Most Popular
-
1
Exports to US reach all-time high, widen gap with China
-
2
Trump rekindles criticism: US forces defending 'wealthy' S. Korea 'free of charge'
-
3
Opposition-led Assembly unilaterally passes bill to probe Marine's death
-
4
[Music in drama] Rekindle a love that slipped through your fingers
-
5
Inflation eases in April, continues bumpy ride
-
6
Golden chance to liquidate babies’ gold rings?
-
7
Seoul Metro to seek legal action against malicious complaints
-
8
Illit, mired in controversy, remains on Billboard charts for 5th week
-
9
[New faces of Assembly] Architect behind ‘audacious initiative’ believes in denuclearized North Korea
-
10
On May Day, labor unions blast Yoon's foreign nanny proposal
-
Seoul stocks likely to advance next week on eased Fed, Ukraine woes
South Korean stock markets are expected to gain ground next week, as investors are likely to snap up oversold stocks amid eased uncertainty about the U.S. monetary policy and optimism for the Russia-Ukraine peace talks, analysts said Saturday. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) closed at 2,707.02 points Friday, down 1.72 percent from a week ago. The key stock index started weak this week as investors turned cautious ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve's policy meeting. But
March 19, 2022
-
Banks use AI to enhance customer experience
South Korean banks are embracing artificial intelligence to better understand customers and enable them to take advantage of services more easily, as local financial institutions step up efforts to digitalize their operations. Hana Bank, one of the five major banks here, said Friday that it would use artificial intelligence to look through customer reviews in real-time so as to expand communication between customers and staff. “We see change every day in the banking industry. Getting imm
March 18, 2022
-
Index signals Seoul property market gaining vitality
SEJONG -- Recent indices are signaling a possible vitalization of the real estate market later this year, with expectations growing over deregulations, which had been pledged by President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol. A major property index showed Friday that the gap between the number of people, who want to purchase homes and those, who want to sell homes has somewhat narrowed. But the potential sellers still outnumbered potential buyers. According to the Korea Real Estate Board, the index for trading
March 18, 2022
-
Sport trucks, supercars go electric: InterBattery shows EV era draws near
The 10th annual secondary battery event InterBattery gave visitors a glimpse of how close the world is to the era where electric vehicles go mainstream. Cars showcased in the three-day event at Coex in Seoul beginning Thursday indicated room for wider applications of batteries, even to the degree of reincarnating the gas-guzzling cars that were once declared dead, and of having exotic cars and luxury cars keep their performance afloat while run on electric batteries. US carmaker General Motor&
March 18, 2022
-
Seoul stocks up for 3rd day amid hope for Ukraine peace talks
South Korean stocks extended their winning streak to a third session Friday after choppy trading, as investors eye the ongoing Ukraine-Russia peace talks after eased Fed uncertainties. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 12.51 points, or 0.46 percent, to close at 2,707.02 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 634 million shares worth some 11.3 trillion won ($9.3 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 547 to 303. Reta
March 18, 2022
-
[Test Drive] Electrified GV70 proves smooth EV shift in Genesis series
Genesis, Hyundai Motor’s standalone luxury brand, proved that it not only makes great combustion engine cars but also premium electric cars by introducing the Genesis Electrified GV70. The luxury electric SUV has inherited much of the exterior and interior design of the original GV70 which had been praised by many car lovers for its sophisticated design. But some changes here and there helped the electrified model look much more dynamic and athletic than its previous model. For instance
March 18, 2022
-
Apple to launch new budget iPhone SE in S. Korea next week
Apple Inc. will launch its newly upgraded iPhone SE smartphone in South Korea next week, the country's telecom operators said Friday, as the US tech giant aims to expand its leadership in the budget-friendly smartphone market. Last week, Apple unveiled its low-end iPhone SE featuring better battery life and access to 5G connection, as well as the iPad Air and new green versions of the iPhone 13. Apple's latest iPhone SE will go on sale in South Korea next Friday. The new budget 5G phone will be
March 18, 2022
-
SC Bank Korea's 2021 net dips 50% on one-off costs
Standard Chartered Bank Korea said Friday its net profit tumbled more than 50 percent in 2021 from a year earlier on large one-off costs. Combined net income stood at 127.9 billion won ($106 million) last year, down 50.3 percent from a year earlier, said the local unit of British banking giant Standard Chartered Bank. The lender said the bottom-line plunge is blamed on one-off costs worth 252.7 billion won resulting from a special early retirement program in the fourth quarter of last year. Its
March 18, 2022
-
Omicron spread feared to constrain private spending recovery: finance ministry
The South Korean economy has extended its recovery momentum on the back of robust exports, but the fast spread of the omicron variant is feared to constrain the recovery of private spending, the finance ministry said Friday. External economic uncertainties also heightened as volatility in raw material prices and market fluctuations amplified due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the ministry said in its monthly economic assessment report, called the Green Book. "South Korea's exports have ma
March 18, 2022
-
Seoul stocks open higher as investors eye Ukraine peace talks
