Articles by 박윤아
박윤아
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K-Beauty Expo kicks off at KINTEX
[THE INVESTOR] k-Beauty Expo, a major international beauty trade show in South Korea, kicked off on Oct. 13. The eighth edition opened for a three-day run at KINTEX in Goyang, north of Seoul, gathering 450 companies, overseas buyers and experts in various beauty sectors. KINTEX and the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency are co-hosting the event to promote South Korea’s beauty industry, which has rapidly expanded its global presence thanks to innovative products and the popularity of the Kor
Oct. 13, 2016
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Korea Sale Festa raises retailers’ sales by 10%
[THE INVESTOR] The nationwide shopping festival, Korea Sale Festa, increased retailers’ sales more than 10 percent, data showed on Oct. 13. The massive shopping festival, which began Sept. 29 for 11 days, was designed to tie up the retail industry with the tourism and cultural sectors in line with the major Chinese holiday season. Combined sales of 54 retailers participating in the discount fest between Sept. 29 and Oct. 9 rose 10.1 percent from the same period last year, when the event was firs
Oct. 13, 2016
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Samsung kicks off recall of Galaxy Note 7 in Korea
[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Electronics on Oct. 13 kicked off its recall of the Galaxy Note 7 in South Korea -- whereby customers can get a refund or swap their phones for another smartphone -- two days after it discontinued the device over safety concerns.Consumers must visit stores where they bought the devices to get a refund or exchange. The recall program will be completed by the end of this year, according to local mobile carriers. Buyers of the Note 7 had received free gifts, including Gear Fi
Oct. 13, 2016
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IBK to issue refund guarantee to Samsung Heavy Industries
[THE INVESTOR] The state-run Industrial Bank of Korea has decided to issue a refund guarantee to Samsung Heavy Industries, supporting the company in its latest shipbuilding deal, industry sources said Thursday.Samsung Heavy Industries on Wednesday clinched a deal worth 240 billion won ($220 million) to build four oil tankers for Norwegian company Viken. This is the company’s second order obtained this year. A refund guarantee is a form of security for purchasers who generally pay for a substant
Oct. 13, 2016
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Samsung opens 10 premium TV stores in Bangladesh
[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Electronics said on Oct. 13 that it has opened 10 stores in Bangladesh to sell its TVs that feature quantum dot technology. The stores will allow visitors to understand how the company’s quantum dot display technology functions, Samsung said in a statement. By the end of the year, Samsung will open about 190 more stores in Bangladesh, according to the statement. Quantum dot TVs offer better picture quality and cheaper manufacturing costs than organic light-emitting diode
Oct. 13, 2016
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Korea’s ICT exports plummet following Galaxy Note 7 recall
[THE INVESTOR] South Korea’s exports of information and communications technology products decreased at the fastest pace in four months in September, the government said on Oct. 13.ICT exports reached US$14.53 billion last month, down 8.5 percent from $15.88 billion a year ago, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.The September figure marked the fastest on-year decline since May this year when it sank 10 percent on-year, with its losing streak extending to
Oct. 13, 2016
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Aju Capital sell-off plan canceled again
[THE INVESTOR] Aju Corp. has once again withdrawn its plan to sell its affiliate automobile financial service provider, which it been pushing for since June. The largest shareholder of Aju Capital said on Oct. 12 that it held negotiations with four companies but failed to reach an agreement on the price, which is currently valued at 400 billion won (US$354.90 million) to 500 billion won. The sell-off plan had been earlier canceled in 2014.“Over the past four months, we held talks with some candi
Oct. 13, 2016
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BOK freezes key interest rate in Oct.
[THE INVESTOR] In a widely expected move, the Bank of Korea kept the key interest rate at 1.25 percent for October, holding it to the record low for the four straight month. In June, the central bank made a surprise rate cut, citing a need to support the economy.South Korea‘s exports backtracked 5.9 percent from a year earlier in September due mainly to sluggish shipments of cars and mobile devices. Outbound shipments came to US$40.9 billion last month, down from $43.4 billion for the same month
Oct. 13, 2016
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Coson, Nexteye to establish JV
[DISCLOSURE] Cosmetics firm Coson (069110) announced on Oct. 12 that it has signed an agreement with Nexteye (137940), a visual inspection equipment manufacturer, to launch a joint corporation called Village 11 Factory to attract more customers both in South Korea and China. Coson will come up with new distribution channels to target the Chinese market, such as entering duty-free stores in China and e-commerce sector together with Nexteye’s largest shareholder, Aesthetic International Beauty Cha
Oct. 12, 2016
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Household loans rise 12% in Sept.
[THE INVESTOR] Household loans from local banks increased 11.8 percent on-year in September, according to data on Oct.12. The loans amounted to 688.4 trillion won (US$613 billion) as of end-September, compared with 615.7 trillion won from a year earlier, according to the data from the Bank of Korea.Compared with August this year, the amount rose by 6.1 trillion won. The on-month increase marked a decline from an 8.6 trillion-won gain in the previous month.“Mortgages increased 5.3 trillion won fr
Oct. 12, 2016
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Korea’s money supply up 7% in Aug.
[THE INVESTOR] The money supply in South Korea rose more than 7 percent on-year in August, according to the central bank on Oct. 12.The nation’s M2 totaled 2,377 trillion won (US$2.10 trillion) in August, up 7.2 percent from a year earlier. It marks a 1.2 percent rise from July, according to the Bank of Korea. M2 is a measure of the money supply counting the currency in circulation, including bank debentures and deposits with a maturity of less than two years, along with stock investments. It‘s
Oct. 12, 2016
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Netmarble to launch new mobile game in Nov. skipping trials
[THE INVESTOR] Netmarble Games has decided to launch “Lineage II: Revolution” for mobile devices in November without the closed beta phase, scheduled to start on Oct. 13, the company said. A closed beta refers to a trail process for a restricted group of people before releasing the game. The game attracted a huge reaction from game users with about 2 million signing up for the trial process. With the large number of trial subscribers, industry watchers predicted it is similar to open beta -- a t
Oct. 12, 2016
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On-third chaebol family members offer shares as collateral
[THE INVESTOR] A third of family members of South Korea’s major conglomerate owners have put up shares as collateral for loans from financial institutions, a market tracker said on Oct. 12.In a report on collateral provided by 363 owner family members of the country’s top 30 conglomerates, known here as chaebol, CEO Score said that 30.3 percent, or 110 people, have offered their shares as collateral for loans as of end-September.The value of their shares put up as collateral totals 6.4 trillion
Oct. 12, 2016
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Large shareholders reap huge capital gains
[THE INVESTOR] Shareholders of listed South Korean companies have earned solid capital gains over the past five years, a lawmaker said on Oct. 12. In an analysis of data from the National Tax Service, Rep. Park Kwang-on of the main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea said 166,838 people filed their capital gains tax return between 2011 and 2015, with their proceeds from stock sales reaching a combined 48.2 trillion won (US$42.80 billion).Of the total, 610 shareholders reported capital gains of 10 b
Oct. 12, 2016
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Samsung asks for fair reading of design patent law in battle with Apple
[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Electronics claimed that it is unfair for a patent violator to hand over all profits from sales of a product using the patent design when it made only a tiny contribution to sales, at the US Supreme Court Oct. 10 in its legal battle with Apple.Industry watchers say that the hearing will weigh in on reimbursement of nearly $400 million in damages it already paid Apple.Samsung paid Apple US$548 million in damages awarded by a lower court for copying designs of the iPhone. In
Oct. 12, 2016
