More firms in queue for IPOs in Q4

A number of South Korean companies are in the process of going public in the fourth quarter this year, in a bid to ride on the latest successful initial public offering (IPO) rush, data showed Sunday. After suffering a pandemic-caused market crash in the first half, the local stock market rebounded to the pre-pandemic level, wooing more firms to tap the IPO market during the remainder of the year. Some mega-scale deals, such as Kakao Games and Big Hit Entertainment, raised some tens of trilli

Oct. 18, 2020

S. Korea to resume discount coupon scheme to boost domestic consumption

South Korea, as of Sunday, has decided to resume its discount coupon program, after suspending it in mid-August due to a resurgence of the coronavirus, to invigorate domestic spending amid the COVID-19 pandemic. But concerns persist that the consumption scheme could again lead to a virus flare-up, alongside skepticism over its actual long-term effect on the economy. The scheme -- part of the government’s 90.4 billion-won ($76.2 million) domestic spending revitalization plan -- distribut

Oct. 18, 2020

Korean shippers tipped to see strong earnings in Q3

South Korean shippers, led by industry leader HMM Co., are forecast to post strong earnings in the third quarter of the year on the back of increased fare and a drop in fuel costs, industry sources said Sunday. "A gradual recovery in global maritime cargo volume pushed up global freight rates as the supply of cargo service fell short of rising demand," Jung Yeon-sung, an analyst at NH Investment & Securities Co., said in his recent report. The Shanghai Containerized Freight Ind

Oct. 18, 2020

[Contribution] Green New Deal, a meaningful initiative to drive green economy

"Where does Korea stand in tackling climate change? Going forward, what path should we take next to ensure sustainable growth while Korea’s growth model has once led to a successful industrialization?" As I watched the global protest play out on the Global Day of Climate Action on Sept. 25, I found myself ruminating about Korea’s position in the global response to climate change which is so often condensed into the word "Green." In 2015, governments around the w

Oct. 18, 2020

Samsung heir to visit Vietnam this week after returning from Europe

Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong, the de facto leader of South Korea's top conglomerate, plans to visit Vietnam this week, his second overseas business trip this year after returning from Europe last week, industry sources said Sunday. According to the sources, Lee will depart for Vietnam on Monday and probably meet Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc during his trip to the Southeast Asian nation to discuss possible investment plans. Lee's planned visit to Vietnam marks t

Oct. 18, 2020

Korean economy's trade reliance at 3-yr low: data

South Korea's reliance on trade reached the lowest in three years last year due to a slump in overseas sales, data showed on Sunday. According to the data compiled by Statistics Korea, the reliance on trade, measured by dividing the country's total trade by gross domestic product, stood at 63.51 percent last year, down 2.57 percentage points from a year earlier. The 2019 tally marks the lowest since 2016, when the comparable figure was 60.11 percent, the data showed. The country's reliance on

Oct. 18, 2020

[Weekender] Korean bio taps Switzerland

An increasing number of South Korean pharmaceutical companies are catching on to Switzerland’s potential as a portal to the wider European market. Most Koreans know Switzerland for its chocolate, cheese, Army knives, watches and the Alps. But it is not these seemingly iconic items that are holding up the Swiss economy, whose gross domestic product per capita in 2019 ranked second only to Luxembourg in International Monetary Fund’s book — a ranking that demands appreciation giv

Oct. 17, 2020

Seoul shares likely to move in tight range in coming week; US election in focus

South Korean shares are likely to move in a tight range in the coming week amid rising uncertainties from the presidential election and stimulus talks in the United States, analysts said on Saturday. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) closed at 2,341.53 points on Friday, dropping 2.11 percent from the previous Thursday, the last session before the holiday weekend. Local analysts attributed the KOSPI's weekly decline to the resurgence in COVID-19 outbreaks at home. South K

Oct. 17, 2020

Hyundai, Kia's market share in Europe likely to top 7% this year

   South Korea's top automaker Hyundai Motor Co. and its affiliate Kia Motors Corp. may see their combined share in the European market surpass 7 percent for the first time this year, industry watchers said Friday. Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors sold 101,322 vehicles in Europe in September, down 0.8 percent from a year earlier and representing a 7.8 percent market share, according to the two companies. Hyundai's sales declined 4.6 percent on-year to 49,439 units in Europe last month, w

Oct. 16, 2020

LG Electronics to introduce new home appliance collection next week

LG Electronics has introduced a teaser video on its official website and its YouTube channel, in which the company hinted at a new collection of home appliances it would roll out Wednesday. In the 15-second video, the company showed silhouettes of different types of home appliances, including laundry machines, dishwashers and the company‘s signature steam closet. The new home appliances from LG Electronics are expected to come in refreshed designs and colors, according to the industry s

