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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Tensions heighten ahead of first president-opposition chief meeting
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Seoul to provide housing subsidy to married couples with newborns
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[Weekender] How DDP emerged as an icon of Seoul
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Rapper jailed after public street fight with another rapper
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Woman gets suspended term for injuring boyfriend with knife
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[KH Explains] No more 'Michael' at Kakao Games
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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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NewJeans pops out ‘Bubble Gum’ video amid troubles at agency
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SsangYong's May sales rise 6% on strong overseas performance
SsangYong Motor Co. said Tuesday its sales rose 6 percent last month from a year earlier on increased exports of its SUVs. SsangYong Motor sold 8,750 vehicles in May, up from 8,254 units a year earlier, the company said in a statement. Exports more than quintupled to 3,854 units last month from 711 a year ago, but domestic sales fell 35 percent to 4,956 units from 7,575 over the cited period, the statement said. From January to May, its sales fell 19 percent to 31,660 units from 39,206 units
June 1, 2021
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Lotte Rental accelerates Kospi debut in H2
Lotte Rental, the car rental service unit under Lotte Group, is moving for an initial public offering on South Korea’s main bourse Kospi in the second half of this year, according to investment banking sources Tuesday. The company submitted a preliminary application for an IPO to the Korea Exchange the day before to become the first Lotte-affiliated company to make a market debut in nearly three years. The group’s last IPO was Lotte Data Communication’s Kospi-listing in Novem
June 1, 2021
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JTBC Studios takes over Wiip, eyes global content industry
Local entertainment giant JTBC Studios said Tuesday it was acquiring an independent US television studio in preparation for a foray into the American market. The deal of an undisclosed amount is the latest in a line of aggressive investments JTBC has made since last year to increase its presence in the global TV market. JTBC Studios said it would engage with the US content maker in the areas of co-production and expanding distribution channels, for example. The company plans to expand to Japa
June 1, 2021
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Race to acquire Eastar Jet heats up as more companies enter bidding process
More companies including poultry producer Harim and underwear company Ssang Bang Wool have entered the race to acquire financially troubled budget airline Easter Jet. Around ten companies and private equity funds have submitted a Letter of Intent to acquire the low cost carrier, according to reports citing sources close to the industry. The list includes Kanglim, a crane manufacturer and a subsidiary of Ssang Bang Wool Group, as well as Harim Group‘s shipping company Pan Ocean. The dea
June 1, 2021
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Renault Samsung's May sales drop 13% on weak domestic demand
Renault Samsung Motors Corp. said Tuesday its sales fell 13.3 percent last month from a year earlier due to weak domestic demand. The South Korean unit of Renault S.A. sold 10,348 vehicles in May, down from 11,929 units a year earlier, the company said in a statement. Domestic sales tumbled 56.2 percent on-year to 4,635 units last month in the face of toughening competition with other brands. Exports rose more than fourfold to 5,713 units over the cited period as the automaker shipped 4,247
June 1, 2021
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NH Financial invests W500b in IT operations
South Korea’s NH Financial Group said Tuesday that it has decided to invest a total 500 billion won ($451.9 million) in improving its information technology operations and services. “To bolster customer protection and services, we have decided to invest a total of 500 billion won in our IT operations,” NH said in a statement. Of the total investment, 320 billion won will be funneled into upgrading IT services of its flagship commercial bank, NH NongHyup Bank, while the res
June 1, 2021
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Banks shed 1,200 jobs in Q1
South Korea’s major commercial banks cut over 1,200 jobs in the first three months of the year, as the bruising COVID-19 pandemic pushed them toward online- and mobile-focused services, data showed Tuesday. The combined size of the workforce of major commercial lenders here shed 1.8 percent or 1,244 jobs in the first quarter compared with the last three months of 2020, according to an online data system operated by the Korea Federation of Banks. The total number of executives and employee
June 1, 2021
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W64tr funneled through bank accounts for crypto trading
Amid the recent market frenzy surrounding cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, the volume of deposits and withdrawals made through bank accounts for virtual coin trading has surpassed 64 trillion won ($57.85 billion), data showed Tuesday. During the first quarter, nearly 64.2 trillion won flowed in and out of real-name bank accounts from commercial lenders, including Shinhan Bank, NH Nonghyup Bank and internet-only K bank, for digital token investments through South Korea’s four major c
June 1, 2021
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Shareholder engagement key driver for Asia’s green finance growth: experts
Shareholder engagement in the form of behind-the-curtain dialogues or proxy voting, as well as engagement with asset owner clients, should be a key for asset managers to sustain the concept of green finance in Asia, investment professionals said Monday. There is no shortcut to navigate how to persuade Asian companies to commit to net-zero pledges. Incentives to achieve the sustainable goals have so far remained elusive, while on the other hand, asset prices have yet to fully reflect climate ri
June 1, 2021
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S. Korean tech companies to strengthen cooperation for AI server chips
