GM to recall Bolt EVs to update battery software

US automaker General Motors Co. said Friday it will recall Chevrolet Bolt electric vehicles equipped with batteries produced in LG Energy Solution Ltd.'s South Korean factory to update its battery software and ease fire risks. The recall covers about 69,000 Bolt EVs for the 2017-2019 model years, installed with LG's batteries made from its factory in Ochang, 120 kilometers south of Seoul. About 9,500 units were sold in South Korea, the Korean unit of GM said. Dealers will install "advan

April 30, 2021

Samsung slips to 4th in 5G smartphone market in Q1: report

Samsung Electronics Co. lost its leading position in the global 5G smartphone market to rank fourth in the first quarter of the year, a report showed Friday, as Apple Inc. and Chinese makers expanded their presence with new devices. Samsung's share in the 5G smartphone market stood at 12.7 percent in the January-March period, down from 34.6 percent a year ago, according to market researcher Strategy Analytics. The South Korean tech giant shipped 17 million 5G smartphones in the first three mon

April 30, 2021

S. Korea's functional food market growing rapidly amid pandemic

The South Korean market of functional foods is growing fast amid greater awareness of health amid the coronavirus pandemic, a report showed Friday. Sales of red ginseng and other health functional foods came to 4.9 trillion won ($4.42 billion) in 2020, up 40 percent from four years earlier, according to the report by MezzoMedia, a local digital marketing solution company. Red ginseng was the top-selling product with sales of 1.43 trillion won, followed by probiotics with 885.6 billion won and

April 30, 2021

Industrial output grows for 2nd month in March amid recovery hopes

South Korea's industrial output grew for the second straight month in March, data showed Friday, in the latest sign that Asia's fourth-largest economy is on a recovery path. The industrial output increased 0.8 percent in March from the previous month, slowing from a 2.1 percent on-month gain in February, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. From a year earlier, it also rose 5.8 percent. But output in the mining, manufacturing, gas and electricity industries declined 0.8 percen

April 30, 2021

S. Korea calls for free movement of data at G-7 digital ministers meeting

South Korea called for the free movement of data to vitalize the digital economy on Thursday in this year's Group of Seven (G-7) meeting of digital and technology ministers. South Korea took part in the intergovernmental ministerial meeting virtually after being invited to this year's G-7 meeting set to be held in the United Kingdom in June. Minister of Science and ICT Choi Ki-young said at the meeting that the movement of data as well as electronic transferable records and internet security a

April 29, 2021

Retail investors pump up W81tr into SK unit’s IPO

South Korea’s amateur investors poured out record amounts of cash -- nearly 81 trillion won ($73.1 billion) -- to obtain new shares of SK ie technology, a wholly owned battery materials subsidiary under SK Innovation, in its two-day public subscription for an initial public offering. According to data compiled by underwriters, small domestic traders had placed some 80.9 trillion won in deposits by the deadline of 4 p.m. on Thursday, setting a record in stock market history here. SK Group

April 29, 2021

BC Card takes over Vietnamese POS firm

South Korean credit card issuer BC Card said Thursday that it has acquired a 100 percent stake of Vietnamese point of sale terminal firm Wirecard Vietnam in a bid to increase its foothold in the Southeast Asian market. The newly acquired company, the largest POS system supplier in Vietnam, offers payment terminals to 40 banks and payment services firms operating locally. As the company has software development units under its wing, it can offer tailored payment systems to its customers, whi

April 29, 2021

Watchdog views Coupang as 'conglomerate'

South Korea’s antitrust regulator on Thursday included Coupang on its list of “large business groups,” henceforth imposing heavier corporate disclosure and compliance obligations on the e-commerce operator that had previously remained in the startup arena. The platform’s founder and chief Kim Bom-suk, however, was not deemed the de facto controlling shareholder on the basis of his US citizenship, rekindling skepticism on the validity of the current regulatory framework.

April 29, 2021

S. Korea to tighten mortgage rules to rein in household debt

South Korea unveiled Thursday a set of measures aimed at mitigating risks from the growing household debt burden and bringing the debt growth rate down to levels comparable to before the coronavirus hit the country. “In the course of responding to the COVID-19 crisis last year, the increase in household debt has inevitably expanded. We will manage to revert the household debt growth rate to pre-coronavirus levels,” Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said while presiding over an emergen

April 29, 2021

Posco to increase social contributions, strengthen ESG drive

Posco has pledged to increase its social contributions while embracing the emerging trend of environmental, social and corporate governance, or ESG, management around the globe, the company said Thursday. South Korea’s leading steelmaker in 2018 launched its management initiative called “corporate citizenship” and pledged to expand its support for the betterment of society. Celebrating the fourth year since the company started its support in a wide range of sectors, Posco h

April 29, 2021

[Feature] Can Korea ditch Xinjiang polysilicon over forced labor?