Oct. 16, 2020

Homeplus partners with E&J Gallo to expand US wine lineup

Homeplus said Friday it had signed a strategic partnership with E&J Gallo, a US-based winery, to introduce a wide range of US wines to the Korean market. According to the hypermarket chain, the two companies held an online joint business plan signing ceremony, to agree on establishing a stable distribution network. Founded in 1933, E&J Gallo stands as one of the biggest wineries in the US, Homeplus said. E&J Gallo currently has 75 affiliate companies and runs 120 brands, expor

Oct. 16, 2020

Car sharing startup Socar becomes 12th unicorn in S. Korea

Car sharing firm Socar said Friday that it has newly attracted 60 billion won of funding from investors, achieving unicorn status with a corporate value of 1 trillion won ($872.6 million). With Socar’s latest addition to the unicorn list, South Korea now has 12 unicorn companies, including ecommerce firm Coupang, fintech company Viva Republica and accommodation booking services operator Yanolja. Socar is Korea’s first mobility unicorn. “As Socar has received a combined 6

Oct. 16, 2020

Bit Hit shares slide after stellar IPO

Share price of Big Hit Entertainment, an entertainment agency behind K-pop boy band BTS, slid for two straight days right after the high profile initial public offering Thursday. The company’s stock price traded 19.77 percent lower at 207,000 won ($180.6) in intraday trading Friday. After soaring by 30 percent to 351,000 won on its Thursday debut on the main bourse Kospi, the stock closed at 258,000 won, down 4.4 percent from the opening price of 270,000 won. BTS’ offering price s

Oct. 16, 2020

Gyeonggi confirms case of Japanese encephalitis

South Korea on Thursday reported one confirmed case and two suspected cases of the Japanese encephalitis, all three of them in Gyeonggi Province.  According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, a woman in her 60s was diagnosed with the mosquito-borne disease on Wednesday. The two suspected patients are a woman in her 70s and a man in his 50s. All three started exhibiting symptoms such as fever and disorientation last month, the agency said. Among patients infected with t

Oct. 16, 2020

Seoul stocks down for 4th consecutive day on virus concerns

South Korean shares retreated for a fourth consecutive session Friday, largely on concerns that the COVID-19 resurgence in major economies may hurt exports. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) dropped 19.68 points, or 0.83 percent, to close at 2,341.53. Trading volume was moderate at about 908 million shares worth some 11 trillion won ($9.6 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 622 to 240. Foreigners sold a net 173 billion wo

Oct. 16, 2020

Resurgence of COVID-19 drives unemployment to new high

South Korea shed nearly 400,000 jobs last month as a resurgence of coronavirus cases weighed on the labor market recovery, data showed Friday.  The number of employed people in Asia’s fourth-largest economy stood at 27.01 million as of end-September, down 392,000 from a year earlier, according to the monthly employment data compiled by Statistics Korea. This latest on-year decline was the sharpest in four months, continuing the downward trend for a seventh consecutive month since Ma

Oct. 16, 2020

Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering clinches W140b of orders

Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering, the shipbuilding holding company of Hyundai Heavy Industries Group, announced Friday that the company has secured 140 billion won of new deals from overseas companies. The Korean shipbuilder plans to deliver a 40,000 cubic-meter liquid petroleum gas carrier to a Singaporean firm and two product carriers to its Liberian contractor, starting in March, 2022. The new ships by Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering are able to control emissio

Oct. 16, 2020

IMM PE looks to exit from Taihan Electric Wire

South Korea’s buyout firm IMM Private Equity is looking for a buyer for Taihan Electric Wire starting November, five years after it invested 300 billion won ($261.7 million) in the then-debt-saddled company for a controlling stake, according to sources Friday. Shares of Taihan, the nation’s No. 2 power transmission wire maker, rose sharply on the Korea Exchange’s main bourse Kospi on Friday. At 12:30 p.m., Taihan shares were trading 9.8 percent higher than the previous day&rs

Oct. 16, 2020

S. Korea's power sales hit 4-year low in Aug.

South Korea's electricity consumption fell to a four-year low in August in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic and a long rainy season, data showed Friday. Power sales in Asia's fourth-largest economy came to 44,599 gigawatt-hours (GWh) in August, down 6.2 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from state utility Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO). The figure is the lowest industrial power consumption for August since the 44,412 GWh registered in the same month of 2016. It also r

Oct. 16, 2020

KT collaborates for remote analysis of clinical images

KT announced Friday that the company has partnered with a Korean firm to develop AI-powered remote health care services. HealthHub, KT‘s new partner company, specializes in facilitating remote analysis of clinical images and videos. HealthHub has partnerships with some 1,200 medical institutions, and currently holds a market share of about 60 percent. KT and HealthHub have agreed to combine their technologies to develop enhanced remote medical solutions, KT said. The telecommunication

Oct. 16, 2020