Kakao founder pledges to donate more than half of assets

The founder of South Korea's top mobile messenger operator Kakao Corp. said Monday that he will donate more than half of his wealth -- currently estimated to be more than 10 trillion won ($8.9 billion). "I have pledged to donate more than half of my assets to solve social issues throughout my life," Kim Beom-su said in a message sent to all of Kakao's employees. His assets are estimated to be over 10 trillion won, including 12.5 million shares of Kakao, valued at over 5.7 trillion wo

Feb. 8, 2021

Hyundai, Kia shares tumble over denial of Apple car talks

Shares of South Korea’s Hyundai Motor Group affiliates saw their stocks slump Monday after an announcement that the carmaker is not in talks with US tech giant Apple for a self-driving vehicle project. Shares of Hyundai Motor crumbled 6.21 percent to 234,000 won ($208.94), with its smaller affiliate Kia plunging 14.98 percent to 86,300 won, at the closing bell. The firms at one point plummeted as much as 8.42 percent and 15.27 percent, respectively, in the early morning trade. Other key

Feb. 8, 2021

Financial authorities defend dividend cap on banks

The nation’s top financial regulators said Monday that their recommendation for lenders to limit dividend payouts was in line with global standards, rebutting criticism that it constituted excessive government intervention. The Financial Services Commission and the Financial Supervisory Service have urged local banks to curb their dividends, saying the prolonged pandemic could hurt local banks’ financial soundness.　 “The recommendation for a dividend reduction is a tempora

Feb. 8, 2021

AfreecaTV enjoys record annual sales in 2020

South Korea‘s biggest live streaming platform AfreecaTV saw its revenue and operating profit hit new highs in 2020, the company said Monday. According to a regulatory filing, the company’s revenue and operating profit soared 17.1 percent and 37.3 percent on-year to 196.6 billion won ($175.7 million) and 50.4 billion won, respectively. Its net profit rose to 36.4 billion won, a 6.5 percent increase on-year. AfreecaTV also enjoyed record quarterly results in the fourth quarter. I

Feb. 8, 2021

Kakao Games’ 2020 sales best in company’s history

Kakao Games, the gaming unit of South Korea’s leading messenger app operator Kakao, registered 495.5 billion won ($442.9 million) in revenue last year, the best figure since the company started business. According to a regulatory filing Monday, the company’s revenue and operating profit in 2020 spiked 27 percent and 90 percent on-year to 495.5 billion won and 66.6 billion won, respectively. Its net profit skyrocketed 659 percent to 67.3 billion won. “Kakao Games enjoyed r

Feb. 8, 2021

Hyosung launches recycled plastic clothing brand G3H10

Hyosung TNC, the fiber production unit of Hyosung Group, said Monday that it has launched a clothing brand to showcase garments made of recycled plastic and organic cotton. The first product from the new brand, G3H10, is a hoodie that will come in three colors -- charcoal, ivory and olive. The hoodies will be a blend of Regen, Hyosung TNC’s eco-friendly fiber made of recycled plastic, and organic cotton grown without the use of synthetic pesticides. “As a business-to-business co

Feb. 8, 2021

[News Focus] World’s first ‘hydrogen law’ takes effect. What's in it?

To usher in the hydrogen economy, South Korea passed the world’s first hydrogen law. It centers on the development of an ecosystem for a hydrogen economy and expanded public access to the alternative fuel. The Economic Promotion and Safety Control of Hydrogen Act, which came into effect Friday, mainly deals with three key areas -- hydrogen vehicles, charging stations and fuel cells. First, the hydrogen law is intended to bring transparency to the nation’s hydrogen pricing system

Feb. 8, 2021

Korean investors shy away from European commercial properties

Once the fastest emerging source of foreign capital into European real estate asset investments, South Korea‘s investors were seen redirecting their attention to the Americas in 2020, data showed Monday. According to data from US-based property market tracker Real Capital Analytics, Korea’s capital going directly into assets in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, each valued at $10 million or greater, fell by 78 percent on-year to $3 billion in 2020. Koreans in 2019 were the

Feb. 8, 2021

KOSPI dips below 3,100 on Hyundai, Kia losses

South Korea's benchmark stock index slumped below the 3,100-point mark Monday despite spreading optimism for an economic rebound, largely on losses by Hyundai Motor and its affiliate Kia Corp. as the two automakers said they are not in talks with Apple Inc. over an electric vehicle project. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 29.39 points, or 0.94 percent, to close at 3,091.24 points. Trading volume was high at about 1.3 billi

Feb. 8, 2021

Finance minister calls for efforts to activate new housing supply plan

South Korea's finance minister instructed his officials Monday to spare no effort to thoroughly implement the government's latest massive housing supply plan in a bid to stabilize rising home prices. The government said last week it will ease construction regulations and support redevelopment projects in urban areas to increase the number of new homes by up to 836,000 nationwide in the next four years. "Now the key to stabilizing the housing market is to thoroughly implement the latest ho

