South Korea’s strategy for reducing its dependence on Japan in the material, component and equipment industries is bearing little fruit.According to the National Assembly Budget Office, a total of 130 companies applied for the government’s semiconductor and display performance evaluation support pro
The Federation of Korean Industries announced on Aug. 10 that Samsung Electronics is the only South Korean company among the world’s top 100 information and communications technology (ICT) companies in terms of market capitalization.The list includes 57 U.S. companies such as Apple, Netflix and Tesl
South Korea is expected to move up from 12th to ninth in the global GDP rankings this year even if it shows a negative economic growth this year. This is because the Brazilian, Canadian and Russian economies are likely to further shrink due to COVID-19.The OECD announced on Aug. 10 that South Korea’
The Ministry of Environment is planning to change its electric vehicle subsidy policy through discussions with automobile associations, local governments and industry experts. The plan is to maximize particulate matter reduction and better respond to climate change. Subsidies for more expensive elec
The market cap of LG Chem reached 50,826.4 billion won on Aug. 10. It is currently the fifth-largest South Korean company in terms of market capitalization. That day, the stock price of the company fell 3.49 percent to 720,000 won per share after having risen for over a week.The rally started on Jul
Import restrictions targeting South Korean companies are likely to continue to increase in the second half of this year and steelmakers’ and chemical companies’ concerns are mounting under the circumstances.According to the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency’s report released on Aug. 9, steel,
The author is an analyst of NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at ys.jung@nhqv.com. -- Ed. In July, both international and domestic passenger demand continued to trend downwards, falling 97% y-y and 10% y-y, respectively. However, cargo volume displayed steady demand, a scenario that shou
The author is an analyst of NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at ys.hwang@nhqv.com. -- Ed. Lotte Chemical booked an operating profit in 2Q20, but underperformed consensus due to costs related to its Daesan facility. However, in 2H20, operating costs will likely decline and OP should incr
Kia Motors Corp. revealed the Kia Sonet to the world on Aug. 7 in a digital presentation. Manufactured at Kia’s state-of-the-art production facility at Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh, India, the Sonet is Kia’s all-new smart urban compact SUV, and the brand’s latest made-in-India global product after the
Lotte Chemical has taken over a Vietnamese high-tech material company to attain its vision of becoming the seventh-largest chemical industry in the world. The company is diversifying its overseas business portfolio, ranging from basic materials to high-tech materials.Lotte Chemical acquired Vina Pol
The author is an analyst of KB Securities. He can be reached at drlee@kbfg.com. -- Ed. Merger between Line and Z Holdings approvedNaver announced that, as of August 4, the merger between Line (3938 JP) and Z Holdings (4689 JP) passed anti-monopoly reviews in relevant countries. Naver J.Hub (Naver’s
Hanmi Pharmaceutical announced on Aug. 4 that it has licensed out its liver treatment candidate material to leading global drugmaker Merck Sharp Dohme (MSD).Under the agreement, MSD will develop, manufacture and commercialize Hanmi's drug candidate material "LAPSGLP/Glucagon receptor dual agonis
SK Telecom and Microsoft will officially launch cloud gaming (formerly Project xCloud) as part of Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass Ultimate product to Korean gamers on Sept. 15, 2020, SK Telecom announced on Aug. 5.Cloud gaming will be added to the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate as an additional service feature
The United States has sided with Japan at the first meeting of a dispute settlement panel set up by the World Trade Organization to look into South Korea's complaint against Japan's export restrictions.The WTO posted on its website on Aug. 3 a summary of the minutes of the Dispute Settlement
SK battery America, a manufacturing facility of SK Innovation Battery Business in the U.S., signed a partnership agreement with Quick Start and Lanier Technical College in Georgia, U.S. on July 30 (local time) to train 2,600 new jobs.Quick Start is Georgia’s internationally acclaimed economic develo
KT Corp., South Korea’s largest telecommunications company, plans to launch a suite of smart building services in cooperation with its subsidiary, KT Estate.The new ICT-based integrated services consist of three products: “Smart Building Sensing,” “Smart Building BEMS" and "Smart Building AI."“KT’s
SK Innovation has officially become the operator of Block 16-2 off southern Vietnam after completing the acquisition of 70 percent equity stake on July 21. To acquire the operating rights for the block, SK Innovation had signed a farmout agreement (FOA) with the Vietnamese state-run company PetroVie
The ruling Democratic Party of Korea has tabled an amendment to the Insurance Business Act to compel Samsung Group’s insurance subsidiaries to sell their shares in Samsung Electronics. The Financial Services Commission (FSC) made an official announcement in favor of the amendment on July 30, causing
The author is an analyst of NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at will.byun@nhqv.com. -- Ed. Full-fledged earnings improvement to await sales volume recovery for copper productsPoongsan’s 2Q20 operating income turned to profit q-q, exceeding the market projection. Sales at the defense div
The Financial Services Commission announced ELS market stabilization measures on July 30. According to the announcement, every securities company with a total issuance exceeding 50 percent of its equity capital will be subject to a weight of up to 200 percent in stages in reflection in liabilities.