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China Factor In series
An analytical series on how China’s rise is reshaping competition across Korea’s key industries
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China Factor In series
An analytical series on how China’s rise is reshaping competition across Korea’s key industries
Would you like to subscribe?
Chinese EV makers turn Korea into global test bed
Chinese EV makers are turning South Korea into their next battleground, using cut-rate pricing and advanced software to challenge Hyundai Motor Group on its home turf. With BYD and Zeekr already gaining traction, XPeng, NIO and other brands are lining up to enter a market increasingly seen as a test bed for global expansion. According to industry sources on Monday, XPeng is recruiting a head of Korean operations, officially signaling its entry to Korea. After establishing XPeng Motors Korea on J
July 20, 2026 - 14:50:04
China's CXMT eyes memory's 'Big 3' with $8.5b IPO
China’s ChangXin Memory Technologies is throwing its hat into the ring with a roughly $8.5 billion initial public offering as it seeks to challenge the dominance of Samsung Electronics, SK hynix and Micron Technology. Set to list on Shanghai’s STAR Market on July 27 in the largest flotation by a Chinese chipmaker, CXMT is using the offering as a global debut, billing itself as China’s largest and the world’s fourth-largest DRAM maker by capacity despite a far smaller market share than the indust
July 19, 2026 - 16:41:21
China plays for control in Korean gaming
For years, Chinese investment in South Korea's gaming industry followed a familiar formula. Chinese technology giants provided capital, secured publishing partnerships and accumulated minority stakes in leading game makers, while Korean founders of each game developer retained management control. This pattern, however, recently took a vigilant turn, putting stakeholders on notice. Wemade — a Korean game developer best known for its massively multiplayer online role-playing game, or MMORPG, franc
July 14, 2026 - 15:53:16
Why Apple wants Chinese memory it can't use
When Apple raised MacBook and iPad prices by up to 20 percent last month, wiping $263 billion off its market value in a day, it blamed "unsustainable" memory prices. Then it went to Washington to ask permission to buy DRAM from a Chinese company sitting on a Pentagon blacklist. Kim Yang-paeng, a semiconductor researcher at the state-run Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade, does not think Apple actually wants to buy these chips. He thinks it wants to be seen trying. "From the consu
July 9, 2026 - 15:09:19
AI's energy crunch exposes China's battery edge
The global race for artificial intelligence is running into an unexpected bottleneck: electricity. As AI data centers drive a surge in demand for energy storage systems, the US is confronting an uncomfortable reality. Powering its AI ambitions increasingly depends on lithium iron phosphate, or LFP, batteries — a technology overwhelmingly dominated by China. Despite Washington's efforts to reduce reliance on Chinese supply chains, Beijing retains a commanding lead in LFP batteries, which have bec
July 6, 2026 - 15:12:42
Samsung and LG's next China battle: Robot vacuums
Once a niche appliance, robot vacuum cleaners have become a test of whether Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics can regain ground in a fast-growing Korean market increasingly shaped by Chinese rivals. China's strength in the sector is reflected in trade data. Figures from the General Administration of Customs of China showed China exported 11.32 billion yuan ($1.67 billion) worth of robots in the first quarter. Cleaning robots, a category newly added to customs product codes this year, accoun
July 5, 2026 - 10:43:31
Inside NIO's AI factory, where cars build themselves
HEFEI, China — On the body assembly line of NIO’s F2 electric vehicle plant in Hefei, China, there are no people. Only the sharp hum of machinery and the synchronized choreography of orange robotic arms fill the vast space. German-based KUKA robots converge on an aluminum vehicle body: One lifts a door into place, a second one measures alignment through sensors, while others complete the welding process in seconds. Human hands never touch the process. In this 100 percent automated process, where
June 29, 2026 - 10:04:49
Korea, Shanghai airports team up to expand regional air links
