Hyundai Motor Company is responding to growing demand for hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) by producing HEVs at its U.S. electric vehicle factory, Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America (HMGMA), which is scheduled to go live in the fourth quarter of 2024.“We will begin to run HMGMA in October,” said L
As POSCO Holdings announced its first quarterly earnings under new Chairman Jang In-hwa, control of business development speeds by business division has become a hot topic.The company has set an investment budget of about 10.8 trillion won for this year, but the amount is likely to be reduced. The p
Naver’s management control over Line, which it has developed into a global messaging service over the past 13 years, could be handed over to Japan due to pressure from the Japanese government. If control is transferred, Naver could lose a market of 200 million users in Japan, Taiwan, and Thailand, p
SK hynix achieved unexpectedly strong performance in the first quarter, surpassing market expectations.The company announced on April 25 that it recorded 12.43 trillion won (US$9.04 billion) in sales and 2.89 trillion won in operating profits, representing a 23 percent operating profit margin, and 1
SAMSUNG E&A (formerly Samsung Engineering), a total solutions provider for the global energy industry, announced today that it recorded an operating profit of KRW 209.4 billion in the first quarter exceeded the market forecast (KRW 196 billion), continuing a solid performance trend.Through the Q1 pr
As the final bid for the sale of Asiana Airlines’ cargo business approaches, attention is turning to the future owner. The acquisition is expected to amount to around 1 trillion won, including debt. Out of the four low-cost carriers (LCCs) that have entered the bidding, three are experiencing capita
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at youngryu@nhqv.com. -- Ed.Noise appearing here and there; market expectations being adjustedAfter ASML and TSMC announced weaker-than-expected 1Q24 results and negative market outlooks, tech firms have experienced overall s
Both Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, the two leading semiconductor giants in South Korea, closed lower. The decline was influenced by a simultaneous sharp drop in semiconductor stock prices, with Nvidia falling by 10 percent in the U.S. market.In the KOSPI market on April 22, Samsung Electronics c
With the ongoing competition in the AI semiconductor sector, the foundry (contract chip manufacturing) industry is facing a new challenge due to stagnant demand and overcapacity. Concurrently, the rivalry for dominance in the high-bandwidth memory (HBM) segment, a crucial component in AI, is intensi
The author is an analyst for Shinhan Securities. He can be reached at ldh@sinhan.com -- Ed.1Q24 review: OP of engines surpasses construction equipmentHD Hyundai Infracore posted sales of KRW1.16tr (-10% YoY), operating profit of KRW92.8bn (-39% YoY), and operating margin of 8% (-3.8%p YoY) for 1Q24.
The author is an analyst for Shinhan Securities. She can be reached at sunmi.kim@shinhan.com -- Ed.Strong top-line drives earnings surprise & annual forecast revisionHyundai Engineering & Construction posted sales of KRW8.5tr and operating profit of KRW250.9bn for 1Q24, beating consensus estimates b
Netflix Services Korea has begun an administrative lawsuit against Korea’s tax authorities over 78 billion won (US$57 million) in tax imposed on the OTT giant. Much attention is being paid to see how the Korean court will rule on the unfair practice of global platform companies such as Netflix not p
Amid the surge in the Korean won against the U.S. dollar, reaching close to 1,400 won, dividends from listed companies, often heavily held by foreign investors, are continuing to flow. During this period, foreign investors are set to receive dividends totaling over 6 trillion won. If foreign investo
A forecast suggests that SK hynix’s operating profit is expected to surge to around 2 trillion won, marking a turnaround to profitability compared to the same period last year, ahead of the earnings announcement scheduled for April 25.According to financial information provider FnGuide on April 16,
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at ys.jung@nhqv.com -- Ed.Basking in an absence of one-off issues in 1Q24, SHI’s shipbuilding volume and margins are expanding. Having already won 40% of its 2024 order target, the firm should see its full-year order intake r
As Western Digital, the world’s third-largest NAND flash company, formalized a price hike for solid state drives (SSDs) and hard disk drives (HDDs) in the first half of the year, Samsung Electronics and SK hynix’s NAND business is expected to switch to the black in the first quarter of 2024.Western
The author is an analyst for Shinhan Securities. She can be reached at sunmi.kim@shinhan.com -- Ed.1Q24 OP to meet consensus in the absence of major one-offsSamsung E&A is expected to have registered sales of KRW2.5tr and operating profit of KRW197bn in 1Q24 in line with the market consensus. Sales
The AI semiconductor market, currently concentrated on Nvidia and High Bandwidth Memory (HBM), is expected to diversify into DRAM and other areas moving forward.On March 28, Kwon Seok-jun, a professor in the School of Chemical Engineering at Sungkyunkwan University, participated in the 2024 ACE Semi
Six of the world’s top 10 shipping companies posted negative growth in the fourth quarter of 2023 due to a sluggish global shipping market. Among them, only two posted a profit thanks to the acquisition of mega-ships: HMM, a Korean shipping giant that claims eighth place, and Taiwan’s Evergreen.Amon
SG is a leading domestic asphalt concrete maker. We expect to see: 1) significant improvement in public procurement orders following the end of regulations on SMEs; 2) market share expansion for the firm’s ecosteel asphalt concrete; and 3) benefits for the newly established Ukrainian subsidiary afte