SK: planning for the eurozone fallout

May 23, 2012 9:56 am by Song Jung-a

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South Korean officials are painfully aware that the country’s financial markets could be hit again by sudden capital outflows amid growing concerns that Greece could exit from the eurozone. The concern is that foreign investors could suddenly withdraw money from Asia’s fourth-largest economy if Europe’s debt crisis worsens. Korea’s export-driven economy is particularly vulnerable to external shocks. Continue reading »

Tags: eurozone crisis, exports, SKorea economy Posted in Asia, South Korea | Permalink

Samsung: enjoy it while you can

May 18, 2012 1:58 pm by Song Jung-a

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Will Samsung’s latest smartphone Galaxy S III become the iPhone killer? It may be too early to say but the new phone, which was launched in London earlier this month amid much fanfare, looks likely to become another big hit for the South Korean company. Continue reading »

Tags: Apple, Samsung, smartphones, telecoms Posted in Asia, South Korea | Permalink

LG: Optimus primed for fightback

May 17, 2012 11:18 am by Song Jung-a

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Is LG Electronics ready to fight back in the fast-growing smartphone market? The South Korean company, a latecomer to the higher-margin end of the phone business, has struggled to defend its market share in the fast-changing market due to a lack of popular smartphone models.

But its latest smartphone called the Optimus LTE II, which was launched in its domestic market, could help the company reverse its sliding fortunes. LG has pinned high hopes on smartphones running on the high-speed LTE (long-term evolution) networks as the demand grows for higher data speeds. Continue reading »

Tags: LG, Samsung, smartphones, telecoms Posted in Asia, South Korea | Permalink

KDB: IPO at last?

May 15, 2012 10:07 am by Song Jung-a

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Korea Development Bank, a state-run South Korean lender, seems to be finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. After repeated delays, the financial group is determined to push ahead with its much-anticipated initial public offering, which will be the country’s largest this year. Continue reading »

Tags: IPOs, KDB, Woori Posted in Asia, South Korea | Permalink

S Korea: a lot of plastic debt

May 11, 2012 12:04 pm by Song Jung-a

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South Koreans love credit cards. The country is jokingly called the “Republic of Plastic Cards” – and with good reason.

But the overuse of credit cards is rekindling fears of another credit card crisis in Asia’s fourth-largest economy as the delinquency ratio is expected to increase amid the economic slowdown. Continue reading »

Tags: credit cards, SKorea economy Posted in Asia, South Korea | Permalink

Samsung’s Lee: hurling vitriol

April 24, 2012 12:36 pm by Song Jung-a

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Photo: Bloomberg

A feud inside South Korea’s richest family is turning into a public soap opera as Lee Kun-hee, chairman of Samsung (pictured), hurls vitriol at his siblings and they hurl it back. The row is unlikely to do any damage to Samsung Electronics or other companies in the group. The same cannot be said of family members’ reputations. Continue reading »

Tags: Samsung Posted in Asia, South Korea | Permalink

Samsung-Apple: long road to peace

April 20, 2012 9:38 am by Song Jung-a

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Speculation is ripe that Samsung and Apple may finally bury the hatchet after a year of legal wrangling over technology patents. Both companies said their chief executives will participate in settlement talks in the next three months before their case in California is heard in July.

But with so many disputes between the two companies listed around the world, will a truce in California mark a new peace, or just a temporary halt to hostilities? Continue reading »

Tags: Apple, legal disputes, Patents, Samsung, technology Posted in Asia, Global, South Korea | Permalink

Tesco: getting tougher in South Korea

April 18, 2012 1:00 pm by Song Jung-a

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Tesco and other big retailers face a tougher business environment in South Korea as the government prepares to introduce new regulations limiting their expansion in Asia’s fourth-largest economy.

The country’s ruling New Frontier party, which unexpectedly held on to its majority in parliamentary elections last week, has promised to block large supermarkets from entering towns with populations of less than 300,000. Continue reading »

Tags: politics, regulation, retail, Tesco Posted in Asia, South Korea | Permalink

S Korean water: floods of interest

April 16, 2012 9:44 am by Song Jung-a

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The sale of Woongjin Coway, South Korea’s leading water purification company, is unexpectedly drawing huge interest from potential buyers.

Goldman Sachs, which is managing the sale process, recently sent a teaser letter to potential investors, amid market rumours that foreign investors such as Siemens, Philips, Amway and China’s Haier and private equity firms such as KKR, Blackstone, Affinity and Carlyle are interested in buying the company. Domestic conglomerates such as Lotte and Shinsegae and local private equity houses including MBK Partners are also rumoured to be interested. Woongjin aims to complete the 30 per cent sale by mid-2012. Continue reading »

Tags: consumer, FDI, Woongjin Posted in Asia, South Korea | Permalink

S Korean builders: overseas trouble

April 13, 2012 12:32 pm by Song Jung-a

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Escaping your troubles at home is one thing, but not all overseas adventures work out well.

South Korean builders have found out the hard way as they have withdrawn from massive construction projects in countries like Cambodia, Kazakhstan and Libya due to political unrest, property market slumps and financing difficulties in the wake of the global financial crisis. Continue reading »

Tags: construction, GS Construction, Hanil Construction, Korean builders, Posco Engineering & Construction Posted in Asia, South Korea | Permalink

Koreans move into London property

April 9, 2012 9:18 am by Song Jung-a

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Prime office buildings in the City of London have emerged as a darling for South Korean institutional investors seeking low-risk assets.

Attracted by the British capital’s high investment returns relative to risk, Korea’s cash-rich pension funds and insurers are stepping up their search for bargains in Europe’s ravaged commercial property market as they try to diversify their burgeoning wealth reserves beyond their small domestic markets. Continue reading »

Tags: property Posted in Asia, South Korea | Permalink

Samsung’s $1bn note

April 4, 2012 12:52 pm by Song Jung-a

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Is Samsung Electronics more credible than the Republic of South Korea? Global investors seem to think so, given the technology giant’s successful $1bn bond sale in the US. Continue reading »

Tags: bonds, Samsung Posted in Asia, South Korea | Permalink

S Korea bank scandal: selling the art

April 2, 2012 11:43 am by Song Jung-a

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Art dealers often joke that one of “3Ds” is needed for great art works to come to the market – default, death or divorce. In the case of the South Korean savings bank scandal, which rocked the country last year, it’s default.

Seoul Auction, a leading auction house, will offer for sale 65 paintings in Hong Kong on Tuesday, including 10 works that state-run Korea Deposit Insurance Corp seized from
ailing savings banks. It has already sold four such savings bank paintings in a domestic auction. Continue reading »

Tags: Art, banking Posted in South Korea | Permalink

IP brings relief for Korean economy

March 30, 2012 11:07 am by Song Jung-a

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South Korea’s policy makers must be breathing sighs of relief thanks to signs that the economy has been perking up recently.

Industrial production increased 14.4 per cent in February from a year earlier, after a Lunar New Year holiday caused contraction last month. Still, the pace of growth is slowing, with output rising 0.8 per cent month on month in February, compared to 3.2 per cent in January. Continue reading »

Tags: industry Posted in Asia, South Korea | Permalink

S Korea banks: the allure of overseas

March 28, 2012 9:53 am by Song Jung-a

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Can South Korean banks become regional players, let alone global giants? More of them are now looking to enter foreign markets such as China and India to seek alternative sources of revenue as they face stagnant growth at home. But analysts are not convinced if they can crack emerging markets in Asia. Continue reading »

Tags: banking, Hana Financial Group, KEB Posted in Asia, South Korea | Permalink

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