Seoul shares open lower on US tech slide

South Korean stocks got off to a weak start Thursday as tech shares took a cue from overnight losses in US heavyweights, like Nvidia and Microsoft. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index retreated 8.91 points, or 0.36 percent, to 2,486.47 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, all three major US indexes lost ground despite jobs data that reinforced expectations the Federal Reserve may start cutting its rates early next year. AI chip leader Nvidia sank 2.3 percent, while Microsof

MarketDec. 7, 2023

Mirae Asset Securities names new CEOs

Mirae Asset Securities, Korea’s largest investment bank and securities firm, said Wednesday that it has appointed Vice Chairman Heo Sun-ho as CEO. He will lead the company’s sprawling business together with Vice Chairman Kim Mi-seob, whose appointment was confirmed earlier in October. With Heo’s appointment, which was approved at a board of directors meeting earlier on the day, the company has completed a generational shift in its long-held dual leadership system. Heo will co

MarketDec. 6, 2023

GC Biopharma breaks ground for Indonesia’s first blood products plant

GC Biopharma, GC Group’s biopharmaceutical unit, announced Wednesday that the company held a groundbreaking ceremony for its first Indonesian plasma fractionation plant within an industrial complex near the country's capital of Jakarta. The event comes six months after the company received approval from the Indonesian government to join the construction project, a trilateral partnership with the Indonesian Red Cross and P.T Triman, a local drugmaker. Under the partnership, GC Biopharm

IndustryDec. 6, 2023

Seoul stocks end nearly flat on cautious note

South Korean stocks closed nearly flat Wednesday as major shares ended in mixed territory. The local currency lost ground against the US dollar. Swinging between gains and losses, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 1.1 points, or 0.04 percent, to close at 2,495.38. Trade volume was slim at 384.3 million shares worth 7.51 trillion won ($5.71 billion), with winners outnumbering losers 499 to 371. Institutions scooped up a net 240.5 billion won worth of shares, while individual a

MarketDec. 6, 2023

[KH Explains] Banks, regulators trade blame for snowballing ELS losses

Korea is in the middle of blame-shifting, as banks face more than 3 trillion won ($2.28 billion) in losses combined in the first half of next year from the sales of equity-linked securities tied to a Hong Kong index. Financial authorities are considering creating guidelines for compensation regarding the sales of ELS products tracking the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index, seeing the possibility of banks’ misselling. The value of ELS products sold by Korea’s five major banks set to m

MarketDec. 6, 2023

BMW, Mercedes-Benz duel to be No. 1 importer in Korea

The race to be South Korea’s top auto importer is coming down to the wire as BMW tries to reclaim the No. 1 position from Mercedes-Benz for the first time since 2015. According to the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association’s report released Tuesday, BMW sold 69,546 vehicles in the Korean market from January to November. Mercedes-Benz sold 68,156 units in the same period, 1,390 cars less than BMW. The bestselling models of the two German automakers are the BMW 5 Serie

MobilityDec. 6, 2023

LG Display launches voluntary redundancy program in efficiency drive

LG Display, the top display maker in producing high-end organic light-emitting diode panels for TVs, has launched a voluntary redundancy program for its factory workers in its latest bid to reduce costs after months of operational losses, according to industry sources on Wednesday. Workers at its manufacturing plants in Paju, Gyeonggi Province and Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province, are eligible for voluntary retirement if they are over 40 years old. The company is offering severance pay for 36 m

IndustryDec. 6, 2023

AliExpress vows to invest W10b to root out fake goods in Korea

AliExpress, an online direct purchase platform owned by Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group, has revealed plans to invest 10 billion won ($7.6 million) in South Korea over the next three years to extensively regulate counterfeit goods sold on the platform, according to the firm on Wednesday. The announcement comes amid ongoing consumer complaints about counterfeit goods purchased through the platform since its official debut in Korea in 2018. "We feel an increased sense of responsibility

IndustryDec. 6, 2023

Posco Future M to supply battery materials for LG-GM’s JV in US

Posco Future M said Wednesday its Pohang plant in North Gyeongsang Province had started the supply of high-nickel cathode materials to the US-based Ultium Cells, the joint venture of LG Energy Solution and General Motors. Following its manufacturing plant in Gwangyang, South Jeolla Province, the Pohang site is the company’s second production base for high-nickel cathode materials. With the fast-growing demand for the materials from battery makers, it has moved up the schedule for commercia

MobilityDec. 6, 2023

Posco wins W300b EV parts deal with US carmaker

Posco International announced Wednesday it has signed a contract worth 300 billion won ($229 million) to supply electric vehicle parts to an American manufacturer, ramping up its presence in the green vehicles industry. Under the contract, Posco International will supply electric vehicle reducers to a major automaker based in the US from 2024 until 2032. The company declined to reveal the name of the client, citing deal conditions. A reducer can adjust the rotational speed to increase the torque

MobilityDec. 6, 2023

KFCC hosts workshop for sustainable growth in Africa

The Korean Federation of Community Credit Cooperatives, the nation’s leading mutual financial institution, said Wednesday it successfully hosted a three-day workshop in Kenya, to discuss ways to foster financial inclusion and a transition to sustainable growth in Africa. The workshop titled “Cooperatives for a Sustainable Transition in Africa” kicked off in Nairobi on Monday in collaboration with the International Cooperative Alliance and the University of Leuven in Belgium.

