April 23, 2024

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EDITOR'S PICKS

• Tech 
  

  Samsung, SK hynix investors dump shares on Nvidia crash

  Investors of the two Korean chip makers – Samsung Electronics and SK hynix -- dumped their shares Monday after Nvidia, the US chip giant, lost almost 10 percent Friday -- its worst day since March 2020. Market heavyweight Samsung Electronics and its chip rival SK hynix opened weaker in the day compared to Friday’s closing. Samsung and SK hynix fell 1.93 percent and 0.98 percent, respectively, to end trading at 76,100 won ($55.14) and 171,600 won on the country’s benchmark Kos

• Companies 
  

  Hyundai Motor to power US EV plant with renewable energy

  Hyundai Motor Group has inked a 147-megawatt power purchase agreement with Matrix Renewables, a Spanish renewable energy company, to power its electric vehicle plant currently under construction in the state of Georgia, the Korean auto conglomerate said Monday. According to Hyundai Motor, the deal marked the largest single PPA signed by a Korean company in the US. The conglomerate’s four companies -- Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America, the auto giant’s EV plant, Hyundai Mobis N

• Startups 
  

  [Herald Interview] Why Toss invited hackers to penetrate its system

  In 2022, South Korean fintech app Toss launched the nation’s first bug bounty program by a finance company, inviting attacks on its security system from the outside. Operating the program for several months in the first two years, Toss has kept the doors open starting last year so that hackers can report whenever they discover a vulnerability in Toss security. White hat -- or ethical -- hackers that make a significant discovery are rewarded up to 30 million won ($22,000). Toss remains t

• Companies 
  

  Posco charity foundation tackles disability challenges

  The Posco 1% Foundation, founded in 2013, is funded by the donations of employees at South Korean steel giant Posco Group. Among the foundation's diverse charity projects is one aimed at supporting people with disabilities, particularly in career-seeking activities. According to a 2023 survey by the Korea Employment Agency for Persons with Disabilities, about 5 percent of the nation’s population is registered as disabled. The economic participation rate and employment rate of people wit

• Companies 
  

  HD Hyundai Infracore zeroes in on European market

  HD Hyundai Infracore, a construction equipment maker under Korean shipbuilding conglomerate HD Hyundai, will unveil its new fuel-cell electric wheel loader named the DL250-FCEV for the first time at the Intermat in France later this week, the company said Monday. The Intermat, one of the three biggest global construction machinery exhibitions along with the Conexpo in the US and Bauma in Germany, will take place at the Paris Nord Villepinte exhibition center Wednesday to Saturday. The construc

• Companies 
  

  [KH Explains] Will 6-day workweek for executives help Samsung avert crisis?

  Doubts have been raised over Samsung Group’s latest decision to make the executives of its key tech affiliates -- Samsung Electronics, Samsung SDI, Samsung SDS and Samsung Display -- work an extra day per week as part of the group's emergency measures to tackle ongoing business uncertainties. Critics pointed out that the six-day workweek for executives is "outdated and inefficient," and that it lies in contrast to other local Big Tech firms who are following the global trend of

• Tech 
  

  LG Innotek earns Edison silver for mobile zoom camera

  LG Innotek has clinched a silver Edison Award for its ultra-thin optical telephoto zoom camera module for smartphones, marking its second consecutive Edison win, the company said Sunday. The module, which allows for 3x to 5x magnification, brings what the company describes as near-DSLR-quality optical zoom in a single compact unit. First commercialized in 2022, this innovation enhances image quality and spares internal device space for other components. The core of this technology is the Zoom

• Companies 
  

  KGC eyes Indonesian market, riding high on volleyball fame

  Korea Ginseng Corp., the country’s leading manufacturer of ginseng products, said Monday it plans to prioritize its marketing efforts in the Indonesian market, particularly leveraging the growing popularity of the Indonesian volleyball player under its sponsorship. Currently, the KGC sponsors the Red Sparks women’s volleyball team under its premium ginseng product brand, JungKwanJang. In 2023, the volleyball team was joined by Megawati Pertiwi, a 24-year-old volleyball player from

