Samsung Electronics Co. further expanded its dominance in the domestic smartphone market in the second quarter of the year, a report showed Tuesday, as its rivals struggled to gain presence. Samsung logged a share of 73 percent in the South Korean smartphone market in the April-June period, up 6 percentage points from a year earlier, according to data from market researcher Counterpoint Research. Its second-quarter market share was also 6 percentage points larger than a quarter earlier. Apple

Industry Aug. 10, 2021

KT Corp., a South Korean telecom giant, said Tuesday its second-quarter net income rose 77.4 percent from a year earlier on the back of robust growth of 5G network subscribers as well as its media content businesses. Net income for the April-June period stood at 370.8 billion won ($322.9 million) on a consolidated basis, compared with 209.1 billion won the same period the previous year, according to a company statement. Operating income reached 475.8 billion won, up 38.5 percent over the cited

Industry Aug. 10, 2021

A total of 71 listed firms in South Korea received "adverse" audit opinions in 2020, up from 65 the year prior, as the COVID-19 pandemic increased business uncertainties, government data showed Tuesday. An "adverse" opinion suggests that a company may have violated accounting standards or significantly misstated their financial records. According to a survey of 2,293 listed firms by the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), 97 percent of the firms received clean opinions in

Economy Aug. 10, 2021

South Korean manufacturers' domestic supply rose at the fastest-ever pace in the second quarter as the country's economy is on a recovery track on brisk exports, data showed Tuesday. The manufacturing domestic supply index stood at 111.1 in the April-June period, up 9.2 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from Statistics Korea. It marked the sharpest on-year gain since the first quarter of 2010 when the statistics agency began compiling related data. The index, which measures b

Economy Aug. 10, 2021

A player in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) is undergoing an additional review after failing a doping test, national authorities said Tuesday. The Korea Anti-Doping Agency (KADA) said a player for the Doosan Bears, whose identity is being withheld, tested positive for a banned substance last month but has since appealed his case. The player insisted in his hearing in July that he has never taken any illegal drug. The KADA is reviewing possibilities that a prohibited substance might have

Baseball Aug. 10, 2021

SEJONG -- South Korea's agricultural ministry said Tuesday local chicken farms have gradually normalized their operations from avian influenza, a move that could stabilize the market price of eggs. The number of chickens supplied to the disease-hit egg farms came to around 18 million as of end of June, more than the 16 million chickens culled as a preventive measure, according to data compiled by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. South Korea has been normalizing the operatio

Economy Aug. 10, 2021

SEJONG -- South Korea's trade ministry said Tuesday it is closely reviewing the potential impact from Europe's toughened carbon restrictions set to be implemented in 2023, as the move is expected to weigh down the country's outbound shipments of steel products. "The country is currently assessing the impact of the carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) and plans to come up with measures to cope with the new policy," an official from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said.

Economy Aug. 10, 2021

The last two members of the virus-hit Cheonghae unit were to be released from a hospital Tuesday, marking the full recovery of all infected service members who had to cut short their anti-piracy missions in waters off Africa and return home following an unprecedented mass infection. All members of the 301-strong Cheonghae unit were airlifted home in July after 247 troops tested positive for COVID-19. Subsequent tests found 25 more cases, raising the total caseload to 272, or 90 percent of the t

Politics Aug. 10, 2021

Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Tuesday the government plans to call on Moderna Inc. to swiftly supply its COVID-19 vaccine as the US drugmaker is expected to delay the planned shipment for this month. Moderna has notified the government that it plans to supply less than half of the 8.5 million doses of its COVID-19 vaccine planned for August, spawning concerns that the country's vaccine rollout may hit a snag amid the fourth wave of the pandemic. "The government should make all-out eff

Social Affairs Aug. 10, 2021

Inter-Korean communication lines were in normal operation Tuesday despite an angry statement that North Korea issued against joint military exercises between South Korea and the United States, officials said. Kim Yo-jong, sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, issued the statement expressing "deep regret" to South Korea for going ahead with the exercise with the US after she warned earlier that the maneuvers will cloud inter-Korean relations. Despite the statement, the two Koreas

North Korea Aug. 10, 2021

South Korea's consul general in Seattle has been under a probe by the foreign ministry for making "inappropriate" remarks to at least one staffer at the diplomatic mission, sources said Tuesday. Kwon Won-jik, who took the post in December last year, has been working from home since June as part of the ministry's measure to separate him from the victim while the investigation is under way, according to the sources familiar with the matter. It was not immediately clear what those "

Politics Aug. 10, 2021

South Korea's tax revenue rose 5.2 trillion won ($4.5 billion) in June compared with a year earlier amid an economic recovery and a boom in property and stock markets, the finance ministry said Tuesday. The country collected 20 trillion won in taxes in June, higher than the 14.7 trillion won the previous year, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. The government said corporate tax income increased due to the economic recovery, while a boom in asset markets bolstered capital gains t

Economy Aug. 10, 2021

Samsung Electronics Co. on Tuesday unveiled its new wearable processor built on 5-nanometer (nm) process as the South Korean tech giant tries to beef up its presence in the wearable device market. The Exynos W920 is the industry's first wearable processor made with advanced 5nm extreme ultraviolet lithography technology, boasting enhanced performance and power efficiency, according to Samsung. It is expected to be used in Samsung's upcoming Galaxy Watch 4 smartwatch that will come with a new u

Industry Aug. 10, 2021

LG Electronics Inc. on Tuesday said it will expand its streaming service on smart TVs as the tech giant tries to increase its presence amid the pandemic-driven stay-at-home trend. The South Korean company said LG Channels will be launched in an additional 11 European countries, including Switzerland and the Netherlands, within this year. LG Channels, LG's free content streaming service set up in 2015, is currently available in 14 countries providing some 1,600 channels, but that will be expand

Industry Aug. 10, 2021

LG Uplus Corp., a major South Korean telecom operator, said Tuesday it will offer Spotify to its mobile users for up to six months in a move expected to expand the music streaming service's presence in the country. The telecom operator said subscribers to its 4G LTE and 5G network plans will have free access to Spotify Premium, which costs 10,900 won ($9.5) a month here, for three to six months, depending on the price of their plans. The move virtually applies to all of LG Uplus' around 15 mil

Industry Aug. 10, 2021