IndustryDec. 6, 2023

[Photo News] Startup demo day

KB Financial Group Chief Digital Platform Officer Cho Young-suh (first from left, front row) and participants pose for a photo after the “2023 Hub Day," held at the KB Innovation Hub center in Seoul on Tuesday. Hub Day is an annual startup Demo Day hosted for the members of the KB Starters program, a startup accelerator program run by the financial giant. A total of 40 startups participated in this year’s event to share business ideas and seek partnership opportunities with KB s

IndustryDec. 6, 2023

[Photo News] GV60 named China SUV of year

Hyundai Motor Group said Wednesday that its premium brand's all-electric sports utility vehicle, the Genesis GV60, has been named the 2024 China SUV of the Year. According to the carmaker, the car won the top honor by a wide margin as it received a total score of 186, while the Lotus Eletre and the Geely Galaxy L7 received 121 and 107 points, respectively, among some 80 competitors. (Hyundai Motor Group)

MobilityDec. 6, 2023

[Contribution] Future of agriculture

By Chung Hwang-keun Minister of agriculture, food and rural affairs “Technology changes agriculture and, consequently, the lives of farmers,” said John May, chairman and CEO of John Deere, an American manufacturer of farm machinery and industrial equipment that is drawing the world’s attention for its advanced autonomous farming machines. By implication, he emphasized the necessity of technological innovation in agriculture, going beyond traditional ways of farming, to re

TechnologyDec. 6, 2023

Twitch plans to shut down in S. Korea over high network costs

Twitch, a popular U.S.-based live game streaming platform, said Wednesday it plans to shut down its South Korean service in February next year due to high network usage fees in the country. In an announcement posted on its corporate blog, Twitch Interactive Inc. CEO Dan Clancy said the company "made the difficult decision to shut down the Twitch business in Korea on February 27, 2024." Clancy said the cost to operate Twitch in South Korea was "prohibitively expensive" and sai

EconomyDec. 6, 2023

[Korea Quiz] Voluminous traditional Korean porcelain

Find the answer at the bottom. Large, voluminous and round white pottery vessels known as “moon jars” stand as quintessential examples of South Korea’s Joseon-era porcelain art. Originating from the late 17th century, these distinctive porcelain jars maintained their popularity through the late Joseon period, setting themselves apart as unique creations not replicated in China or Japan. The term "moon jar" is a relatively recent invention, created by Korean mode

IndustryDec. 6, 2023

Seoul shares open tad higher on tech, financial gains

South Korean stocks started a tad higher Wednesday led by gains in tech and financial shares. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 5.65 points, or 0.23 percent, to 2,499.93 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, U.S. stocks finished mixed, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average retreating 0.2 percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite edging up 0.3 percent. In Seoul, chipmakers lent support to the positive opening, with No. 1 Samsung Electronics rising 0.84 percent and

MarketDec. 6, 2023

[Graphic News] Donations from big firms up 25.1% despite weaker earnings

Top companies in South Korea boosted their donations in the first nine months of the year despite overall weaker earnings, a corporate tracker said. CEO Score, which tracks corporate management activities, said 264 out of the country’s top 500 firms by sales donated a combined 1.42 trillion won ($1.09 billion) to charities during the January-September period, up 25.1 percent from a year ago. CEO Score said the increase came despite the overall lackluster corporate performances during the p

CompaniesDec. 6, 2023

Korea, Britain finance chiefs discuss economic dialogue, investment ties

The finance ministers of South Korea and Britain on Tuesday discussed the establishment of a bilateral economic dialogue and investment cooperation channels as follow-up measures to last month's summit of their leaders, Seoul's finance ministry said. During a video conference with Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Richard Streynsham Hunt, South Korea's Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho voiced expectations for stronger bilateral cooperation on energy, supply chains a

EconomyDec. 5, 2023

'Making economy more dynamic a top priority': finance minister nominee

South Korea's finance minister nominee on Tuesday said strengthening economic stabilization efforts for citizens' livelihoods while continuing the government's drive for reform would be the key priorities under his leadership. Choi Sang-mok, the nominee for the country’s top economic policymaker, made the remark during his first gathering with the local press Tuesday, following his nomination by the presidential office Monday. The former senior presidential secretary for eco

EconomyDec. 5, 2023