• Companies 
  

  Posco confirms 7 missions to speed up innovation

  Posco Group Chairman Chang In-hwa on Monday announced seven major tasks that the steel giant will tackle in the years to come, from consolidating its leadership in steelmaking and battery materials to improving the governance structure. The new missions come after Chang was appointed as the group’s new chairman on March 21. Chang, together with a 20-member task force, came up with the new tasks to enhance Posco’s competitiveness across key business areas. “Through the seven

• Markets 
  

  BOK chief says won will level off if Middle East conflict eases

  Bank of Korea Governor Rhee Chang-yong, during his visit to the United States, projected the volatility of the won-dollar exchange rate would ease if the Middle East tension did not escalate further. The won-dollar exchange rate has been fluctuating heavily over the past few weeks, influenced by the strong demand for the greenback, with the anticipation that the US Federal Reserve will continue its aggressive monetary tightening due to the hotter-than-expected inflation readings. The strong s

• Companies 
  

  SK On wins Edison Award for cobalt-free battery

  SK On, one of Korea’s leading electric vehicle battery manufacturers, has been awarded a Bronze at the 2024 Edison Awards for its innovative cobalt-free battery. The award, presented last Thursday, represents SK On's ongoing efforts to combine advanced technology with sustainable practices in the EV industry. The development of the cobalt-free battery by SK On is a notable breakthrough, addressing the critical challenges traditionally associated with cobalt use in batteries. Cobalt, whi

• Markets 
  

  HD Korea Shipbuilding to help SMEs cut greenhouse gases

  HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering said Sunday it has partnered with Korea East-West Power and the Korea SMEs and Startups Agency to launch a joint initiative to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the shipbuilding industry. The collaboration, inked at the HD Hyundai Global R&D Center, supports small to medium-sized shipyard suppliers. The program will swap outdated air compressors for high-efficiency units, potentially reducing annual emissions by 30 to 60 metric tons per dev

• Markets 
  

  Korea's food inflation surges to third-highest in OECD

  South Korea's food inflation spiked to 6.95 percent in February, the third-highest among member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. The OECD statistics for February announced Sunday reveal that Korea ranks third among 38 OECD member countries in terms of food and non-alcoholic beverage inflation, trailing only Turkey with 71.12 percent and Iceland with 7.52 percent. This marks the first time in over two years that Korea's food inflation has exceeded the OEC

• Companies 
  

  LX Pantos unveils expansive railway terminal in Hungary

  South Korean logistics company LX Pantos has opened a vast railway terminal in Tata, Hungary, with aims to bolster its competitive edge in European logistics. Situated approximately 65 kilometers southwest of Budapest, the LX Pantos Tata Terminal strategically positions itself near Europe’s largest battery production hub. Encompassing an area of around 36,000 square meters, equivalent to roughly five soccer fields, the terminal includes two dedicated rail tracks. The inauguration ceremo

• Markets 
  

  Seoul shares rattled by Israeli attack on Iran; Kospi dips to nearly 11-week low

  The South Korean market on Friday faced heightened volatility in response to Israel's military actions against Iran, with the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index plunging to its lowest level in 11 weeks. The dip coincided with a weakening of the local currency. The Kospi concluded the day at 2591.86, marking a marginal decrease of 1.63 percent from the previous session. Initially opening at 2,600.69, a decrease of 34.01 from the prior session, the index experienced a sharp downturn fo

• Markets 
  

  S-Oil donates W560m to support firefighters

  S-Oil, one of major refineries in South Korea, made a donation of 560 million won ($405,000) on Friday to the Korea National Council On Social Welfare to support its ongoing program assisting firefighters and their families, the company said. The KNCSW, a charity organization under the Ministry of Health and Welfare, will allocate the fund to the Heroic Firefighter Protection program. The program covers the medical expenses of injured firefighters, provides scholarships for the children of fir