Oct 17, 2019   Economy

[News Focus] Korea to vitalize FTA talks with S. American countries

SEJONG -- South Korea has become the first Asian country to sign a free trade agreement with a Central American trade bloc, composed of five countries -- Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Costa Rica and Panama.The Korea-Central America FTA took effect on Oct. 1, as the initial effectuation with Honduras and Nicaragua. The deal with the other three will be implemented after ratification by their legislatures.Korea is pinning big hopes on its 16th FTA deal with the Central American countries, and

Oct 17, 2019   Industry

Asiana Airlines introduces A350-900 to focus on long-haul flights

Asiana Airlines, the country’s second-largest full-service carrier in terms of sales, has added Airbus’ A350-900 for service to focus on strengthening long-haul flights, the firm said Thursday. The company said it will introduce up to 30 of the A350s by 2025, to increase its competitiveness in operating diversified, mid- and long-distance flight services. The latest introduction of the new A350-900 is the air carrier’s 10th of its kind.  The air carrier has been recen

Oct 17, 2019   Technology

Samsung ranks 6th in global brand value

Samsung Electronics was ranked sixth among 100 global corporate brands in terms of their value, according to a consulting firm Thursday.  The brand value of South Korea’s tech giant was estimated at $61.1 billion this year, increasing from $59.9 billion last year, according to the list of 100 Best Global Brands announced by US-based Interbrand. Its brand value surged 250 percent from $17.5 billion in 2009.Samsung first entered the list of top 10 brands in 2012, and has been rising ste

Oct 17, 2019   Finance

Daily money transfers via mobile payment apps exceed W200b in H1

The value of daily money transfers via mobile payment apps in South Korea surpassed 200 billion won ($168.6 million) in the first half of the year, central bank data showed Thursday, as more people used smartphones for financial services. The value of daily money transfers via smartphone apps, such as Toss, Naver Pay and KakaoPay, stood at 200.5 billion won in the January-June period, up 60.7 percent from six months ago, according to the data by the Bank of Korea. Toss, Naver Pay and KakaoPay ac

Oct 17, 2019   Industry

Daewoong’s BTX launches in Canada

Daewoong Pharmaceutical’s wrinkle-removing botulinum toxin Nabota has launched in Canada under the name Nuceiva, the company said Thursday. Marketed outside of Korea by US-based Evolus, Daewoong’s product is the first Korea-made BTX to penetrate the US market. Evolus gained the US Food and Drug Administration’s sales approval for the drug in March and launched it under the name Jeuveau in May.  As for the launch in Canada, Park Sung-soo, head of Daewoong’s Nabota bus

Oct 17, 2019   Automode

S. Korea's vehicle exports fall 4.8% in September

South Korea's vehicle exports fell 4.8 percent in September from a year earlier due to production losses caused by strikes at GM Korea Co., the trade ministry said Thursday. Five passenger and two commercial carmakers in South Korea shipped a combined 171,425 vehicles last month, down from 180,051 a year ago in terms of units, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said in a statement. "GM Korea suffered over 15,000 units in production losses (in September) as its union went on strike f

Oct 17, 2019   Automode

Hyundai Kona named best compact diesel SUV in Europe

Hyundai Motor said Thursday its compact vehicle Kona was named the best diesel SUV model in Europe by an auto magazine in Germany. 　The German publication Auto Bild conducted a comparative evaluation of four compact diesel SUVs currently sold in Europe -- Hyundai Motor’s Kona, Mazda’s CX-3, Ford’s EcoSport and Dacia’s Duster.  The four models were assessed across seven categories of body, powertrain, driving dynamic, connectivity, environment, driving comfort and cos

Oct 17, 2019   Economy

Moon urges more expansionary budget spending, signals no shift in key economic policy

President Moon Jae-in said Thursday his liberal administration is determined to maintain its expansionary fiscal policy and continue efforts to revitalize civilian investment in response to deepening woes facing Asia's fourth-biggest economy.Moon reiterated that South Korea, like many other countries, is suffering economic troubles due to such external factors as trade disputes and the sharp shrinking of the global manufacturing sector. He was apparently undaunted by attacks from political oppon

Oct 16, 2019   Finance

Kakao Bank to raise W500b in capital by issuing new shares

South Korea’s internet-only lender Kakao Bank has decided to raise 500 billion won ($422.4 million) in capital by issuing new shares, the firm said Wednesday. The decision was approved by its board, as the firm seeks to improve its fiscal soundness.  According to Kakao Bank, it will issue 100 million new common stocks priced at 5,000 won per share. The record date for the shares is scheduled Nov. 5 and the stocks will be listed on Nov. 22. Once the capital increase process is complete

Oct 16, 2019   Industry

Macallan releases Edition No. 5 in new color

Macallan has released a new whisky called Edition No. 5, in collaboration with the Pantone Color Institute, to demonstrate its craftsmanship and pioneering design, importer Edrington Korea said Wednesday. Inspired by Macallan’s natural color spectrum, the Pantone Color Institute developed a new color it has named “The Macallan Edition Purple” for the first time in the world, and applied it to the packaging of the latest whisky product, it added.The color symbolizes the whisky b

Oct 16, 2019   Industry

[From the Scene] Hanwha automation boosts solar efficiency　

JINCHEON, North Chungcheong Province -- At Hanwha Q Cells’ factory in Jincheon, North Chungcheong Province, there are hardly any workers. The five assembly lines -- 330 meters wide and 100 meters long -- are run by eight workers each. The high-quality solar cell and module manufacturer claims it is one of the most automated factories in the global industry.  “Automation is important. When an employee touches cells or modules, fingerprints or microcracks can be left on the produc

Oct 16, 2019   Industry

Korean executives getting younger: study

Executives at South Korea’s large businesses are fewer in number this year and are getting younger, a study found Wednesday.According to recruiting company Unico Search, Korea’s top 100 companies had a total of 6,932 executives, around 100 fewer than last year. The majority, 60 percent, were between the ages of 45 and 54. The most popular birth year for CEOs was 1962. The 27-person list of CEOs born that year includes Korean Air CEO Woo Ki-hong, GS Engineering and Construction CEO Li

Oct 16, 2019   Industry

GS Group chairman calls for return to fundamentals amid uncertainties

GS Group Chairman Huh Chang-soo on Wednesday opened the fourth-quarter GS Group executive meeting with words of caution, calling for the company to return to fundamentals amid uncertainties. “Once the fundamentals are strengthened, a proper growth path will appear,” Huh said, citing a passage from the Analects of Confucius. The meeting was attended by some 150 executives and staff members of GS affiliates.During the meeting, Huh rolled out three key paths that GS Group should take du

Oct 16, 2019   Industry

Supreme Court finalizes suspension of FSC restriction on Samsung BioLogics

BioLogics wins room to breathe, prepare for actual suit against prosecutors