group here, issued a statement on Sunday on the business agreements made over the weekend in line with President Moon’s summit talks with his US counterpart Joe Biden. “We view the agreement of the

May 23, 2021

[Newsmaker] Samsung Biologics sets out preparation for Moderna vaccine production

Samsung Biologics is working to expedite preparations to start churning out “hundreds of millions” of doses of Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine in early second half, the company said Sunday. At its sterile drug manufacturing facility in Songdo, Incheon, which is one of the largest in the world, the South Korean pharmaceutical will handle the fill and finish process of the production of mRNA-1273, Moderna’s messenger-RNA based COVID-19 jab. The firm signed a contract with Mo

May 23, 2021

Moon visits SK Innovation’s battery plant in Georgia

South Korean President Moon Jae-in visited a plant construction site of SK Innovation Co., the country‘s leading battery maker, in the United States on Saturday. “This plant symbolizes friendship and high-tech cooperation between South Korea and the United States,” Moon said in a speech at the factory in the state of Georgia. “South Korean firms are best partners in the battery field. Cooperation in the sector offers a good opportunity for the US and South Korea to devel

May 23, 2021

[News Analysis] Korea, US reinforce ties on chips, EV batteries to reset supply chains

  South Korea and the United States have agreed to elevate the level of cooperation in major industries, including semiconductors and lithium-ion batteries, to reestablish global supply chains amid growing challenges from China and looming shortages of key components under the COVID-19 pandemic. The strengthened economic partnership is viewed as a major feat by President Moon Jae-in from his visit to the US for summit talks last week, paving a way to stabilize rocky global supply chain

May 23, 2021

[Market Close-up] Device shipment shortage unnerves Samsung Electronics investors

Concerns about electronic device shipments due to a global semiconductor component shortage is leaving retail stock investors unnerved as their net purchases of Samsung Electronics common shares worth 22.6 trillion won ($20 billion) so far this year appears to have barely yielded returns. Foreign investors, on the other hand, are fleeing South Korea‘s largest handset producer and semiconductor manufacturer. Samsung Electronics has been the most heavily sold stock by foreign investors yea

May 23, 2021

Banks skeptical of forging crypto alliance for real-name system

Some major South Korean financial conglomerates, including KB and Hana, have decided not to issue real-name bank accounts for virtual coin trading on local crypto exchanges, citing heavy accountability and hacking risks, according to news reports Sunday. A new bill passed at the National Assembly in March requires local crypto exchanges to meet anti-money laundering requirements, and utilize real-name bank accounts from commercial banks for crypto trading. Local banks also need to decide by th

May 23, 2021

SC Bank Korea launches mobile retirement planning services

Standard Chartered Bank Korea said Sunday it had launched a digital asset management service within its mobile banking application that helps its customers build a retirement portfolio. Through the new mobile platform, dubbed “retirement planning on the palm of your hand,” subscribers to SC Bank Korea’s mobile banking application can create a comprehensive financial plan to achieve retirement income goals. Customers can also receive useful information on how much money they mi

May 23, 2021

Container cargo volume at seaports up 5.7% in April

The volume of container cargo processed at South Korea's seaports rose 5.7 percent on-year in April amid hope for global recovery from the economic fallout of the new coronavirus pandemic, the country's oceans ministry said Sunday. Container cargo processed at the seaports reached 2.58 million twenty-foot-equivalent units (TEUs) in April, compared with 2.44 million TEUs, according to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries. Processed export-import container cargo jumped 6.3 percent on-year to re

May 23, 2021

Revised law to allow confiscation of seed money in stock manipulation cases

Stock manipulators will face confiscations of not only illegal gains but also their seed money under a revised capital market law that seeks to raise the integrity of the market. The National Assembly on Friday approved a partial revision to the Financial Investment Services and Capital Markets Act aimed at improving investor protection and preventing market manipulation. The updated law newly allows the confiscation of the assets used or offered to be used in stock manipulation schemes. Un

May 23, 2021

KT to establish AI research institute with KAIST

KT Corp., a major South Korean telecom operator, said Sunday it signed an agreement with the country's top science and technology university to establish a research institute for artificial intelligence (AI) and software development. Under the agreement, KT will work with the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) to build the research institute in the central city of Daejeon, 164 kilometers south of Seoul, by the end of this year. KT said the institute will house around 20

May 23, 2021

[Eye Plus] Last decades of Joseon era on show at Unhyeongung

Unhyeongung near Anguk Station on subway line No. 3 is surely not a major Joseon-era palace that appears prominently in tourist guide books. The relatively small complex that once belonged to Heungseon Daewongun, father of King Gojong, however, is worth a visit as it embodies the final years of the dynasty before losing power to Japanese intervention in early 20th century. Not only the dark history of the consequent fall of Joseon royal line, but also the house shows the everyday lives of the r

May 22, 2021

Three cups of coffee a day could help you live longer, study finds

Having more than three cups of coffee a day can help those in their 40s or older live longer, researchers from Chung-Ang University found in a study with the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency. The study was conducted on 110,920 individuals older than 40. Scientists tracked the patients’ daily coffee intake and death rate for an average of 9.1 years. Individuals already diagnosed with diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cancer were not included in the study. The study conclude

May 22, 2021

Clothes, accommodations invite more consumer complaints as people go out more

Consumer complaints about clothes and accommodations surged in April as outdoor activities increased sales of those products, the Korea Consumer Agency said Friday. Complaints about fashion goods saw the steepest increase. Compared with the previous month, the total number of inquiries about women’s dresses increased by 46.1 percent and T-shirts by 31 percent. Most complaints were about shipping fees when customers requested refunds for defective products. Complaints about accommodati

May 22, 2021

S. Korean firms announce plans to invest $39.4b in US

WASHINGTON/SEOUL -- Four major South Korean companies, including Samsung and SK, on Friday announced plans to invest $39.4 billion in the United States, ahead of President Moon Jae-in's summit with US President Joe Biden in Washington. During a business roundtable attended by Moon, Samsung Electronics announced plans to invest $17 billion in a new foundry plant. LG Energy Solution and SK innovation, which make batteries, said they plan to invest some $14 billion in separate and joint projects

May 22, 2021

SK hynix's acquisition of Intel's NAND biz gets approval from Europe

SK hynix, South Korea's second-largest chipmaker, on Friday said it has earned approval from Europe's antitrust watchdog for its acquisition of Intel Corp.'s NAND business. SK hynix said it received unconditional clearance from the European Commission for its takeover of Intel's non-volatile memory unit. Last October, SK hynix signed a deal to buy Intel's NAND business for $9 billion, which includes the US firm's solid state drive business and a NAND flash chip plant in Dalian, China. Followin

May 21, 2021

[Newsmaker] LH Corp. could be broken up to prevent recurrence of land purchasing scandal

The South Korean government has been reviewing whether to turn Korea Land and Housing Corp. into a holding company and spin-off key businesses to prevent further information leaks from the company, sources close to the matter said Friday. The reports come amid a nationwide crackdown on a massive land speculation scandal centered on LH employees who abused insider information concerning large-scale state funded land development projects. According to the sources, the Ministry of Economy and Fi

May 21, 2021

NPS chief vows to lead Korea’s ESG innovation

The chief of the National Pension Service, the country’s largest public pension fund, pledged Friday to take the lead in environmental, social and corporate governance investing, calling the fast-spreading global trend a must and not an option. “The NPS is fatefully engaged with the national economy. We now carry a more tremendous responsibility than ever. We have to play the role of a guide for Korea’s ESG, dubbed ‘K-ESG,’” Kim Yong-jin, the pension fund&rs

May 21, 2021