Feb. 8, 2021

GameStop was January’s 2nd-most traded foreign stock

Despite the recent stock price saga of US video gaming retailer GameStop, the company was not the most-traded stock among South Korean investors in January, according to data on Monday. In data compiled by Korea Securities Depository, a post-trade service provider, the gaming retailer came second in terms of stock transactions last month, with the trading volume reaching $2.4 billion. Korean traders net bought some $1.1 billion worth of GameStop shares and net sold $1.3 billion over the month

Feb. 8, 2021

LG smartphones sold for halved prices before announcement on fate of mobile unit

The last batch of smartphones by LG Electronics -- LG Velvet and LG Wing released last year -- are being sold with massive discounts and subsidies through mobile carriers before the company’s final decision on its planned sale of the smartphone business. According to the telecom industry Monday, the actual cost of buying an LG Wing, a dual-display smartphone released last September, has been reduced to around 400,000 won ($357) from 1.09 million won, amid sluggish sales.  Actual p

Feb. 8, 2021

Craft beer association and brewers call on government to allow online beer sales

The Korea Craft Brewers Association and dozens of brewers have called on the government to allow online beer sales to help offset the blow from the coronavirus pandemic. In a statement on Monday, the group said sales of craft beer drastically dropped last year as main sales channels such as restaurants and pubs were forced to close due to social distancing rules. “Sales dropped by half at the minimum and up to 90 percent in worse cases, forcing staff to take a leave of absence or busines

Feb. 8, 2021

WeMakePrice names new CEO and vows investment in technology

Online e-commerce company WeMakePrice named its former vice president as the new CEO in an announcement Monday. Ha Song, who had been the acting CEO since last August after former CEO Park Eun-sang took a leave of absence for health reasons, will now lead the company. “We plan to strengthen our industry-leading curation service and invest in technology advancement in order to become a competitive platform strictly from the users’ perspective. Ha joined the company in 2015 and has

Feb. 8, 2021

Celltrion Pharm launches Remsima SC in Korea

Celltrion Pharm said Monday that it is rolling out Remsima SC in Korea for at-home treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and inflammatory bowel disease. With Remsima SC, or subcutaneous Remsima, there is no need to visit the hospital for regular therapeutic shots for the aforementioned autoimmune diseases now. Remsima is an intravenous infliximab treatment that has to be prepared and administered by medical professionals at hospitals. Remsima SC, on the other hand, comes in pen-type autoinjecto

Feb. 8, 2021

Vietnamese apparel made with S. Korean fabric to enjoy lower tariffs in Europe

Apparel and clothing items produced in Vietnam with South Korea-made fabrics will be allowed to enjoy lower tariffs in the European Union, the trade ministry said Monday. Previously, clothes needed to be made with locally produced fabrics in order to enjoy the benefits of the Vietnam-EU free trade agreement, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. "With South Korea being the second-largest supplier of fabric in Vietnam, the latest policy will lead to stronger demand for S

Feb. 8, 2021

LG Display to invest additional $750m for its Vietnamese plant: reports

LG Display Co., a major display panel maker in South Korea, will make an additional $750 million investment in its plant in Vietnam, news reports showed Monday, as the company eyes expanding OLED panel productions. The city of Hai Phong approved LG Display's latest investment plan for its plant in northern Vietnam, according to the Vietnam News Agency. The expenditure will bring LG Display's total investment for its project in the Vietnamese port city to $3.25 billion, it added. LG Display is

Feb. 8, 2021

Korea Shipbuilding bags W152b order from Oceania

Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co. said Monday it has won a 152 billion-won ($136 million) order from Oceanian companies. Under the deal, two 40,000-cubic meter liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carriers will be built by Hyundai Mipo Dockyard Co. and one 40,000-ton petrochemical carrier will be built by Hyundai-Vietnam Shipbuilding Co., Korea Shipbuilding said. Korea Shipbuilding did not reveal the name of the customer. The deal for the petrochemical carrier has an option to build

Feb. 8, 2021

Doosan Infracore wins large-scale orders from emerging markets

Top construction equipment maker Doosan Infracore Co. said Monday that it has won orders of 221 units of construction equipment from emerging markets such as Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Central and South America. Doosan Infracore sold 108 units of excavators and wheel loaders in Hong Kong, Thailand and Vietnam this year, the company said. A total of 27 units of construction equipment were sold in Oman, while 70 units were provided to companies in Morocco and Egypt. In Colombia, Doosan I

Feb. 8, 2021

Manufacturers' domestic supply down for 3rd straight quarter amid pandemic

South Korean manufacturers' domestic supply fell for the third consecutive quarter in the fourth quarter of last year amid the fallout of the prolonged pandemic, data showed Monday. The manufacturing domestic supply index stood at 108.3 in the October-December period, down 1.1 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the quarterly index has fallen since the second quarter of 2020, when it declined 4.5 percent on-year, the shar

Feb. 8, 2021