Korea Herald correspondent SHANGHAI, China -- Korea Airports Corporation is seeking closer ties with Shanghai Airport Authority, known as Avinex, to expand the aviation network connecting Korean regional airports and Shanghai amid the rapid recovery of Korea-China air travel demand. According to KAC, it signed a memorandum of understanding with Avinex on Tuesday at Shanghai Hongqiao Airport, one of two airports the state-owned operator manages in Shanghai alongside Pudong Airport. Under the agre
June 23, 2026 - 17:00:00
Inside China's race for tech self-reliance
Korea Herald correspondent HEFEI, China — Far from slowing China's technological rise, US sanctions and export controls have accelerated Beijing's drive for self-reliance, pushing Chinese companies to build domestic alternatives across industries. Landlocked Anhui province, west of Shanghai, has emerged as one of the clearest examples of that effort. Home to a growing cluster of artificial intelligence, electric vehicle, battery and renewable energy companies, the province has transformed itself
June 23, 2026 - 14:19:32
Korea's AI ambitions run into power problem
South Korea's bid to stay competitive in artificial intelligence is running into a constraint that cannot be solved by chips alone: electricity. As the US and China pour hundreds of billions of dollars into AI infrastructure, experts say Korea's biggest challenge is no longer securing Nvidia GPUs but ensuring it has enough power, grid capacity and suitable sites to run the data centers those chips require. The pressure is mounting as the world's largest economies accelerate investment in AI infr
June 15, 2026 - 11:02:50
Korea's OCI, Hanwha stand to benefit from US solar supply chain shift
Washington's escalating restrictions on Chinese solar power equipment are creating an opening for South Korean manufacturers as alternative suppliers for US developers. The US government has tightened trade restrictions on Chinese solar materials and technologies in recent months through a combination of tariffs, trade investigations and rules on tax credits. US solar companies and project developers are now seeking non-Chinese suppliers to avoid regulatory risks and preserve eligibility for fed
June 9, 2026 - 10:46:49
Ford reshapes battery strategy, moves from SK On to CATL
Ford Motor's decision to deepen ties with China's CATL while repurposing assets from its former battery partnership with SK On is drawing scrutiny from South Korea's battery industry as the US automaker pivots aggressively into energy storage. At a time when Washington is seeking to reduce dependence on Chinese battery supply chains, Ford is embracing CATL's battery technology to accelerate its push into the energy storage system, or ESS, market — a sector increasingly fueled by booming demand f
June 4, 2026 - 15:01:34
Chinese EV retreat opens window for Hyundai in Canada
Major Chinese electric vehicle makers, including BYD, Chery and Geely, are scaling back their expansion into Canada — a strategic entry point to North America beyond the US market, where intensifying anti-China trade policies have effectively shut out Chinese EVs. Experts indicate the shift could help Hyundai Motor Group to defend its ground in the profitable market, where demand for high-margin SUVs and eco-friendly vehicles remains strong. According to a recent report by Automotive News Canada
May 25, 2026 - 16:36:33
China’s silicon wafer rise adds pressure in AI chip race
China is accelerating its silicon wafer self-sufficiency drive, aiming to source more than 70 percent of its advanced wafers domestically by 2026 as AI-driven chip demand surges. Though the push is unlikely to disrupt the global chip industry immediately, experts said it signals China is steadily strengthening one of the most critical layers of the semiconductor supply chain as the AI boom sharply increases wafer demand. “The world’s top five wafer suppliers are unlikely to face a serious threat
May 12, 2026 - 15:21:05
Why Europe has become CATL’s next big bet
CATL, the world’s largest maker of electric vehicle batteries, is doubling down on Europe after raising $5 billion in Hong Kong, with US restrictions effectively shutting it out and as China’s domestic market grapples with oversupply. The strategic pivot underscores how critical Europe has become, despite rising regulatory hurdles. Korean battery-makers also have their eyes locked on Europe, where EV demand is showing signs of a gradual rebound — unlike the slower recovery in the US. As both sid
May 11, 2026 - 11:36:06
