Pizza 4P’s
Scope
Date
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Korean chipmakers
Chip shortage hits Korea’s COVID-19 diagnostic device manufacturers
The global chip shortage is impacting South Korea’s COVID-19 test device makers. They are paying up to 10 times the normal price of semiconduc...
Jun 07, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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ESG
Korea’s corporate HQ buildings are becoming clean power generators
ESG is one of the most frequently mentioned keywords in South Korea today. It stands for environmental, social and corporate governance, the three...
Jun 04, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Business & Politics
Citibank alludes to S.Korean retail business closure
Citibank Korea will begin to examine ways to gradually liquidate its consumer banking business as it faces difficulties in selling the retail operat...
Jun 04, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Mobile networks
Samsung unveils low-end 5G phone to rival China’s cheap models
Samsung Electronics Co. on Friday launched a low-end 5G smartphone in overseas markets amid intensified price competition initiated by Chinese mobil...
Jun 04, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Energy
CS Wind acquires US wind tower factory from Vestas at $150 mn
South Korea’s wind tower manufacturer CS Wind Corp. has acquired full ownership of the world’s largest tower manufacturing facility loca...
Jun 04, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean stock market
Samsung returns as foreigners’ top pick; Kospi just shy of record high
Samsung Electronics Co., the bellwether of South Korea’s main bourse, has returned as the market darling, with foreigners buying heavily on th...
Jun 03, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Economy
Chips, autos set S.Korea’s May export growth at fastest pace in 32 years
South Korea’s exports surged to the highest level in over 32 years in May on the back of strong demand for semiconductors and automobiles, rei...
Jun 02, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Automobiles
Korea’s major tire makers to raise prices as rubber supply tightens
South Korea’s three leading tire makers are set to raise prices of commercial and passenger vehicle tires on growing demand from automakers an...
May 31, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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IPOs
Lotte Rental kicks off $360 mn IPO process, seeks $1.8 bn valuation
South Korea’s leading rental car company Lotte Rental Co. has kicked off an initial public offering process to raise some 400 billion won ($36...
May 31, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Healthcare
National health insurance to cover dental startup AIOBIO’s QLF device
AIOBIO’s dental diagnostic devices will be covered by South Korea’s national health insurance from June 1. AIOBIO is the country’s...
May 31, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Automobiles
Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid outscores Toyota Highlander: Auto Bild ratings
Hyundai Motor Co.’s Santa Fe hybrid has earned higher ratings than Toyota Motor Corp.’s Highlander, one of its strongest rivals, in an e...
May 30, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Carbon neutrality
Korea’s OCI to return to highest profit in decade on rising polysilicon prices
OCI Co., a South Korean chemical and green energy company, has been in the red for years, weighed by weak prices of its mainstay product polysilicon...
May 30, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Venture capital
Vision Fund loss slashes Masayoshi Son’s 2020 salary by 52%
SoftBank Group founder and CEO Masayoshi Son’s salary more than halved last year, according to the group’s regulatory filing on May 28.T...
May 28, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Energy
POSCO, Orsted form offshore wind and hydrogen partnership
South Korea’s steelmaker POSCO has taken another big step in accelerating the industry’s shift toward renewable energy. POSCO said on Ma...
May 28, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Batteries
SK Nexilis, POSCO move forward with EV battery materials projects
With competition heating up in the global race for more eco-friendly cars, South Korea’s major companies are moving forward with their plans t...
May 27, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Cross-industry collaboration
HYBE x McDonald’s: The BTS Meal launches globally
McDonald’s has launched The BTS Meal on May 26 in the first selected group of 12 markets including Brazil, Canada and the US. The BTS meal is ...
May 27, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Hydrogen economy
Hyundai Motor’s new XCIENT truck raises hydrogen game in Europe
South Korea’s top automaker Hyundai Motor Co. has unveiled an upgraded version of its fuel cell truck XCIENT, turning up the heat on rivals in...
May 26, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Entertainment
HYBE’s $400 mn rights offering for Ithaca merger to open June 1-2
HYBE Co., the music and entertainment agency behind BTS, on Jun 1-2 will open the subscription for its rights issue shares worth 445.5 billion won (...
May 26, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Steel
China’s heavy imports of copper, steel scrap hurt Korean SMEs
South Korea’s massive exports of scrap steel and scrap copper to China are hurting its domestic companies that are struggling to secure the st...
May 26, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Carbon neutrality
In the crosswinds of coal’s clean transition
The recent announcement by President Moon Jae-in that South Korea will stop funding coal-powered plants overseas and expand its decision to phase out ...
May 26, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Fintech
KakaoBank’s skyrocketing valuation fuels debate on financial reform
There have been near-endless debates regarding the “proper valuation” of KakaoBank, South Korea’s largest internet-only bank that ...
May 25, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Mergers & Acquisitions
Singapore sovereign fund GIC to buy 30% of Starbucks Korea for $710 mn
Singapore’s sovereign growth fund GIC Private Ltd. plans to acquire a 30% stake in Starbucks Korea for about 800 billion won ($710 million) fr...
May 24, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Shipping & Shipbuilding
Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore wins $308 million order to build 6 vessels
Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co. (KSOE) has won a 348 billion won ($308 million) deal to build six vessels, bringing its total sh...
May 24, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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President Moon's state visit to US
Korea’s top 4 conglomerates pledge $40 bn investment in US
Samsung Group, Hyundai Motor Group, SK Group and LG Group, companies unofficially accompanying South Korean President Moon Jae-in on his state visit...
May 23, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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COVID-19
Samsung Biologics to make Moderna’s mRNA vaccine from Q3
Samsung Biologics Co. will be manufacturing the US company Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine (mRNA-1273) from the second half of this year in Korea. ...
May 23, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Hydrogen economy
Lotte Chem in hydrogen deal with Air Liquide, invests $185 mn in materials
South Korea’s Lotte Chemical Corp. is diversifying into electric vehicle raw materials and hydrogen businesses as new growth drivers, moving a...
May 20, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Automobiles
Hyundai becomes India’s top SUV seller, wins Indian Car of the Year Award
Hyundai Motor Group’s small and compact sport utility vehicles (SUVs) are posting strong sales in fast-growing economies including India and R...
May 18, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Earnings
Dongkuk Steel’s Q1 operating profit hits 5-year high as economy recovers
Dongkuk Steel Mill Co., South Korea’s third-largest steelmaker, on Monday reported its largest quarterly operating profit in nearly five years...
May 17, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Asset management
Woori Financial takes over Franklin Templeton’s retail fund business
Woori Financial Group has been selected to acquire Franklin Templeton Investments’ retail fund business in South Korea, less than a month sinc...
May 14, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Economy
Heavy household borrowing fans Korea’s asset market overheating
South Korea’s asset market is showing signs of overheating as households take out fresh loans at a record pace to invest in initial share sale...
May 13, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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