GS E&C Q3 net down 43.9% on currency losses

GS Engineering & Construction Co., a major South Korean builder, said Monday that its third-quarter net profit plunged 43.9 percent from a year earlier due to currency losses. GS E&C posted a net profit of 96.8 billion won ($84.7 million) in the July-September period, compared with a net profit of 172.8 billion won a year earlier, the builder said in a regulatory filing. The builder said the won's strength against the U.S. dollar drove down the value of its overseas dollar-denominated

Oct. 19, 2020

S. Korea considers duty-free limit on overseas direct buying

South Korea is considering placing a tax-free cap on local consumers’ direct purchases from foreign countries, to be enacted as early as 2022, officials said Monday. The move comes as the government has been eyeing ways to invigorate domestic consumption and Korea Customs Service Commissioner Roh Suk-hwan’s announcement of the idea in a parliamentary audit last week. “(From December, the) KCS will make mandatory for consumers to receive personal customs clearance codes to an

Oct. 19, 2020

Card issuers, retailers team up for big data development

Big name retail chains have been recently joining forces with card companies to analyze spending patterns and cater to diverse needs of consumers. Spearheading the trend, South Korea’s largest card company Shinhan Card inked a partnership with GS Retail, the operator of convenient store chain GS25, on Monday to develop new business models by analyzing data linked to items purchased and consumer behavior. By combining a wide range of data, including items sold at convenience stores and

Oct. 19, 2020

Seoul stocks snap 4-day losing streak on bargain hunting

South Korean stocks ended a four-session losing streak Monday on investors' bargain hunting rush despite disappointing growth data from China. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 5.21 points, or 0.22 percent, to close at 2,346.74. Trading volume was moderate at about 911 million shares worth some 10.2 trillion won ($8.9 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 442 to 394. Institutions purchased a net 297 billion won, and fo

Oct. 19, 2020

Big Hit suffers extended slide after market debut

Shares in Big Hit Entertainment, the creative nest of K-pop superstar BTS, continued to suffer an extended slump on the third day since the company's market debut as some institutional investors dumped the stocks. Big Hit shares tumbled 5.74 percent to close at 189,000 won ($165), far underperforming the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index's (KOSPI) 0.22 percent gain. The company dipped to as low as 187,000 won at one point. The entertainment firm had a rollercoaster market debut on Th

Oct. 19, 2020

Ottogi, AhnLab among money-losing investors in Optimus funds

About 60 local listed firms, state-run companies and major universities had invested in the scandal-ridden Optimus funds that have lost more than 5 trillion won ($4.38 billion) so far, according to local reports Monday. The list of investors for fraudulent hedge funds operated by South Korea’s Optimus Asset Management included leading food company Ottogi, which invested 15 billion won, and Kosdaq-listed antivirus software firm AhnLab, which invested 7 billion won, according to the local K

Oct. 19, 2020

‘Kimchi Relish’: Pulmuone reinterprets kimchi for millennials

Pulmuone said on Monday it has launched “Kimchi Relish,” a new type of kimchi that “reinterprets” the spicy Korean side dish, in South Korea and the US. Made with plant-based ingredients including tomatoes and Sriracha sauce, the chopped vegan kimchi comes in two flavors, Mild and Spicy, and is recommended to be had with dishes such as pasta, salads, and tacos. Pulmuone said the new product is expected to appeal to millennial and gen-Z consumers, among which there is a

Oct. 19, 2020

Samyang Foods begins work on new export-oriented plant in Miryang

Samyang Foods began construction on a new manufacturing plant in the city of Miryang in South Gyeongsang Province on Monday which the company says will serve as its focal point for exports. A budget of 200 billion won ($175 million) has been set aside for the five-story factory with a basement. And with a total floor space of 69,801 square meters and boasting automated production lines for ramen noodles and soup powder, the project is expected to be completed by early 2022. “Many compani

Oct. 19, 2020

Renault Samsung resumes plant operations amid pandemic

Renault Samsung Motors Corp. said Monday it has resumed the operation of its sole plant in South Korea following a monthlong suspension to control inventories amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Renault Samsung halted the operation of the Busan plant, 450 kilometers southeast of Seoul, from Sept. 25 through Oct. 18. The company said the upgrade and maintenance work has been done to the plant's production facility ahead of the manufacturing of the XM3 SUV. Renault Samsung plans to start exporting th

Oct. 19, 2020

Samsung heir flies to Vietnam to discuss expansion of mobile biz

Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong on Monday flew to Hanoi to hold a meeting with Vietnamese Prime Minister to discuss possible additional investment plans in the country. The South Korean tech giant’s heir apparent is visiting the country for the first time since October in 2018. Samsung’s smartphone business chief Roh Tae-moon and display unit head Lee Dong-hoon joined Lee on the trip. Lee will meet with Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on Tuesday. Whether the two

