More than four out of 10 listed companies in Korea were unable to pay interest with money they made, according to a recent survey. High interest rates and stagflation worsened the business environment, raising red flags on their financial conditions.As of the third quarter of 2023, 710 of 1,674 list
Following Netmarble’s block deal in which there was after-hours bulk trade, HYBE has seen a diversification in its ownership structure due to an influx of foreign investment. This has resulted in a more stabilized corporate framework for the company.According to recent data from the Korea Exchange (
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at jaemin.ahn@nhqv.com -- Ed.Starting from 4Q23, OP should normalize at Netmarble. With expectations in play for its 2024 lineup, the firm is anticipated to enjoy new game momentum as well as annual OP improvement. Financial
Over the past month, it has been observed that 92 percent of the top 50 stocks with high short-selling turnover experienced declines in their share prices. This percentage is notably higher than the 84 percent of declining stocks in the overall Korean stock market, including the KOSPI and KOSDAQ. Th
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at jaemin.ahn@nhqv.com -- Ed.Following on from a narrowed operating loss in 3Q23, we expect Netmarble to turn to profit in both 4Q23 and 2024. Earnings should recover on the launch of a number of new global titles and Chinese
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at jaemin.ahn@nhqv.com -- Ed.Earnings season for the sector is to begin on Aug 2 with Kakao Games. As earnings at Alphabet and Meta Platforms came in solid, Korean Internet companies are also expected to perform well. If the
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at jaemin.ahn@nhqv.com -- Ed.Weighed upon by delayed new game rollouts, Netmarble’s operating losses inevitably continued in 2Q23. Expectations remain alive, however, for a rebound driven by new lineups to be launched from Ju
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at jaemin.ahn@nhqv.com -- Ed.With another earnings season to begin in July, and with a semi-peak season for ad and commerce having begun, we examine whether Internet firms have achieved q-q earnings growth in 2Q23. Although g
“Sub-culture games” made by Korean game publishers are faring well in Asian markets. Subculture games are games that highlight Japanese anime-style girl characters and are targeted at specific groups of enthusiasts. Korean subculture games are gaining in popularity in China after Japan, so it remain
The Fair Trade Commission is reportedly conducting a survey on subcontract transactions targeting major game companies in Korea.According to the IT industry on June 28, the Fair Trade Commission recently started on-site investigations into major domestic game companies. In January, the Fair Trade Co
The author is an analyst for Shinhan Securities. He can be reached at sokang@shinhan.com -- Ed.Fears over possible reinstatement of China’s ban on Korean contentIn December 2022, Chinese regulators resumed granting license approvals for games developed by Korean companies, which was followed by addi
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. She can be reached at hzl.lee@nhqv.com -- Ed.CJ ENM reported an earnings shock, affected by widening losses at new businesses (OTT, US production) and impacts of economic slowdown at the main business, excluding entertainment. A sharp recovery
The author is an analyst of NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at jaemin.ahn@nhqv.com -- Ed.The investors we met with in Hong Kong and Singapore were cautious towards the Internet sector amid lingering uncertainties over the economic recovery. However, they were bullish towards the releas
The author is an analyst of NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at jaemin.ahn@nhqv.com -- Ed.Last year, Netmarble recorded both operating losses and net losses due to: 1) a lack of new game releases; 2) new title failures; and 3) a worsening financial structure following the acquisition of
The author is an analyst of NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at jaemin.ahn@nhqv.com -- Ed.Although quarterly operating losses have continued since 1Q22, the launch of new games not only in Korea but also overseas (especially in China upon gaining publishing rights from China’s National
Coway Co. announced on Jan. 3 that the company would change its management from a co-CEO structure to a sole-CEO system. Seo Jang-won, the current co-CEO, will become the sole CEO due to the retirement of his co-CEO, Lee Hae-sun who moves into a role as a part-time advisor on Feb. 6, 2023.Seo said,
The Korea Fair Trade Commission announced on Nov. 22 that Apple’s 30 percent app market fee has been applied on an end consumer price basis to South Korean app developers and on a supply value basis to foreign app developers.The difference is whether a 10 percent VAT is included in the calculation.
The author is an analyst of NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at jaemin.ahn@nhqv.com. -- Ed. At G-Star 2022, we witnessed a clear increase in interest towards the console segment as well as market expansion for cross-play.Game market is changingWith the majority of Korean game companies
Corporate tracker Leaders Index announced on Sept. 12 that BlackRock is the foreign PEF with the largest shareholding in the top 500 South Korean enterprises in terms of sales.According to the announcement, the 500 enterprises include 73 with a PEF shareholding of at least 5 percent and the 73 consi
Short selling in the South Korean stock market is increasing along with the possibility of another economic recession. Short sellers are targeting overvalued stocks and those more vulnerable to recession risks in particular.The Korea Exchange announced on Sept. 1 that short selling in the market tot