Mounting allegations of forced labor in the Chinese region of Xinjiang have posed a conundrum for the global solar industry, and some say they could also drag down South Korea’s ambitious solar plans. Located in China’s far northwest, the region rife with allegations of human rights abuses is home to four of the world’s top five producers of polysilicon, a key raw material for most solar panels. Together, those four plants account for 40 percent of the global supply. In Ja

April 29, 2021

Seoul stocks down for 3rd day on profit-taking

South Korean stocks slumped for the third consecutive day Thursday as investors sold stocks to lock in gains despite the US Federal Reserve's soothing comments. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 7.4 points, or 0.23 percent, to close at 3,174.07 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 1.2 billion shares worth some 18.8 trillion won ($17 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 472 to 381. Foreigners sold a net 14 bill

April 29, 2021

[From the scene] For short selling newbies in Korea, simulated trading is a must

South Korea is set to partially lift a 14-month ban on short selling, the longest such ban in the world, on Monday, but on one condition -- obligating investors new to the trading strategy to take a half-hour online class and try simulated investments. The mini-lecture provided by the Korea Financial Investment Association informs would-be investors of the difference between a naked short and a covered short. It highlights that investors have limited returns from short sales but theoretically n

April 29, 2021

Kakao's finance arms up IPO drive as disruptive tech goes mainstream

Less than two weeks after Kakao Bank submitted a listing application to the Korea Exchange, Kakao Pay, another finance arm of South Korean internet giant Kakao, followed suit earlier this week. Such a back-to-back announcement of their plans for initial public offerings and listing on Korea’s stock market highlights disruptive technologies that are going mainstream in the domestic financial industry and challenges that traditional banking groups here may face. Each company’s enterp

April 29, 2021

Samsung, LG post record Q1 earnings

Strong sales of home appliances pushed South Korean electronics firms’ sales to a new quarterly high. According to first-quarter earnings results released by Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics on Thursday, the tech titans both achieved their highest-ever quarterly sales and operating profits in the first three months of 2021. Samsung posted record-high sales of 65.39 trillion won ($59 billion) in the first quarter, driven by its mobile device and home appliances businesses, despit

April 29, 2021

No more lining up over summer merch as Starbucks introduces reservation system

Starbucks Coffee Korea is introducing a reservation system for this year’s seasonal loyalty reward program, so that customers do not have to wait in line for its limited-edition merchandise, the coffee chain said Thursday. Starbucks said it is starting the summer event May 11, where customers can collect stamps by buying Starbucks drinks and can then exchange 17 stamps for seasonal merchandise. This year’s merchandise consists of the Starbucks Summer Day Cooler and Starbucks Nig

April 29, 2021

Tesla to recall 561 vehicles for faulty components for first time in Korea

Imported car brands including Tesla Korea, Mercedes-Benz Korea and BMW Korea will recall 13,797 vehicles to fix faulty components, the Transport Ministry said Thursday. According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Tesla Korea will recall 561 units of the Model S it imported and sold here, which are installed with a flash memory device with tight capacity. It has been found that the lack of flash memory capacity can cause a malfunction in the touch-screen dashboard, rear ca

April 29, 2021

[Exclusive] LX Holdings to co-use 'LX,' ends naming dispute

The soon-to-launch LX Holdings is close to settling a name dispute with the Korea Land and Geospatial Informatix -- a public agency which has been operating under the name LX for years. The two have decided to share the name, an official at the state-run institute LX told The Korea Herald on Thursday. “Both parties have agreed to use ‘LX’ name together and discussions are underway over how LX Holdings will make compensations to LX,” said the official. Set for an off

April 29, 2021

Samsung family to get massive credit loans for inheritance tax payment

Children of the late Samsung chairman are set to receive massive loans from local lenders to pay more than 12 trillion won ($10.8 billion) in inheritance taxes, the largest-ever amount in the country’s history, according to industry sources on Thursday.  Two domestic commercial banks, which were not identified, will issue credit loans of hundreds of billions of won to the family of the late Samsung Group Chairman Lee Kun-hee, later in the day, they said.  The decisions were m

April 29, 2021

Local crypto exchanges reopen offline customer centers

Amid the increasing intensity in the cryptocurrency markets, local exchanges are reintroducing offline customer centers. Coinone, one of the four largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the country, reopened its in-person customer center in Seoul, the company said Thursday. Coinone initially launched its customer center in September 2017, but closed its doors two years later to focus on other businesses. The recent surge in interest in cryptocurrency transactions and as well an influx of custome

April 29, 2021