Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive

Korean food CJ CheilJedang to open $72 million dumpling plant in Japan

South Korea’s largest food company, CJ CheilJedang Corp., is shifting into high gear in its global expansion with a 100 billion won ($72 milli...

Pension funds NPS yet to schedule external manager selection; PE firms’ fundraising woes deepen

South Korea’s National Pension Service (NPS), the world’s third-largest pension fund, has yet to decide on a plan to select local extern...

Business & Politics S.Korea's Han, Trump discuss transactional diplomacy in 1st direct talks

South Korea’s Acting President and Prime Minister Han Duck-soo spoke with US President Donald Trump on Tuesday to discuss various issues of mu...

Leadership & Management Kakao founder Kim to resign as control tower chair

Kakao Corp. founder Kim Beom-soo, also known as Brian Kim, will step down as chairman of the South Korean tech giant’s top decision-making bod...

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 ...

Regulations MBK Partners under Korean tax agency scrutiny

MBK Partners, a leading North Asia-focused private equity firm, has come under a probe by South Korea’s National Tax Service (NTS) amid the br...

Automobiles Kia’s Chinese operations turn to profit after 8 years; Export strategy pays off

South Korea’s No. 2 automaker Kia Corp. saw its Chinese operations turn profitable in 2024 for the first time in eight years as brisk exports ...

Business & Politics Trump says Korea interested in Alaska gas project; Korean firms skeptical

South Korea, Japan and other countries want to partner with the US in a $44 billion natural gas pipeline project in Alaska, President Donald Trump s...

Private equity MBK-owned Homeplus files for corporate revamp with Seoul court

South Korea’s leading hypermarket operator Homeplus Co., wholly owned by North Asia-focused private equity firm MBK Partners, on Tuesday filed...

Shareholder value Hana Financial to boost corporate value by raising shareholder returns

South Korea’s Hana Financial Group aims to increase corporate value by ramping up shareholder returns based on a sustainable profit structure ...

Corporate bonds One-third of Korean petrochem bonds incur valuation losses

South Korean institutional investors, including banks, insurers and securities companies, have yet to fully benefit from recent declines in bond yie...

Shareholder value S.Korea’s top financial regulator pushes tax support for value-up program

South Korea is ramping up efforts to encourage companies to enhance shareholder value by providing tax support for its corporate value-up program, a...

Corporate bonds S.Korea’s corporate bond market cools amid poor earnings

Investors’ appetite for corporate debts sold by South Korea’s petrochemical, retail and battery companies has waned this month amid grim...

Shipping & Shipbuilding HMM seeks to acquire parts of SK Shipping for $1.4 bn from Hahn & Co.

HMM Co., South Korea’s largest ocean carrier, is seeking to buy SK Shipping Co., excluding its liquefied natural gas (LNG) transportation busi...

Commodities FOMO-driven gold rush lifts kimchi premium on gold to highest level

With South Korean retail investors joining the global gold rush in ‘fear of missing out’, or FOMO, the country’s gold price has ...

Bio & Pharma Celltrion’s Vegzelma: Most-prescribed cancer treatment in Europe

South Korea’s leading biosimilar drug developer Celltrion Inc.'s Vegzelma, a cancer drug referencing global biopharma Roche’s Avastin, h...

Beauty & Cosmetics Korea’s beauty retailer CJ Olive Young to open first US offline outlet

CJ Olive Young Corp., South Korea’s top beauty store chain, said on Tuesday it has set up a US business entity in Los Angeles to enhance its p...

Energy South Korean oil refiners to jointly build SAF plant

South Korea’s four major oil refining companies will jointly build a sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) plant in the country, for which the gover...

Debt financing Korean bonds heavily oversubscribed in January boom

South Korea’s debt market got off to a strong start this year, as several blue chip companies made a bold return to the bond market for new is...

ESG Korea Investment Holdings’ MSCI ESG rating upgraded to A

Korea Investment Holdings Co. said on Thursday it was upgraded by three notches from B to A in the MSCI ESG rating this year.The MSCI ESG rating is ...

Korean stock market Foreign investors sells $3.86 bn in S.Korean stock market

The Bank of Korea (BOK) said on Wednesday that the foreign investors' net selling in the South Korean stock market was $3.86 billion in December las...

Private debt Real estate debt outshines corporate credit: Savills IM

Private credit has been among the top picks for alternative investors over the past few years. During the period of high interest rates, corporate l...

Corporate bonds Korean petrochemical sector to sell corporate bonds amid downturn

South Korea’s petrochemical producers are set to issue corporate bonds to take advantage of ample liquidity at the beginning of the year amid ...

Retail KT&G establishes Uzbekistan corporation

South Korean tobacco maker KT&G Corp. said on Monday it established the Uzbekistan corporation, aiming to boost its tobacco brand awareness in...

Earnings LG Energy logs 1st quarterly loss in over 3 years, outlook remains gloomy

LG Energy Solution Ltd. reported its first quarterly loss in more than three years on Thursday, adding to concerns that the world’s third-larg...

Economy Foreign direct investments in Korea hit record $34.57 billion in 2024

Foreign direct investments in South Korea hit a record high in 2024, driven by Chinese and Japanese investors in the manufacturing sector, the Minis...

Energy SK Energy, Korea’s first refiner to export sustainable aviation fuel to Europe

SK Energy Co., South Korea’s largest oil refiner, said on Sunday it has shipped its first batch of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) to Europe, ...

Debt financing Korea debt financing faces woes as $34 bn in corporate bonds mature in H1

South Korea’s financial markets will see nearly 50 trillion won ($34 billion) in corporate bonds mature in the first half of next year —...

Mergers & Acquisitions Hahn & Co. to buy controlling stake in SK’s specialty gas unit for $1.9 bn

South Korea’s private equity firm Hahn & Co. is set to acquire a controlling stake in the world’s top specialty gas producer SK Spec...

Corporate bonds Korea Inc. to face refunding risks with record corporate bond maturities

South Korean companies are expected to face refunding risks thanks to record corporate bond maturities in the first half of 2025, as fundraising con...