The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at yk.choi@nhqv.com -- Ed.Adhering to Hyosung TNC as our petrochemical industry top pick, we raise our TP by 18% to W520,000. With the price of spandex remaining strong despite raw material price decrease, the spandex spread
The financial authorities have played a strong hand with a “full prohibition of short selling” to restore market trust. Unlike the global trend during the COVID-19 crisis, this time, South Korea alone has moved to prohibit short selling, drawing significant attention to the rationale behind this dec
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at kyeongkeun.kang@nhqv.com -- Ed.We expect Samyoung to enjoy accelerated earnings growth on combined effects from sales mix improvement (stemming from the mass production of capacitor film for EVs), production volume increas
In the third quarter of this year, OB’s steady-seller beer, Cass, successfully retained its position as the leading brand in the South Korean home beer market.According to the food industry statistics information from the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation (aT) on Nov. 5, the retail store
It is expected that China will secure the top position in the South Korean cross-border e-commerce, or direct purchase, market, surpassing the United States for the first time this year. This outcome is driven by Chinese e-commerce giants such as AliExpress, which have aggressively penetrated the So
The Samsung owning family is selling a portion of their Samsung Electronics shares to prepare for inheritance tax.According to the Financial Supervisory Service on Nov. 3, Hong Ra-hee, the former director of Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art; Lee Boo-jin, CEO of Hotel Shilla; and Lee Seo-hyun, chairperso
Seven Korean companies, including LG Electronics, Lotte Chemical and Samsung Fire & Marine, have joined RE100 this year, bringing the total number of Korean companies to 34, according to the U.K.-based Climactic Group on Nov. 3.This means that Korea has the fourth-most number of companies after the
The strength of the U.S. dollar, along with measures to stabilize the market and prevent further depreciation of the South Korean won, has resulted in a decline in foreign exchange reserves for the third consecutive month.According to foreign reserves statistics released by the Bank of Korea on Nov.
Samsung Electronics and SK hynix are igniting a market recovery for NAND flash, which has been slower to rebound compared to DRAM, by transitioning processes and reducing production.On Nov. 3, industry insiders forecasted that NAND would still take more time to recover due to its higher inventory le
SK Innovation has successfully achieved a turnaround to profitability within just one quarter, driven by the growth in its overall business profits. The battery division has improved its chances of turning a profit in the fourth quarter, recording its historically lowest operating losses. Meanwhile,
The author is an analyst for Shinhan Securities. He can be reached at sanghoonpure.cho@shinhan.com -- Ed.3Q23 OP meets consensus at KRW84.3bn (+12.3% YoY)Lotte Chilsung Beverage posted operating profit of KRW84.3bn (+12.3% YoY) on sales of KRW830.4bn (+5.9% YoY) in 3Q23, meeting the consensus estima
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at ys.jung@nhqv.com -- Ed.Combined new orders for the three major domestic shipbuilders in 2023 are expected to exceed guidance. Orderbooks should expand in 2024, led by strong LNGC demand. Results for 3Q23 show full-scale re
Ed Note: This story was edited for factual accuracy on Nov. 6, 2023.The Korean market has become more prominent on the radar of private equity firm Hillhouse Capital. According to investment banking sources on Nov. 1, Hillhouse Capital has launched a search for a Korean market expert for its Hong Ko
Ed Note: A previous version of this story misattributed the ownership structure of Hillhouse Capital. The article was edited on Nov. 6, 2023. Private equity fund (PEF) manager Hillhouse Capital is actively pursuing the acquisition of SK eco prime, the leading biodiesel company in South Korea.Accordi
In October, Korea’s exports turned positive for the first time in 13 months, and the nation’s trade balance has been positive for five consecutive months since June. It was the first time in 20 months since February 2022 that exports rebounded and the nation posted a trade surplus at the same time.A
According to data obtained from the Financial Supervisory Service by Rep. Seo Beom-soo, a member of the National Assembly’s Land, Infrastructure, and Transport Committee, on Nov. 1, the outstanding balance of housing mortgage loans for foreigners, offered by the four major commercial banks -- KB Koo
The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) will set up a special short-selling investigation group to crack down on illegal short selling. The team will conduct full investigations into all short-selling transactions by global investment banks (IBs) since May 2021, when short selling was partially reop
In September, South Korea’s trade conditions improved for the fourth consecutive month. Export volumes also turned positive compared to the same month last year, marking the first increase in three months. Export revenue has continued to decline for the 12 consecutive month, but the extent of the de
Despite being the hot topic in the domestic market in the first half of this year, the shares of POSCO Group’s associated companies are currently experiencing a simultaneous downturn. Along with secondary battery-related companies such as EcoPro, share prices have undergone a correction, resulting i
Projections suggest that the shortage of High Bandwidth Memory (HBM), crucial for artificial intelligence (AI) semiconductors, could persist for the next three years.According to industry reports on Oct. 30, market research firm TrendForce anticipates that HBM demand this year will increase by 58% c