October 29, 2024

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EDITOR'S PICKS

• Companies 
  

  Why Kia’s first pickup isn't debuting in US

  Kia’s first-ever pickup, the Tasman, is unlikely to debut in the US, the world’s largest pickup truck market, largely due to lower profitability amid protectionist policies there. “We do not have plans to sell the Tasman pickups in the US because of the hefty tariffs imposed on Korea-made pickups under the free trade agreement between the two nations,” a Kia official told The Korea Herald at the Tasman’s media unveiling event in Seoul on Monday. The official als

• Companies 
  

  After 3-year hiatus, JTI Korea reenters e-cigarette market

  Japan's JTI is reentering South Korea's heated tobacco market with a new product, Ploom X Advanced, in a renewed growth push. "We understand Korea's market is highly competitive, but we believe now is the ideal time to introduce our product," JTI Korea general manager David Wheeler said at the launch of the new product at a Seoul hotel on Monday. "As we are standing in a rapidly evolving market, it's crucial to develop products to an advanced level with top quality. As a consu

• Tech 
  

  Leadership reshuffle looms at Samsung

  Samsung Electronics, facing challenges from its smaller rivals, is expected to carry out a major personnel reshuffle later this year, according to industry sources Monday. The world’s largest maker of memory chips and smartphones has been battling growing competition at home and abroad. When it comes to artificial intelligence chips, for instance, it has been outpaced by its crosstown rival SK hynix, as it failed to secure an earlier edge. “Samsung’s losses in HBM and found

• Companies 
  

  Korea Zinc dispute to drag on without clear winner

  The first round of the power struggle over the world’s largest zinc smelter, Korea Zinc, has wrapped up without a solid winner, the results of a tender offer launched by the company's management showed Monday. The dispute is expected to continue as both sides have failed to secure a majority stake in the company. The current management of Korea Zinc, represented by Chairman Choi Yun-beom, secured an additional 2.33 million shares in the company through a tender offer that closed Wednesday

• Companies 
  

  LG Energy Solution to cut down investment next year

  LG Energy Solution will tighten its belt next year to cope with uncertain market conditions due to the slowing growth of the electric vehicle sector, the Korean battery maker said Monday as it announced its third-quarter earnings. The company posted 6.88 trillion won ($4.97 billion) in sales in the third quarter of this year, down 16.4 percent on year. Its operating profit was 448.3 billion won, down 38.7 percent on year. The company would have logged a quarterly operating loss of 17.7 billio

• Companies 
  

  [Herald Interivew] Mercedes stands by Farasis batteries in EV fire scrutiny

  STUTTGART, Germany -- Following a fire involving a Mercedes-Benz EQE electric vehicle in South Korea in August, executives are defending their use of batteries from Chinese supplier Farasis Energy, even as investigations continue to probe the cause of the incident. The August fire, which occurred in the basement of an apartment building in Incheon, has raised questions around the safety of the vehicle's battery cells and the automaker’s quality control practices. During an Oct. 21 media r

• Companies 
  

  Posco earns top marks for shared growth with SMEs

  South Korean steel giant Posco Group said Monday that it has received the highest grade in the 2023 Shared Growth Index Evaluation for five consecutive years. Earlier this month, the 80th Korea Commission for Corporate Partnership released the win-win index for 218 large-sized companies. The index encourages shared growth within the industry by measuring large enterprises’ efforts to make room for small and medium-sized enterprises. Posco scored highly for its clear and fair transactio

• Companies 
  

  Mercedes-Benz raises Drive Pilot speed limit

  Mercedes-Benz announced Monday that it is upgrading its automated driving system, Drive Pilot, allowing it to operate at speeds of up to 95 kilometers per hour on German motorways. The upgrade is expected to be available in early 2025, following this year’s anticipated approval from Germany’s Federal Motor Transport Authority. With this update, Drive Pilot will become the fastest Level 3 automated driving system in a production vehicle. The enhanced system will allow drivers to hand

