Nokia announced on June 16 that Nokia and LS ELECTRIC, one of South Korea’s biggest providers of electric power equipment and automation solutions, have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to develop ICT-based solutions for new service models.The two companies will collaborate to develop a mo
The Ministry of Employment and Labor announced on June 15 that it would bring in by August the 26,000 foreign workers with the E-9 visa who could not enter South Korea for the past two years due to COVID-19.“We are also planning to help 28,000 with a work permit given this year enter the country, ex
The Ministry of Economy and Finance announced on June 15 that South Korea came in 27th out of 63 countries in the national competitiveness assessment of the IMD. In the assessment that started in 1989, South Korea came in 41st in 1999, 22nd in 2011 to 2013, and 23rd in 2021. This year, South Korea s
Amazon Web Services (AWS) announced on June 13 that Samsung SDS, LG CNS and SK Shieldus are its security competency partners for last year, that is, satisfied the highest level of security requirements in AWS last year.At its media briefing on June 13, AWS also stressed the importance of the joint r
The authors are analysts of Shinhan Investment Corp. They can be reached at krpark@shinhan.com and mw.choi@shinhan.com, respectively. -- Ed. China’s crude steel output increases rapidly in the short termThe average daily crude steel output of member mills of China Iron and Steel Association rose 1.5
KB Financial Group announced on June 10 that its chairman Yoon Jong-kyu became an Asia-Pacific advisor in the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ).The GFANZ was set up in April last year for carbon reduction and climate change response in the financial industry. Its Asia-Pacific office an
The Korea Cargo Workers Union (KCWU), which is affiliated with the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), entered the third day of strike on June 9. In the afternoon of that day, 37 percent of the entire union members participated in the strike. At the 12 ports nationwide, the container occupa
The author is an analyst of NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at will.byun@nhqv.com. -- Ed. 1H22 overview: Solid earnings and product price hikesDespite the Covid-19 pandemic, Korea’s major steel and metal plays recorded their best-ever earnings results last year, and robust earnings mom
Daewoo E&C announced on June 8 that it signed an MOU on a pilot project for building advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) in Hanoi Star Lake City with three Vietnamese companies -- THT Development Co., Hanoi Power Corp. (EVNHANOI), which is a subsidiary of Vietnam Electricity, and Bespin Global, a
The author is an analyst of KB Securities. He can be reached at joonsop.analyst@kbfg.com. -- Ed. Maintain BUY, target price of KRW19,000 We maintain BUY and TP of KRW19,000 on LG Uplus. We expect (1) better visibility on B2B earnings growth, (2) stronger shareholder return policy and (3) benefits fr
SPC Group announced on June 7 that it has acquired LINA’s, a French sandwich and salad brand.The takeover took place 20 years after SPC Group signed a master franchise agreement with the French brand in 2002. The Korean bakery giant's European holding company, SPC Euro, has acquired a 100 percen
Samsung Electronics has replaced the head of the Semiconductor R&D Center, which is leading the development of next-generation chips. At the same time, it has reshuffled key executives of the Foundry Business, which is competing with Taiwan's TSMC in the world foundry market.Samsung Electronics
The author is an analyst of NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at will.byun@nhqv.com. -- Ed. After achieving record-high profits last year, major steel/metal companies continued to report expectations-beating earnings in 1Q22. It is disappointing that the macro environment has remained un
Korea National Railway announced on May 31 that it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with PT Mass Rapid Transit Jakarta (PT MRT Jakarta) for cooperation in the 4th phase of the MRT project in Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia.Korea National Railway has formed a consortium with Korea Ove
The author is an analyst of KB Securities. He can be reached at joonsop.analyst@kbfg.com. -- Ed. Maintain BUY, target price of KRW19,000 We maintain BUY and TP of KRW19,000 for LGU based on B2B earnings visibility, benefits from the stabilizing B2C market and hope for a more favorable shareholder re
Hyundai Motor Co. will limit the autonomous driving speed of the Genesis G90, a Level 3 self-driving car to be released within 2022, to 60 km per hour.Hyundai Motor plans to release the G90 with Level 3 autonomous driving technology in the fourth quarter of 2022.The Society of Automotive Engineers (
POSCO Group announced on May 26 that it will invest a total of 53 trillion won -- 33 trillion won in Korea and 20 trillion won overseas -- by 2026 to strengthen competitiveness in core businesses such as steel and secondary battery materials.The announcement is the first large-scale domestic and ove
LG Group will invest a total of 106 trillion won in Korea by 2026 to strengthen its capabilities in future growth areas, including batteries, next-generation displays and biotechnology. It aims to build a high-tech, high-value-added production and R&D core base in Korea.The group announced a mid- to
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced on May 26 that Level 3 self-driving safety standards would be revised to change the speed limit of self-driving cars from 60 km/h to road-specific speed limits.According to the current standards, a self-driving vehicle must require driver
The author is an analyst of KB Securities. She can be reached at hyejung.jung@kbfg.com. -- Ed. Maintain BUY, target price of KRW440,000 We maintain BUY and TP of KRW440,000 on POSCO Holdings. Our P/B-ROE-derived TP (8.78% COE; 6.85% sustainable ROE; 3.13% TGR) is unchanged, as a fall in ROE (8.94%→