South Korean stocks opened slightly higher Friday, as investors placed hopes on the ongoing fourth round of Ukraine-Russia peace talks after eased Fed uncertainties. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 3.9 points, or 0.14 percent, to trade at 2698.41 points as of 9:15 a.m. Large caps traded mixed in Seoul. Market bellwether Samsung Electronics lost 0.7 percent, and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix retreated 0.81 percent. Internet portal operator Naver advanced 0.44 percent, and
March 18, 2022
-
Samsung, Apple to vie over midrange 5G phones
Samsung Electronics unveiled its new midrange smartphones -- Galaxy A33 5G and A53 5G -- at the Galaxy A event held Thursday, a week after its smartphone rival Apple came out with the latest iPhone SE series. The new lineup is part of the South Korean tech giant’s move aimed at giving Android users access to 5G connectivity at a more affordable price and to lure more people into its own Galaxy ecosystem. “We believe everyone deserves the opportunity to experience the positive impa
March 17, 2022
-
BOK chief nomination delayed amid Moon-Yoon friction
President Moon Jae-in and President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol are seen as bickering over replacing the Bank of Korea governor, whose term ends on March 31 ahead of the May inauguration day, sparking concerns of a leadership void that could add another layer of uncertainty to economic worries. The BOK, which is expected to lift the nation’s key rate in response to a rate hike by the US Federal Reserve on Wednesday, is walking a thin line between stemming currency depreciation and inflation at ho
March 17, 2022
-
Seoul stocks rise more than 1%, Korean won surges on Fed's hike, eased Ukraine woes
South Korean stocks rallied by more than 1 percent as the US Federal Reserve's monetary meeting results largely fell within investors' expectations and optimism for Russia-Ukraine peace talks. The Korean won soared by the largest margin in two years against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) advanced 35.28 points, or 1.33 percent, to close at 2,694.51 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 535 million shares worth some 11.6 trillion won ($9.6 billion), w
March 17, 2022
-
Duty-free purchase limit scrapped for Koreans
South Korea’s Finance Ministry will no longer limit duty-free item purchases to $5,000 for outbound Korean nationals starting Friday, it said Thursday. But a government cap on how much is exempt from tax remains unchanged. Duties are exempt for purchases up to $600 of goods, one bottle of liquor worth up to $400, 200 cigarettes, and up to 60 milliliters of perfume. The Finance Ministry explained that the tax exemption limit in other countries are also around $500 and $600 and there was n
March 17, 2022
-
Korea to remove tariff on rare gases for chip manufacturing amid Ukraine war
SEJONG -- The Korean government will lower tariffs on a portion of imports for three major rare gases -- neon, xenon and krypton -- which are used during the process of manufacturing semiconductors down to zero percent, starting from next month. The action of slashing tariffs for a certain portion of imports of the three gases, but not for all, comes as part of the government’s countermeasures against the Ukraine-Russian war, the Ministry of Finance and Economy said Thursday. Deputy Prim
March 17, 2022
-
More Koreans end marriage at older age: data
More South Koreans are choosing to divorce at an older age, government data showed Thursday, with divorce rates among people 60 and older increasing as the nation rapidly approaches a super-aged society. The average age for males and females going through divorce here both rose 0.8 year on-year to 50.1 and 46.8, respectively, last year, according to data compiled by Statistics Korea. In the last decade, the average age for males rose 4.7 years, while the age for females rose 5.2 years. While
March 17, 2022
-
Samsung SDI hints at new EV battery plant in US
Samsung SDI CEO Choi Yoon-ho on Thursday hinted at the possibility of building the battery maker’s own plant in the US, a burgeoning market for electric vehicles where the company is setting up a joint venture with Stellantis, the maker of Jeep, Fiat and Peugeot vehicles. “Adding to the joint venture with Stellantis, we think there needs to be our own production base in the US,” Choi told reporters after a general meeting of shareholders in Seoul. “We are conside
March 17, 2022
-
Ex-Samsung VP convicted for union busting
The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld an additional 16-month jail sentence to former Samsung Electronics Vice President Kang Kyung-hoon for his attempts to break up a labor union in South Korea‘s largest conglomerate. This is the final court ruling that found the executive guilty over his scheme to sabotage labor union activities at Everland, an operator of an amusement park in Korea. Everland was considered a key affiliate in Samsung’s corporate structure, and has been merged into S
March 17, 2022
-
Coupang Eats set to begin alcohol delivery
Coupang Eats, the food delivery service launched by South Korean e-commerce giant Coupang, is getting into delivering drinks. The company said on its webpage earlier this week that it will start allowing restaurants signed up on the platform to sell alcohol, in an effort to help them increase sales. The new service will be rolled out within the first half of this year. Coupang Eats had kept alcohol off the platform since its debut in May 2019. The move was in contrast to its top tw
March 17, 2022
-
SK-Netflix battle over network usage fee resumes at high court
Netflix proposed ways to reduce the burden on network providers in the first appellate court hearing over whether the streaming service is liable to pay network usage fees to SK Broadband. The court hearing, held Wednesday evening at the Seoul High Court, is the first since a preliminary hearing took place in December. The case follows a district court ruling in June that gave SK Broadband an upper hand -- the first ruling in the world over which party is obliged to pay network usage fees. Bo
March 17, 2022