Most Popular
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Blinken calls on China to press N. Korea to end its 'dangerous' behavior
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New celebrity-endorsed therapy for face contouring requires only a pair of rubber bands
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[Weekender] How DDP emerged as an icon of Seoul
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Tensions heighten ahead of first president-opposition chief meeting
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Doctor group's incoming head renews call for govt. to scrap medical school quota hike for dialogue
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Seoul to provide housing subsidy to married couples with newborns
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Rapper jailed after public street fight with another rapper
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[Music in drama] An ode to childhood trauma
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'The Roundup: Punishment' becomes fastest 2024 film to top 2 mln admissions
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New head of doctors' association vows war in case of disadvantage to medical professors
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Seoul stocks slump amid US tapering uncertainties
South Korean stocks retreated Tuesday amid lack of major market-moving events as investors still assess weak US job data and its impact on the Federal Reserve's timeline for tapering its stimulus. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) decreased 15.91 points, or 0.5 percent, to close at 3,187.42 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 745 million shares worth some 11.7 trillion won ($10.1 billion), with losers outnumbering gainer
Sept. 7, 2021
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Daily mobile stock trading volume surges 220% in 2020
Stock trades carried out through mobile transaction platforms in South Korea hit an all-time high in 2020, data showed Tuesday, reflecting retail investors’ strong appetite for stock investment during the pandemic-hit market. The daily average amount of stock transactions via mobile trading systems came to 26.66 trillion won ($23.03 billion) last year, up 219.6 percent on-year from 8.34 trillion won, the Bank of Korea said in its annual report on financial information. An average of 11
Sept. 7, 2021
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[Newsmaker] LX Hausys enters race for top furniture maker Hanssem
LX Hausys, formerly LG Hausys, which specializes in windows and interior materials, has entered the race to acquire South Korea’s top furniture maker Hanssem. The company, which is part of LX Group – a new entity that was separated from LG Group earlier this year, is the latest to show interest in buying a controlling stake in the firm, following other retail giants including Lotte, according to multiple reports. For its bid, LX Hausys will be joining a private equity fund set up
Sept. 7, 2021
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Financial holding firms' H1 profit jumps 50% on interest income
South Korea's 10 financial holding firms saw their combined net profit jump 50.3 percent in the first half due mainly to higher interest income, data showed Tuesday. The combined net profit of KB Financial, Shinhan Financial and eight other financial holding firms stood at 11.47 trillion won ($9.9 billion) in the January-June period, compared with a profit of 7.63 trillion won for the same period last year, according to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). The FSS attributed
Sept. 7, 2021
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[Herald Interview] ‘Hiring philosophy is changing at South Korean companies’
When Lee Bok-kee, founder and CEO of Wanted Labs, quit his high-paying consulting job in 2013, he had only one goal: to solve problems. Having spent around five years at a consulting firm seeing tech mammoths like Samsung and LG pay millions of won to solve business problems, he was certain there would be at least one problem he can solve on his own. But finding the right one was not an easy journey. After brainstorming hundreds of businesses ideas, two failed startups, and losing his 100
Sept. 7, 2021
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Economic uncertainty growing over 4th wave of pandemic: KDI
South Korea's economy is under pressure over growing headwinds as a recent spike in COVID-19 infections is likely to delay a recovery of domestic consumption, a state-run think tank said Tuesday. The nation's economy is on a recovery track amid robust exports, but the toughest virus curbs, in effect due to the fourth wave of the pandemic, may dampen improving domestic demand, according to a monthly economic assessment report by the Korea Development Institute (KDI). "Our economy has recen
Sept. 7, 2021
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KAI buys 20% of satellite footage analysis firm Meissa
Korea Aerospace Industries said Tuesday it had acquired a 20 percent stake in Meissa, a South Korean satellite footage analysis firm, to make a foray into the global space services market estimated to be valued at 300 trillion won ($255.4 billion). Together with Meissa, which developed the nation’s first “reconstruction engine” that can convert a 2D footage into 3D, KAI aims to provide advanced satellite footage analysis services using artificial intelligence and big data inst
Sept. 7, 2021
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FSS warns KB Savings Bank against lax control of soaring household debt
Amid the government’s move to bolster household debt management, the Financial Supervisory Service said Tuesday it has handed down a warning to KB Savings Bank over its loose screening for unsecured loans. KB Savings Bank turned out to have increased the amount of credit loans allowed for households since July last year by raising its lending programs’ loan limit and offering a discounted interest rate, without a strict review process led by the executive meeting, a FSS official sai
Sept. 7, 2021
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S. Korea maintains No.1 spot in new shipbuilding orders for 4th month
South Korean shipbuilders far outstripped their Chinese rivals in terms of new orders in August, retaining their top spot for the fourth straight month, industry data showed Tuesday. Local shipbuilders led by Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. won a combined 780,000 compensated gross tons (CGTs) in new orders last month, taking up 57 percent of 1.37 million CGTs of global orders, according to data provided by global market researcher Clarkson Research Service. Chinese shipbuilders obtained 370,000 C
Sept. 7, 2021