• Markets 
  

  Subsidies for kimchi-making? Napa cabbage's importance in Korea

  South Korea has unveiled a series of measures to stabilize the market for napa cabbage and daikon radishes, aiming to support preparations for "gimjang" -- the traditional process of preparing kimchi for winter -- as demand for these key ingredients is expected to rise during the peak gimjang season. This initiative includes expanding supplies of key gimjang ingredients through government-contracted cultivation and additional reserve stock distribution, as well as offering price sub

• Companies 
  

  [From the scene] KGC's ginseng harvest season in full swing

  ICHEON, Gyeonggi Province/WONJU, Gangwon Province – On an autumn morning in October, a bustling ginseng harvest was underway in the ginseng fields of Icheon, Gyeonggi Province. Workers were busy sorting ginseng unearthed by tractors, as roots that had been buried for years finally surfaced, ready for the season’s harvest, which is between September and November. Kim Il-bong, 65, whose family has managed these ginseng fields for three generations, said he has been exclusively partner

• Companies 
  

  SK chief assumes leadership of APEC CEO Summit

  SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, who doubles as chair of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, will preside over the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit, the largest gathering of business leaders in the region which is to be held next year in Korea, the business lobby said Sunday, upon the launch of the preparatory committee of the upcoming event. The APEC CEO Summit will be held on the sidelines of the annual APEC Summit, where 21 heads of state and some 1,000 businesspeople join. G

• Markets 
  

  Blackpink's Rose and Bruno Mars' 'APT' sparks surge in related stocks

  Blackpink’s Rose is making waves with her latest single, “APT,” a collaboration with American singer-songwriter Bruno Mars, which is not only topping global music charts around the world but also boosting related stock prices. South Korea’s leading soju maker, HiteJinro, saw its stock price climb by 6 percent to 21,200 won ($15.26) on Thursday, marking its biggest gain since February. Trading volume surged past one million shares -- over eight times the previous day&rsqu

• Companies 
  

  Posco completes Argentina’s first lithium hydroxide plant

  Posco Holdings announced Sunday it has completed the first phase of its lithium hydroxide plant in Argentina, a key step in securing a stable supply of the key material for electric vehicle batteries. Located in Guemes, Argentina, the plant will produce 25,000 tons of lithium hydroxide annually, sourced from the lithium-rich Hombre Muerto salt flat, where Posco holds mining rights. The output is enough to power 600,000 EVs, making it the largest brine lithium facility operated by a single compa

• Companies 
  

  [From the Scene] How robotics reflect shift in S. Korea's food industry

  Upon receiving an affogato order, the three-jointed arm of barista robot Porty readies the portafilter and locks it into the coffee grinder. After extracting a fresh shot from the espresso machine, Porty pours it over a cup of ice cream, prepared by fellow robot, Mixie. When there are no visitors, the duo reportedly spend their time dancing to the cafe's background music. Mixie and Porty are the only servers at Better Than Yours, a fully automated cafe in Seongsu, eastern Seoul. Together, they s

• Companies 
  

  Kia logs record-high operating profit for 3Q

  Hyundai Motor Group’s smaller affiliate Kia said Friday that it has posted 2.9 trillion won ($2.1 billion) in operating profit, marking the highest ever for a third quarter, despite mounting challenges in the automotive industry. The carmaker’s profit increased 0.6 percent from the same period last year, while its sales revenue surged 3.8 percent to 26.5 trillion won. The sales volume decreased 1.9 percent to 763,639 units, due to a temporary production hiatus from its two car manu

• Companies 
  

  Shinhan Financial net profit up nearly 4% in Q3

  Shinhan Financial Group, one of the country's top financial providers, posted lower-than-expected earnings for the July-September quarter, hit by the derivative fiasco from its brokerage arm. The financial group announced Friday that its net profit for the third quarter recorded 1.23 trillion won ($885 million), marking a 3.9 percent increase year-on-year. The figure, however, is slightly lower than the market forecast of around 1.3 trillion won. It also lost 186.9 billion won or 13.1 percent