The Korea Communications Commission announced on May 27 that YouTube, Facebook and KakaoTalk are subject to its user protection assessment from this year onwards.The commission has conducted the annual assessment since 2013 in order to better protect telecommunications users and handle their grievan
Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors will again shut down some of their production lines in Korea in June due to a shortage of export orders.Hyundai Motor's third plant in Ulsan will be closed from June 11-12, while Line 42 of its fourth plant will be closed from June1-5, the automaker announced on May
LG Chem has been chosen to supply trillions of won worth of electric vehicle (EV) batteries to Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors.The two automakers have selected LG Chem as their battery supplier for pure EVs that will be mass-produced beginning 2022. The vehicles will be produced on the Electric-Global
Apple's iPhone 11 was the best-selling smartphone in the world in the first quarter of this year. iPhone 11 shipments were over five times more than those of Samsung Electronics' flagship phone Galaxy S20 Plus.The iPhone 11 sold 19.5 million units in the first quarter of this year, ranking f
Roses are in full bloom at Everland, one of the best theme parks in South Korea. Everland is well-known for its 20,000-square-meter rose garden. Three million roses in 720 varieties create a riot of color, scent, and joy there. Twenty-four of those rose varieties have been developed by Everland itse
The author is an analyst of NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at hwdoh@nhqv.com. -- Ed. The power & compound semiconductor equipment market is to expand 59% y-y next year. The use of compound semiconductors such as SiC and GaN in 5G, EVs, and industrial facilities, amongst others, is to
Hyundai Motor Co. and Sony Pictures Entertainment announced on May 28 that they have entered into a unique and unprecedented multi-picture promotional partnership that will feature the automaker’s new models and technologies in upcoming Sony Pictures productions. Under the deal Hyundai Motor will al
The author is an analyst of NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at hyundong.lee@nhqv.com. -- Ed. Amidst the spread of Covid-19, in 1Q20, Ezwel enjoyed both greater transactions at its online shopping mall platform and earnings expansion. Driven by the strengthening competitiveness of its o
The author is an analyst of NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at jinmyung.choi@nhqv.com. -- Ed. [Hankuk Carbon] Firm to secure heftiest new contracts in its history thanks to Qatar LNG projectAlthough order volume for LNG carriers plunged in 1H20 due to Covid-19, the order landscape has
The Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) said on May 26 that its research team has developed a magnetoresistive random-access memory (MRAM) that consumes extremely low power but has high speeds of spin direction changes.The research team was led by Dr. Lee Ki-young of the Spin Convergenc
Korea Expressway Corp. and SK Engineering & Construction announced on May 26 that they will sign a road operation and maintenance contract with BAKAD Investment and Operation LLP, the operator of the Almaty Ring Road project.The project is to build a 66-km ring road (four to six lanes) in Almaty, Ka
LG CNS announced on May 26 that it will develop ID cards that can be used anywhere in the world in partnership with Canada's Evernym, which specializes in blockchain-based decentralized identity (DID) technology.LG CNS has signed an MOU with Evernym to establish global standards on DIDs.DID is a
Samsung Electronics vice chairman Lee Jae-yong was questioned by prosecutors on May 26 over his alleged involvement in the controversial merger of Samsung Group’s two affiliates, Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries, five years ago.The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office summoned Lee as a def
As the conflict between the United States and China has spread to Hong Kong, Korean semiconductor companies are facing repercussions.Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix are paying keen attention to future developments as the United States is threatening to deprive Hong Kong of its special status.Hong K
South Korean companies’ business sentiment rebounded for the first time in five months in May as domestic consumption is showing signs of recovery thanks to the government’s distribution of emergency coronavirus relief funds.The Bank of Korea announced on May 27 that the business survey index (BSI)
Samsung Electronics announced on May 27 its official partnership with global esports organization, T1 Entertainment & Sports (T1).With this partnership, all teams and players located at the T1 headquarters training facility in Seoul will practice using Samsung’s latest curved gaming monitors, the Od
Kia Motors has announced a significant upgrade to the Kia Rio, a subcompact car now in its fourth generation. The upgraded model features a range of enhancements to reinvigorate the car’s position within the highly competitive B-segment.The upgraded Rio pairs an updated exterior and interior design
SK Telecom announced on May 26 that, together with Omron Electronics Korea, it has developed a 5G-powered autonomous robot to enable a systematic and efficient response against the coronavirus (COVID-19).Built with cutting-edge technologies, including 5G, artificial intelligence (AI), autonomous dri
The authors are analysts of Shinhan Investment Corp. They can be reached at snowKH@shinhan.com and swoong92@shinhan.com, respectively. -- Ed. 2Q20 sales forecast at KRW228bn (+5%YoY)Lotte Data Communication is expected to post sales of KRW228bn (+5% YoY) and operating profit of KRW10bn (-27% YoY) fo
The author is an analyst of NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at hwdoh@nhqv.com. -- Ed. With supply and demand in balance, 3Q20 memory contract prices should arrive flat q-q. Data center investment, which surged in 1H20 on increased stay-at-home demand, will likely slow in 2H20. But, mob