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Current account surplus narrows in July on decreased trade surplus
South Korea's current account surplus slightly narrowed in July due to reduced trade surplus, although exports maintained strong growth, central bank data showed Tuesday. The current account surplus reached $8.21 billion in July, narrowing from a surplus of $8.85 billion the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). The current account is the broadest measure of cross-border trade. Since the country logged a deficit of $3.33 billion in April last year, the largest in almost a decad
Sept. 7, 2021
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[Graphic News] South Korea’s ready-to-drink coffee market grows 5.9% in H1
South Korea’s market for convenient coffee beverages expanded nearly 6 percent in the first half of the year amid the coronavirus pandemic, a market tracker said. The value of the local ready-to-drink coffee market stood at 672.9 billion won ($574 million) in the January-June period, up 5.9 percent from a year earlier, according to Nielsen Koreanclick. Canned coffee accounted for the largest portion at 258.6 billion won, followed by cups of coffee at 217.5 billion won and bottled
Sept. 7, 2021
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Seoul stocks open slightly lower on investors' wait-and-see mode
South Korean stocks opened a tad lower Tuesday as investors took to the sidelines in the absence of major events related to the US Federal Reserve's timeline for tapering its stimulus. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) fell 1.82 points, or 0.06 percent, to 3,201.51 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, the US stock exchanges were closed for a holiday. In Seoul, top cap Samsung Electronics lost 0.91 percent, and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix retreated 0.47 perc
Sept. 7, 2021
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Insurers' lending grows 8% in Q2
Loans extended by insurance companies in South Korea rose 8 percent on-year in the second quarter, led by gains in home-backed lending and corporate loans, the financial watchdog said Tuesday. Insurers' outstanding loans totaled 260.3 trillion won ($225 billion) as of end-June, compared with 240.9 trillion won the previous year, according to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). Their loans to households rose 6.5 trillion won on-year to 126.6 trillion won as of end-June as the extension of
Sept. 7, 2021
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Malaysia’s largest Halal show to kick off on Sept. 9
Malaysia will present halal products to the global audience at the upcoming Malaysia International Halal Showcase, or MIHAS, set to kick off Thursday. “We truly believe that small and medium sized Malaysian brands have the potential to become Halal champions. Through MIHAS we hope to facilitate the sourcing and selling of quality halal consumables, products and services globally,” said Dr. Halim Mohammad, the chairman of Malaysia External Trade Development Corp. during an online me
Sept. 6, 2021
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Both sides claim victory as Kyobo Life-shareholder arbitration ends
Kyobo Life Insurance and its minority shareholders both argued Monday that they had won an arbitration at the International Chamber of Commerce over a drawn out dispute surrounding shares Kyobo Life Chairman Shin Chang-jae has to buy back from investors. The binding resolution indicated that the strike price for the put option -- forcing Shin to buy back the minority shareholders’ combined 24 percent stake in Kyobo Life at 409,000 won ($353.4) apiece -- is invalid, but the contract still
Sept. 6, 2021
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[News Focus] What’s stopping Hyundai, Kia from selling used cars?
BMW sells used BMW cars. Tesla is set to offer secondhand Tesla cars directly to local consumers soon. But Hyundai and Kia, the two local brands that together carry out nearly 80 percent of new car sales here, aren’t in the used car industry yet. Legally, nothing stops them from selling used cars. In 2019 the country lifted a 2013 ban intended to protect microenterprises. But due to the continued protests of small used car players, the discussion has not made any progress. Late la
Sept. 6, 2021
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Questions raised over duopoly of Naver and Kakao in platform industry
Last week, South Korea passed a bill aimed at preventing Google and Apple from abusing their app market duopoly, a move that garnered the media spotlight around the world. The so-called “anti-Google bill” revises the Telecommunications Business Act to stop the US-based Google from forcing local app developers to use its own payment system for in-app purchases. Industry watchers said Korean tech heavyweights in dominant market positions are also likely to face similar regulatory
Sept. 6, 2021
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Hyundai Capital chief to resign from CEO post after 18 years
Hyundai Capital Services Vice Chairman Chung Tae-young is poised to offer his resignation from the company’s top post later this month, the company said Monday. Chung will step down as chief executive officer and executive board member of the auto financing firm on Aug. 30, 18 years after he was promoted to the position in 2003. The brother-in-law of Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Euisun was set to serve a three-year term as Hyundai Capital chief ending in 2024. Vice Chairman Chun
Sept. 6, 2021
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Hyundai Heavy’s IPO price set at top end
Major South Korean shipbuilder Hyundai Heavy Industries shares were priced at 60,000 won ($51.90) apiece, the top of its indicative range for its initial public offering amid strong demand, the firm said in a regulatory filing Monday. The shipbuilder wrapped up its two-day book building Friday. While institutional investors placed bids to obtain the firm’s new shares from its initial public offering, a total of 1,633 domestic and foreign institutions participated. The competition marked
Sept. 6, 2021
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Budget for COVID-19 research cut by 32 percent next year: lawmaker
The South Korean government is looking for a significant budget cut for COVID-19 vaccine and treatment development programs next year, a lawmaker said Monday. According to the budget proposal that main opposition People Power Party Rep. Jeon Bong-min acquired from the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the government plans to spend 89.3 billion won ($76 million) on support of COVID-19 vaccine and treatment development in 2022, down 32 percent compared to this year. Rep. Jeon said the support to c
Sept. 6, 2021