Foreign direct investment (FDI) in Korea has rebounded for the first time in five quarters.According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on Oct. 10, third-quarter FDI increased 4.8 percent on year to US$3.61 billion, turning around from four consecutive quarters of decline. However, FDI ar
Automobile production in Korea slid by about 5 percent in September compared to a year ago. The blame falls on GM Korea workers’ strike and Hyundai Motor’s sluggish commercial vehicle sales.According to the Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association on Oct. 10, a total of 278,016 vehicles were produ
Kookmin Bank’s simple payment service “Liiv Bank Pay” will be available in Japan starting next month. This is the first overseas simple payment service launched by a Korean commercial bank. Other banks are also expanding their simple payment services to global markets following Naver Pay and Kakao P
The National Tax Service (NTS) has found out that seven high-income YouTubers have failed to report 4.50 billion won (US$3.78 million) of their income to the tax office.The NTS recently conducted a tax audit on YouTubers who were suspected of tax dodging. It submitted the results of its audit to Rep
Financial Services Commission (FSC) Chairman Eun Sung-soo has suggested a shift in his stance on private equity funds (PEFs) towards tightening regulations for investor protection.During a news conference on Oct. 10 held to mark his first month on the job, Eun said he had at first agreed with the co
The competitiveness of South Korea's labor market moved down three notches in this year's national competitiveness report published by the World Economic Forum.In particular, Korea's ranking in the employment and dismissal practices, which indicate the flexibility of the labor market, fe
Along with 5G and system semiconductors, Lee Jae-yong, vice-chairman of Samsung Electronics, has chosen quantum dot (QD) displays as Samsung’s future growth engine. Lee announced a 13 trillion qon investment plan in the next-generation display technology to turn the tide for the Korean display indus
LG Display Co. is accelerating its shift from liquid crystal display (LCD) panels to organic light emitting diode (OLED) panels as profitability of its LCD business is worsening due to a steady drop in LCD prices.The proportion of LG Display’s OLED sales in its total sales is expected to be only 17
LG Technology Ventures, a venture capital firm established by LG Group in Silicon Valley to look for future growth engines, is investing in a biotech startup this time.The company recently participated in a US$85 million series B funding round promoted by Arcellx in the United States, according to i
Chinese display producers, which have massively rolled out low-priced products to dominate the global liquid crystal display (LCD) panel market, are struggling as LCD panel prices have plunged. They cannot even survive without the Chinese government’s subsidies.Chinese display companies, such as BOE
Samsung SDS announced on Oct. 9 that it has been named as Korea’s representative blockchain operator by Forrester, a global information technology (IT) advisory group.Forrester picked out Korea's Samsung SDS, China's JD Cloud, Japan's NTT Data, and Thailand's IBM as the representativ
Samsung Electronics Co. is considering making an additional investment in its second semiconductor plant which is under construction in Xian, Shanxi Province, China. However, the company is caught in the middle of the trade dispute between the United States and China.Samsung Electronics is planning
Major Korean petrochemical companies are rushing to develop lighter materials for electric vehicles (EVs). They are revamping their organizations to focus on development of advanced materials for electric cars.A typical example is SK Chemicals which has decided to absorb its subsidiary Initz last mo
The deficit in South Korea’s consolidated fiscal balance hit an all-time high as the government increases welfare spending amid a falling tax revenue due to an economic downturn.Corporate tax revenue decreased 600 billion won (US$501.46 million) on year in August due to companies’ poor performance,
Samsung Electronics announced on Oct. 8 that the operating profit of its IT and mobile (IM) division, which is in charge of the company’s smartphone business, is estimated at 2 trillion to 2.5 trillion won (US$1.67 billion to 2.09 billion) in the third quarter of this year. The figure increased up t
Hyundai Engineering & Construction and the Quang Ninh Province of Vietnam had a meeting on Oct. 3 to discuss the construction of an underwater tunnel between Bai Chay and Hon Gai.Hyundai presented a specific business plan at the meeting. The total construction cost is estimated at 504.6 billion won,
The Bank of Korea announced on Oct. 8 that South Korea’s exports and imports totaled US$45.15 billion and US$40.39 billion in August, respectively. Its goods account surplus fell from US$10.92 billion to US$4.77 billion in one year and hit a 67-month low.The goods account surplus has continued to de
Qatar Petroleum is expected to select builders for its LNG carriers within this year, raising expectations of the big three Korean shipbuilders -- Hyundai Heavy Industries, Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) and Samsung Heavy Industries.Earlier market watchers speculated that Qatar migh
Samsung Heavy Industries has won a one-trillion-won order for large container ships.Samsung Heavy Industries announced on Oct. 8 that it received a US$920 million order to build six 23,000-TEU container ships from Taiwan's shipping company Evergreen Line. A 23,000-TEU container ship will be the
Liberty Korea Party lawmaker Yoon Han-hong said on Oct. 7 that the Moon Jae-in administration’s nuclear phase-out policy has led to a total loss of 43 trillion won so far and it is divided into an 8.3 trillion won decline in Korea Electric Power Corp.’s net profit, 6.5 trillion won in renewable ener