Asia first

Arts Seoul appeal: Korean art captivates Indonesia’s affluent connoisseurs

JAKARTA – Last Thursday, Baik Art gallery in Jakarta, Indonesia, was crowded with well-heeled art patrons eager to meet a revered artist from ...

Business & Politics Trump Jr. meets Korean business chiefs in back-to-back sessions

Donald Trump Jr., the eldest son of US President Donald Trump, spent his one-and-a-half-day visit to South Korea in back-to-back private meetings wi...

E-commerce JD.com opens Korean logistics centers, preluding C-commerce invasion

JD.com, often dubbed China’s answer to Amazon.com, has opened its own logistics centers in South Korea, becoming the first Chinese e-commerce ...

Alternative investments Meritz backs half of ex-manager’s $210 mn hedge fund

Meritz Financial Group Inc., one of South Korea’s most aggressive alternative asset managers, has committed 150 billion won ($105 million) to ...

Culture & Trends S.Korea’s medical tourism thrives on weak currency

Foreign visitors to South Korea jumped nearly 20% early this year, largely driven by a sharp depreciation in the country’s currency value agai...

Asset management South Korea’s young rich vs old rich: Coins, art outpace bonds, funds

Young South Korean millionaires, placing bold wagers on unconventional financial assets such as cryptocurrencies and art, are gaining ground fast, g...

Travel & Leisure S.Korea’s foreigners-only casinos bask in return of Chinese high rollers

South Korea’s foreigners-only casinos are witnessing a significant rise in their sales revenue with the return of high rollers from China and ...

Automobiles Kia to build North America-targeted electric pickup model

Kia Corp., South Korea’s second-largest carmaker, will build an electric pickup model tailored for North America to enter the world’s la...

Electronics Samsung unveils upgraded AI-powered OLED TVs

Samsung Electronics Co. on Monday showcased its new lineup of organic light-emitting diode (OLED) TVs with advanced artificial intelligence features...

Business & Politics S.Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol ousted; new presidential election coming

South Korea’s Constitutional Court permanently removed President Yoon Suk Yeol from office on Friday, making him the country’s second pr...

Real estate Asia Property to buy WeWork building in Seoul

Seoul-based real estate investment firm Asia Property has been picked as the sole preferred bidder for an office building currently occupied by cowo...

Automobiles Hyundai premieres all-new NEXO, reinforcing hydrogen power

Hyundai Motor Co. on Thursday unveiled the all-new NEXO, the first full-change model of the fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV) since its launch in 20...

Leadership & Management Samsung mobile chief fills leadership void in device division

Samsung Electronics Co. has appointed TM Roh, president and head of its mobile eXperience (MX) business, as the new chief of its device eXperience (...

Leadership & Management Hanwha gears up for 3rd-generation leadership with chairman’s stake gift

South Korea’s chemical-to-defense conglomerate Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-youn will hand over half of his holdings in the conglomerate&rs...

Short selling All listed stocks to be available for shorting in South Korea

South Korea will allow short selling of all listed stocks in the country as of Monday for the first time in five years, raising expectations of more...

Korean chipmakers SK Hynix ships world’s first 12-layer HBM4 samples early

South Korean memory chip giant SK Hynix Inc. has begun delivering samples of the world’s most advanced, next-generation high bandwidth memory ...

Bio & Pharma SillaJen: First to use lab-grown human tissue to find best cancer drug dose

South Korean biotechnology firm SillaJen Inc. is pioneering a new approach to determine the best dose for a cancer drug combination in clinical tria...

Automobiles Kia to release PV9 in 2029, retains CEO for 3 more years

Kia Corp. will release a new purpose-built vehicle (PBV) model every two years, with plans to launch the PV9 in 2029 and its first model, the PV5, t...

Rights offerings Samsung SDI to raise $1.4 bn in rights offering for facility expansion

Samsung SDI Co. will issue new shares worth 2 trillion won ($1.4 billion), its first rights offering in two decades, to fund bold facility and R&...

Shipping & Shipbuilding Korea’s Hanwha Ocean sends USNS Wally Schirra back to theater after MRO

A 210-meter, 40,000-ton US Navy vessel, heavily corroded and weathered from years of service, was pulled into Hanwha Ocean Co.'s shipyard in Ge...

Airlines Korean Air changes badge before full integration with Asiana Airlines

Korean Air Lines Co., South Korea’s largest full-service carrier, has undergone a major makeover of its corporate identity (CI) for the first ...

Private equity South Korea emerges as private equity firms’ global hub

New York-based Apollo Global Management and London-based Intermediate Capital Group (ICG) have joined the ranks of global private equity firms that ...

Business & Politics Asia’s defense stocks climb on hopes of more European arms spending

Defense stocks in key Asian markets jumped on Tuesday, buoyed by expectations that European nations will boost security spending amid fears that the...

Korean food China under spell of Korean spicy instant noodles; Samyang leads  

South Korea’s spicy instant noodles are poised to captivate China, the world’s largest ramen market, with their shipments to the neighbo...

Regulations South Korea to fully resume short selling in March: FSC Chief

South Korea will allow short selling on all listed stocks in the country next month as planned, said the chief of the country’s financial regu...

Travel & Leisure J-R AMC, BlueCove bid on $70 million sale of Mirae Asset, NPS’ Shilla Stay

The sale of Shilla Stay Dongtan, a premium business hotel operated by South Korea’s Hotel Shilla Co., has attracted four bidders, underscoring...

Alternative investments Korea Investment & Securities aims to be Asia's top securities firm

Korea Investment & Securities Co. will step up its asset management business by launching innovative global investment products, aiming to surpa...

Real estate PAG raises $4 bn for opportunistic Asia real estate fund

PAG, an Asia Pacific-focused alternative investment firm, on Friday announced the final close of its 10th opportunistic real estate fund at $4 billi...

Leadership & Management Mirae Asset prepares bitcoin covered call ETF launch: chairman

Mirae Asset Financial Group is preparing to launch a bitcoin covered call exchange traded fund (ETF) for global investors to foray into the cryptocu...

IPOs South Korean IPO market headed into winter after pitiful LG CNS debut

Companies in South Korea are expected to refrain from seeking initial public offerings for a while after the country’s much-anticipated new bl...