The author is an analyst for Shinhan Securities. He can be reached at jk.ahn@shinhan.com -- Ed.Lowered expectations for US rate cuts, strong external headwinds for 3Q23US Treasury yields are unlikely to move lower in 3Q. The Silicon Valley Bank crisis and the ensuing financial market unrest that tri
SK hynix will sell its water treatment center, a water purification facility for semiconductor factories, to secure cash assets of around one trillion won. The company has announced that it will spare no expense in investing in the production of high-value-added products in preparation for an upcomi
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at sw.kang@nhqv.com -- Ed.The Fed’s June pause was a move to slow hikes down to 12.5bp. A July FOMC rate hike seems inevitable. However, the July hike may be the last given the steep decline in core service prices and shrinki
Korea’s foreign exchange reserves edged up in June, turning to an increase in a month. This was due to the weakening of the U.S. dollar.According to “Foreign Exchange Reserves at the End of June” data released by the Bank of Korea (BOK) on July 5, the country’s foreign exchange reserves stood at US$
The author is an analyst for Shinhan Securities. He can be reached at jk.ahn@shinhan.com -- Ed.BOK in a bind, unable to raise or cut ratesConsumer price inflation slowed down to 2.7% YoY in June, falling to 2% levels for the first time since September 2021. Contribution to CPI growth by category cam
Bank of Korea Governor Lee Chang-yong had a surprise meeting with Pan Gongsheng, the current Chinese Communist Party Committee Secretary and head of the People's Bank of China (PBC) on July 3 ahead of U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s visit to China. The PBC actively publicized the meeting
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at minwoo.ju@nhqv.com -- Ed.At EcoPro BM, temporarily sluggish earnings were likely unavoidable in 2Q23 due to falling ASPs and line conversion investment. However, the securing of capital for greater mid/long-term competitiv
According to the 2022 International Investment Balance Sheet by Region and Currency (Provisional) released by the Bank of Korea (BOK) on June 27, the balance of Korea’s external financial assets, excluding reserves, stood at US$1.7456 trillion at the end of last year. This represented a drop of US$1
SK on, a battery subsidiary of SK Innovation, and BlueOvalSK, a joint venture between SK on and Ford Motor Company for electric vehicle batteries, has received conditional approval for a policy fund loan of up to US$9.2 billion from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).On June 23, SK on announced tha
LG Energy Solution has successfully attracted nearly 5 trillion won in capital from its demand forecast for its first-ever issue of 500 billion won in corporate bonds since its foundation.According to the investment banking industry on the 22nd, LG Energy Solution received a total of 4.72 trillion w
The Export-Import Bank of Korea (Korea Eximbank) announced on June 21 that it issued 850 million Australian dollars (about US$580 million) in kangaroo bonds on June 20. Kangaroo bonds are Australian dollar-denominated bonds issued by foreign organizations in the Australian capital market.They are co
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. She can be reached at yd.yoon@nhqv.com -- Ed.Financial authorities' guidance regarding real estate PF and CFD crisis situations is starting to be reflected in KIH’s earnings. Amid continued industry uncertainties, provisioning looks inevit
The author is an analyst for Shinhan Securities. He can be reached at jk.ahn@shinhan.com -- Ed.[US] Solid fundamentalsWe believe there is a possibility that the current Fed funds rate cycle may proceed differently from the ones seen in the past, due to the following reasons: 1) the US economy is now
The author is an analyst for Shinhan Securities. He can be reached at jk.ahn@shinhan.com -- Ed.US yields to slow their rise after May CPI release and June FOMC meetingThe market’s focus is now shifting to the US Fed’s FOMC meeting on June 13-14 (local time). KTB yields have been on a steep uptrend f
Foreign investors bought a record 15 trillion won (US$11.8 billion) worth of stocks and bonds in Korea’s financial market in May.According to international financial and foreign exchange market trends released by the Bank of Korea (BOK) on June 12, foreign investors recorded a net inflow of US$114.3
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at hwdoh@nhqv.com -- Ed.Park Systems’ equipment is used in EUV and hybrid bonding processes. In 2023, the firm’s earnings are likely to come in sluggish in 1H23, before turning around in 2H23.Earnings to come in sluggish in 1
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at hwdoh@nhqv.com -- Ed.GPUs and HBM use for machine learning is gaining traction. We expect Hanmi Semiconductor's earnings to come in low in 1H23 and high in 2H23.Demand rising for HBM3We maintain a Buy rating on Hanmi S
Australian Strategic Materials (ASM) is a company focused on mining and processing rare earth elements and critical minerals that has a strong partnership with Korea. Business Korea conducted a written interview with ASM CEO Rowena Smith to ask her about her company’s business activities, its Dubbo
On June 8, SK innovation's board of directors approved a shareholder agreement to attract investment for SK on. This follows the same pattern as the US$800 million (approximately 1.5 trillion won) limit approved from the MBK consortium on May 24, a contract between SK innovation, SK on, and a ne
On June 7, LG Energy Solution announced it had signed a Joint Development Agreement (JDA) and strategic investment contract with the Australian battery materials and equipment company Novonix Limited. Synthetic graphite, a crucial component of battery anodes, will be jointly developed under this agr