Oct. 19, 2020

KIC under fire for investing in money-losing marijuana stocks

South Korea’s sovereign wealth fund Korea Investment Corp. was seeing a stock price fall in Ontario-based marijuana maker Canopy Growth, as its $18 million bet on the company lost glitter in the first half of 2020, a lawmaker said Monday. The ruling Democratic Party of Korea’s Rep. Jung Sung-ho added the investment in the pot producer is a point of contention, not only because KIC’s bet has not led to an instant success, but also because investing in marijuana makers is an &l

Oct. 19, 2020

Ratio of sovereign wealth fund's alternative assets dips in 2019

South Korea's sovereign wealth fund cut the ratio of alternative assets to its total investments for the first time in 10 years in 2019, data showed Monday. Korea Investment Corp. (KIC) had alternative assets worth $24.5 billion under its management as of end-2019, or 15.6 percent of its total assets worth $157.3 billion, according to the KIC data presented for an annual parliamentary audit. The proportion was down 0.8 percentage point from a year earlier. As of end-August this year, the figur

Oct. 19, 2020

Jin Air to begin operating plane converted to carry cargo this week

Jin Air Co. said Monday it will begin operating a passenger plane converted to carry cargo to offset a sharp decline in air travel demand amid the coronavirus pandemic. Jin Air plans to deploy the B777-200ER jet, which has been converted into a cargo plane under approval from the transport ministry, on routes from Incheon to Bangkok and Qingdao from Saturday, the company said in a statement. The 315-seat converted plane will make two flights a week on the Bangkok route and three flights a wee

Oct. 19, 2020

No deal looms between LG Chem and SK Innovation over trade secret case

LG Chem Ltd. and SK Innovation Co. -- South Korea's top two electric vehicle battery makers -- appear unlikely to produce a breakthrough in their high-stakes trade secret case over EV batteries ahead of next week's final ruling in the United States, industry officials said Monday.  A key issue is whether SK Innovation misappropriated and used EV battery trade secrets of its local rival as alleged by LG Chem.   In April last year, LG Chem filed a pair of lawsuits with the US Int

Oct. 19, 2020

Hyundai's Kona EV recall potential hurdle in electrification plan

Hyundai Motor Co.'s planned global recall of 77,000 Kona Electric vehicles may be a drag on the company's electrification plan, analysts said Monday. Hyundai Motor plans to voluntarily recall 77,000 Kona Electric models for a faulty battery cell component, as 14 cases of fires in the model -- 10 domestically and four overseas -- have been reported since 2018. The Kona Electrics manufactured between Sept. 29, 2019, and March 13, 2020, are subject to the recall as a possible short circuit in th

Oct. 19, 2020

Samsung Heavy succeeds in operating remote autonomous ship

South Korean shipbuilder Samsung Heavy Industries Co. said Monday it has successfully navigated its 300-ton remote autonomous ship. The 38-meter-long ship was operated in seas off Geoje Island, 398 kilometers south of Seoul, via a remote control system at a research center located in Daejeon, 250 kilometers away from the seas, Samsung Heavy said. The ship returned safely to a point of departure without the help of crew after reaching its destination, which was 10 kilometers away, the shipbuil

Oct. 19, 2020

Auto exports snap 5-month decline in Sept. amid pandemic

South Korea's exports of automobiles rebounded in September to snap a decline of five consecutive months on the back of improved shipments to North America, data showed Monday. Local carmakers shipped 193,081 units of cars overseas last month, up 14.8 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. In terms of value, auto exports advanced 23.2 percent to $3.8 billion. Over the January-September period, the country shipped 1,330,859 uni

Oct. 19, 2020

[Monitor] BTS' stocks plunge 22% on 2nd day

South Korea’s stock market has been reinvigorated by a series of major initial public offerings this year. Starting with the IPO of SK Biopharmaceuticals in July, promising biopharmaceutical firms and other tech companies went public with their initial prices soaring rapidly ahead of IPOs. But recently, newly listed stocks were bearish unlike initial expectations. Big Hit Entertainment, the entertainment agency behind K-pop boy band BTS, slid for two straight days right after the hig

Oct. 19, 2020

Airlines to levy no fuel surcharges on int'l routes in Nov.

South Korean airlines will not impose fuel surcharges on international routes in November on low oil prices due to the coronavirus pandemic, industry sources said Monday. The surcharge for one-way tickets on international routes will remain at zero next month, unchanged from a month earlier, according to the sources. Local air carriers' fuel surcharges on international routes will stay at zero for the eighth consecutive month, raising expectations that the zero rate may last down the road. L

Oct. 19, 2020

S. Korea to ease regulations on EV battery recycling

South Korea on Monday eased regulations to allow for environment friendly ways to utilize used batteries from electric vehicles. The approval came as the number of scrapped EV batteries is anticipated to increase sharply down the road with the country's green energy drive, which centers on promoting EVs and hydrogen fuel-cell cars. "While the used EV batteries can have adverse impacts on the environment, they can create new business opportunities when recycled," the Ministry of Trade

Oct. 19, 2020