South Korean cloud data center operators have formed ties with local companies that specialize in chips used in servers in a move to cope with growing semiconductor demand and uncertainty in global supply chains, the ICT ministry said Tuesday. The Ministry of Science and ICT said five data center companies -- Naver Cloud, Douzone Bizon, Kakao Enterprise, NHN and KT -- and the Artificial Intelligence Industry Cluster Agency signed a memorandum of understanding with local server chip companies SK
June 1, 2021
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S. Korea unveils homegrown space rocket for first time
South Korea unveiled Tuesday a fully assembled model of its homegrown space rocket for the first time since the country started its development in 2010 as it conducts final testing procedures before its launch later this year. South Korea has earmarked 2 trillion won ($1.8 billion) to develop its first homegrown space launch vehicle, named Nuri, and aims for a launch in October this year. In 2013, South Korea successfully launched its first-ever Naro space rocket, though its first stage rocket
June 1, 2021
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Banks' average capital adequacy ratio gains in Q1
South Korean banks saw their financial health improve in the first quarter from three months earlier as they recorded high net profits and raised capital amid the COVID-19 pandemic, data showed Tuesday. The average capital adequacy ratio of 16 commercial and state-run banks stood at 15.34 percent as of end-March, up 0.34 percentage point from the end of last year, according to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). A key barometer of financial soundness, the ratio measures the
June 1, 2021
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Korea Shipbuilding bags W1.36tr order for 12 ships
Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co. (KSOE) said Tuesday that it has a combined 1.36 trillion won ($1.2 billion) of orders from five customers to build 12 ships. Under a deal with an Oceanian company, four liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers and a 40,000-cubic meter liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carrier will be delivered by the first half of 2024, KSOE said in an emailed statement. Another deal with an African company calls for KSOE to deliver four 50,000-ton petrochemical carrie
June 1, 2021
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Samsung Heavy wins W529b order for 4 container carriers
Samsung Heavy Industries Co. said Tuesday it has signed a 529 billion-won ($477 million) deal with an Asian company to construct four container carriers. The 13,000 twenty foot equivalent unit (TEU) container carriers will be delivered to the Asian company by February 2024, Samsung Heavy said in a regulatory filing. With the latest deal, Samsung Heavy has achieved 65 percent of its annual target of $9.1 billion, by winning orders worth $5.9 billion for 48 ships, the company said. As new orde
June 1, 2021
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LG converting smartphone production lines to make home appliances
LG Electronics Inc. is fast converting its overseas smartphone manufacturing lines into facilities that produce home appliances, industry insiders said Tuesday, following its decision to withdraw from the mobile business. LG said the Brazilian government last month approved its plan to expand its Manaus plant in Amazonas, northwestern Brazil, in a move to shift its production lines from the Taubate site on the east coast. When the $62 million project is completed, LG Electronics will have ne
June 1, 2021
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Seoul stocks open nearly flat on inflation woes
South Korean stocks opened nearly flat Tuesday as investors are keeping an eye on signs that may stoke inflation fears. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) traded down 1.36 points, or 0.04 percent, at 3,202.56 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. The KOSPI got off to a muted start on investor concerns over early post-pandemic inflation that may trigger tapering talks in the United States. Key Federal Reserve officials are set to comment on the state of the US economy
June 1, 2021
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Exports recovery extended to 7th month in May on rebounding global economy
South Korea's exports jumped 45.6 percent on-year in May to extend their gains to a seventh consecutive month due to strong demand for chips amid the global economic recovery, underscoring a rebound from the pandemic-caused slump, data showed Tuesday. Outbound shipments came to $50.7 billion last month, compared with $34.8 billion a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Imports rose 37.9 percent to $47.8 billion, resulting in a trade surplu
June 1, 2021
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Homegrown app market operator draws funding from Microsoft, Deutsche Telekom
ONE store, a South Korean app market operator, said Tuesday it received a combined 17 billion won ($15 million) in funding from Microsoft Corp. and the venture capital arm of Deutsche Telekom as it prepares to go public later this year. Microsoft will invest 11.3 billion won in the app market company, a subsidiary under major mobile carrier SK Telecom Co., while Deutsche Telekom Capital Partners will chip in 5.5 billion won, according to ONE store. The move comes after local telecom operators
June 1, 2021
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May inflation rate probably remained high due to base effect: senior official
The growth rate of South Korea's consumer prices for May is estimated to have remained high due largely to last year's low base, a senior government official said Tuesday, amid concerns about growing inflationary pressure. First Vice Finance Minister Lee Eog-weon said the growth of consumer inflation is likely to surpass 2 percent in the second quarter, but annual inflation is not likely to top the central bank's target of 2 percent. He said the government will unveil a set of measures to help
June 1, 2021
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Insurers' lending grows 7% in Q1
Loans extended by insurance companies in South Korea rose 7 percent on-year in the first quarter, led by gains in home-backed lending and corporate loans, the financial watchdog said Tuesday. Insurers' outstanding loans totaled 255.1 trillion won ($229 billion) as of end-March, compared with 238.4 trillion won the previous year, according to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). Their loans to households rose 3.6 trillion won on-year to 124.9 trillion won as of end-March, as the extension
June 1, 2021