On July 28, Doosan Enerbility completed a continuous 240-hour operational test of its first domestically produced gas turbine engine with 270 MW output and initiated commercial operation at the Gimpo Combined Heat and Power Plant operated by Korea Western Power (KOWEPO). Through this achievement, KO
In 2Q 2023, LG Household & Health Care (LG H&H Co., Ltd) reported 1.8tr won in sales (-3.0% yoy), 158bn won in operating profit (-27.1% yoy).The Company sales decreased mainly due to Beauty’s 8% yoy decline, while HDB and Refreshment sales grew slightly yoy. Operating profit for the Company decrease
SK Inc. has laid out an ambitious plan to invest 23 trillion won (US$17.82 billion) in eco-friendly initiatives by 2025, with a primary focus on “energy transition.” SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won has shown keen interest in transforming SK’s business landscape from a petroleum-centric structure to o
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at pk.park@nhqv.com -- Ed.Yuhan posted 2Q23 consolidated OP of W27.1bn, significantly beating consensus. Earnings should continue to improve on: 1) the likely listing of Lazertinib as a first-line treatment for NSCLC in Korea
South Korea’s total population stood at 51,692.000 as of July 1 2022, down 46,000, or 0.1 percent, from 2021, according to the results of the 2022 Population and Housing Census released by Statistics Korea on July 27.The total population of the census includes foreigners who have been living in Kore
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. She can be reached at jiyoony@nhqv.com -- Ed.AmorePacific’s 2Q23 OP missed expectations by a wide margin due to e-commerce inventory adjustments in China and increased global marketing expenses. From 2H23, Sulwhasoo should enjoy a recovery in
LG Electronics is releasing washing machines and dryers that can install and uninstall apps just like a smartphone. The company, which has previously focused on producing quality hardware products, plans to expand its business to include services and subscriptions that utilize these products.Ryu Jae
The Net International Investment Position (NIIP) as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), which indicates Korea’s ability to make international payments, stood at 46.3 percent last year, showing an increase of nearly 10 percentage points in just one year. This growth was driven by the expans
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, in conjunction with the Korea Visit Committee, will hold the “Korea Summer Beauty Sale” for a month from July 20 to August 20.The Korea Summer Beauty Sale is a public-private partnership event held with the participation of the K-Tourism Cooperation Team
Between 2013 and 2015, during China’s economic boom, the business outlook in China was rosy for South Korean corporations. Exports to China increased, leading to an upsurge in investment. However, companies overly dependent on China have encountered significant difficulties barely a decade later.Ind
As household debt has ballooned to a record high, emerging as a big risk for the Korean economy, debt burdens on Korean households are the second largest among major economies in the world. The Bank of Korea (BOK) said that rising household debt will hamper Korea’s economic growth in the long run an
The author is an analyst for Shinhan Securities. He can be reached at jk.ahn@shinhan.com -- Ed.July MPB meeting confirms BOK is in a bind, unable to raise or cut ratesThe Bank of Korea (BOK) unanimously decided to keep the base rate unchanged at 3.50% at the July Monetary Policy Board (MPB) meeting.
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at minjae.lee@nhqv.com -- Ed.Although no further electricity rate hikes are planned, KEPCO should enjoy mid/long-term earnings improvement thanks to stable raw materials prices. That said, policy variables remain in play due
Korea and China are set to compete in the battery industry in Southeast Asia with high growth potential. Korean companies are investing heavily in Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, and Vietnam, the four largest electric vehicle markets in Southeast Asia. China, which has been blocked from entering Nort
The author is an analyst for Shinhan Securities. She can be reached at hpark@shinhan.com -- Ed.2Q23 earnings to miss expectationsLG H&H is expected to have registered consolidated operating profit of KRW183.6bn (-15% YoY) on sales of KRW1.78tr (-5% YoY) in 2Q23, coming short of our estimates. Sales
Propelled by the acceleration of the next generation of K-Beauty players, South Korea’s cosmetic exports have surpassed 10 trillion won for two consecutive years.According to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety on July 6, domestic cosmetic companies’ exports last year were 10.2751 trillion won (US$
The Chinese battery industry, which had been focused on attacking the European electric vehicle battery market led by Korea, is extending its reach to the energy storage system (ESS) market. They are partnering with their country’s strong solar power value chain to challenge the European household s
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. She can be reached at jiyoony@nhqv.com -- Ed.Earnings at AmorePacific are likely to fall well short of expectations in 2Q23. Domestic profit has narrowed due to sluggish DFS and e-commerce channels. Overseas, Sulwhasoo is experiencing losses d
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. She can be reached at jiyoony@nhqv.com -- Ed.LG H&H’s 2Q23 OP is set to slide 18% y-y. We advise trimming expectations for the firm’s 2Q23 earnings due to weak DFS sales at the cosmetics division and the slow pace of business improvement in ma
Vietnam, to which President Yoon Suk-yeol will pay a three-day state visit beginning June 22, has become a center of research and development (R&D) for Samsung and LG for the future, becoming more than a global production outpost for them.Samsung posted sales of US$73.7 billion (about 95.3678 trilli