The South Korean government has approved new projects worth 13.8 trillion won (US$11.5 billion) under the Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF) to be implemented by 2026, with 6.5 trillion won to be disbursed. Established in 1987, the EDCF is a fund for concessional loans aimed at supporting
Coway Co., Ltd., the “Best Life Solution Company,” has released its financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year 2023."We’re proud to have achieved such a successful 2023, even in the face of significant challenges present in both domestic and international markets. Our stable performanc
The Korea Development Institute (KDI) recently evaluated the state of the South Korean economy, noting a recovery in exports but a slowdown in domestic consumption. This marks the third consecutive month that the KDI has assessed a “slowdown in domestic consumption.”On Feb. 7, the KDI assessed the e
Korea’s current account surplus reached US$35.5 billion in 2023. This was mainly because the volume of goods exports reaching a yearly high at the end of 2023.The current account surplus stood at US$7.41 billion in December, according to a December 2023 provisional balance of payments data released
A contract worth US$3.2 billion has been finalized to export the KM-SAM2 (Cheongung) ballistic missile system, also known as the Korean Patriot Missile, to Saudi Arabia.The Korean Ministry of National Defense announced on Feb. 6 (local time) a contract for the export of 10 M-SAM2 batteries signed be
The Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy revealed on Jan. 6 that last year a total of 23 cases of overseas leakage of industrial technology, including “national core technologies,” were detected, marking an increase of 3 cases from the previous year. The government designates as national core tec
Nine out of 10 Korean manufacturers believe that overseas carbon neutrality policies such as those in the United States and Europe affect their business operations, a survey found.According to the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), which recently surveyed 300 Korean manufacturing compani
LS Electric announced on Feb. 5 that it has held a completion ceremony for the Durango factory in Mexico of its electric vehicle component subsidiary, LS e-Mobility Solution.The ceremony was attended by about 50 key figures, including Koo Ja-kyun, chairman of LS Electric; Kim Won-il, representative
The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) has announced plans to conduct a comprehensive investigation aimed at eradicating the common practice of illegal short selling by global investment banks (IBs).In its business plan announced on Feb. 5, the FSS stated, “We will crack down on market disruptions
Overseas organizations that conduct joint research with Korean institutions will be able to directly participate in Korea’s national R&D projects as lead and joint R&D organizations.To ease the burden of R&D expenses for companies conducting international joint research, international joint R&D expe
The South Korean battery industry, on the brink of achieving an annual export milestone of US$10 billion, has seen a slowdown in its growth momentum. This deceleration is attributed to a reduction in battery demand due to a slowdown in electric vehicle (EV) demand, along with the relocation of produ
The government plans to allocate 910 billion won (US$679.87 million) to a seed fund, intending to establish a 1.7 trillion won venture capital. Notably, the government’s investment is scheduled to be executed entirely within the first quarter, providing a ray of hope for the cash-strapped venture in
The government has announced its plan to expand the global Korean cuisine industry to a scale of 300 trillion won by 2027. The strategy involves increasing the number of overseas Korean restaurants to 15,000 and more than tripling the number of Michelin-starred Korean restaurants compared to the cur
GS E&C’s business license has been suspended for eight months for the collapse of an underground parking lot that occurred in 2023. A lot of attention is now being paid to whether its business operations will be affected by the suspension.According to sources in the construction industry on Feb. 2,
Last year, South Korea’s online shopping transactions nearly reached 230 trillion won (US$172.67 billion), setting a new all-time record. The surge was attributed to a sharp increase in travel demand and the unprecedented milestone of overseas direct purchases surpassing 6 trillion won for the first
Lithium-for-earth and Hydro Lithium announced on Jan. 31 that two technologies invented by Dr. Jun Woong -- Lithium Extraction from Saline and Other Sources (CULX), and Environmentally Friendly Lithium Hydroxide Production Using Water (CULH) -- have recently been granted patent registrations in mult
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport of South Korea announced on Jan. 29 that it will start accepting applications from Jan. 30 for this year’s K-City Network Global Collaboration Project. This initiative aims to establish a smart city cooperation network with foreign nations and suppo
The author is an analyst for Shinhan Securities. She can be reached at hpark@shinhan.com -- Ed.4Q23 OP falls short due to inventory adjustments at distributorsAmorepacific posted consolidated operating profit of KRW20.7bn (-64% YoY) on sales of KRW926bn (-15% YoY) for 4Q23, missing our estimate (KRW
비지니스코리아 Jung Min-hee (pr@businesskorea.co.kr)Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin has expressed his commitment to focusing on nurturing new business ventures while also considering the possibility of selling underperforming businesses. Regarding the management dispute, he stated, “It has been resolved
As of November last year, the National Pension Fund’s (NPS) rate of return approached double digits. Despite concerns about a global economic downturn, the strength of the stock market resulted in the evaluation of the fund’s assets surging to nearly 1 quadrillion won.The NPS Investment Management d