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Baek Byung-yeul

Korea Times K-Culture Reporter

Baek Byung-yeul is a journalist at The Korea Times focused on cultural content, including films and cultural events in South Korea. You can contact him at baekby@koreatimes.co.kr to share your insights.

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People & Events

KCC Honorary Chairman Chung Sang-young dies at 84

Era of Hyundai Group's 1st generation ends with Chung's passingBy Baek Byung-yeulKCC Group founder Chung Sang-youngChung Sang-young, honorary chairman of KCC and the youngest brother of Hyundai Group founder Chung Ju-yung, died of chronic disease on Saturday, according to the building and industrial materials company. He was 84.“The honorary chairman was hospitalized recently as his health has deteriorated and his family members gathered around him that day,” KCC said. Chung is survived by his wife and three sons, including KCC Chairman Chung Mong-jin, KCC Glass Chairman Chung Mong-ik and KCC Engineering and Construction (E&C) Chairman Chung Mong-yeol. Born in 1936, Chung was the last surviving member of the late Hyundai Group founder's generation. Chung's passing marked the end of an era for the Hyundai Group family. The late honorary chairman had been at the top seat for more than six decades since he established Kumgang Slate Industries in 1958. In 1974, Chung established Koryo Paint to start a paint production business and founded a construction company which is n

Jan 31, 2021By Baek Byung-yeul
KCC Honorary Chairman Chung Sang-young dies at 84
Companies

LG Chem CEO takes initiative on fighting climate change

Shin Hak-cheol, vice chairman and CEO of LG Chem, speaks at the World Economic Forum, Jan. 27. / Courtesy of LG ChemBy Baek Byung-yeulLG Chem Vice Chairman and CEO Shin Hak-cheol has been taking the initiative to make his company more environmentally friendly. He recently unveiled LG Chem's action plan to respond to climate change effectively and called on business leaders to increase their support for an integrated approach to address the issue together.On Jan. 27, Shin took part in a discussion session at the World Economic Forum and introduced LG Chem's carbon emission reduction strategy during the forum's “Mobilizing Action on Climate Change” session. Shin was the first Korean businessman to speak about climate change response strategies at the forum, which is also known as the Davos Forum.Introducing LG Chem's carbon neutrality goal, which aims to cap its emission level in 2050 at the 2019 level, Shin said his company is implementing three action plans ― avoid, reduce and compensate.“Our 2050 goal calls for capping the 2050 emission level at the 2019 level or a

Jan 31, 2021By Baek Byung-yeul
LG Chem CEO takes initiative on fighting climate change
Tech & Science

Samsung Electronics to boost dividends through 2023

Tech giant's operating profit jumps 30% in 2020By Baek Byung-yeulSamsung Electronics announced Thursday it will pay record dividends to shareholders this year and continue to boost the amount over the next three years as part of efforts to improve shareholder value. During a conference call following the release of its fourth quarter earnings results, the company told investors that it will pay 13.12 trillion won ($11.8 billion) in dividends to shareholders for the 2020 fiscal year. Thus, shareholders will receive 1,932 won per ordinary share that includes a year-end regular dividend of 354 won per share and 1,578 won in a one-off special dividendUnder a readjusted shareholder return program, the company added it will allocate 9.8 trillion won as dividends annually from 2021 to 2023.The company also reported a net profit of 26.4 trillion won for 2020, up 21.5 percent from the previous year, with an operating profit of 35.99 trillion won on annual sales of 236.8 trillion won, up 29.6 percent and 2.8 percent, respectively. In the fourth quarter alone, its operating profit stood at 9.04

Jan 28, 2021By Baek Byung-yeul
Samsung Electronics to boost dividends through 2023
  • Samsung SDI expecting growth in battery biz in 2021
Companies

Hyundai Motor chief designer wins FAI award

By Baek Byung-yeulLee Sang-yup, senior vice president and head of Hyundai Motor's Global Design Center / Courtesy of Hyundai MotorLee Sang-yup, head of Hyundai Motor's Global Design Center, has received the grand prize at a renowned vehicle design award festival in France, being recognized for his contribution to advance the Korean carmaker's design capability.Hyundai Motor said Wednesday that Lee, who serves as senior vice president, received the Grand Prize of Design at the 36th Festival Automobile International (FAI).“It is a great honor to receive this Grand Prize,” the chief designer said. “I believe that our duty is to work for a better future and help Hyundai to be recognized through design that is tailored to the needs of our customers' lifestyles and their valuable time.”Based in Paris, FAI is known as one of the most prestigious awards in car design. The Grand Prize of Design is given to a designer or company for its global strategy of innovation or pursuit of beauty, Hyundai Motor said.Previous winners include acclaimed designers in the automotive i

Jan 28, 2021By Baek Byung-yeul
Hyundai Motor chief designer wins FAI award
Companies

Batteries energize LG Chem's 2020 earnings

By Baek Byung-yeulLG Chem displayed stellar earnings performance in 2020, achieving record-high sales thanks to robust demand for its electric vehicle (EV) batteries, the company said Wednesday.Sales increased 9.9 percent year-on-year to 30.57 trillion won ($27.65 billion) in 2020, while operating profit surged 185.1 percent to 2.35 trillion won in 2020, according to LG Chem. Fourth-quarter sales rose to a record-high 8.98 trillion won, while operating profit stood at 673.6 billion won for the final three months of 2020.“Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, LG Chem posted over 30 trillion won in sales in 2020, which was a first and up 10 percent from a year ago,” Cha Dong-seok, chief financial officer at LG Chem, said. The company's earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) came in at 4.6 trillion won. EBIDTA is an indicator of a company's profitability.Its battery subsidiary, LG Energy Solution, managed to shift to the black, achieving an operating profit of 388.3 billion in 2020.LG Chem revealed its 2021 sales target of 37.3 trillion won, up 24.1 p

Jan 27, 2021By Baek Byung-yeul
Batteries energize LG Chem's 2020 earnings
Companies

Kia dismisses concerns over automotive chip shortage

By Baek Byung-yeulKia has dismissed concerns of an automotive chip shortage, assuring consumers that it has not been affected by the scarcity that global automakers are currently experiencing due to the excessive demand for chips for IT devices which occurred after the coronavirus outbreak, the Hyundai Motor Group affiliate said Wednesday.“The entire automotive industry has faced tight supply for automotive chips. We've acknowledged that the chip supply has been tight since October last year and have begun intensive management of items that have shown a limited supply,” a company official told investors during a conference call upon announcing its fourth quarter results. The global automotive industry is struggling with an unprecedented shortage of chips for cars, which has caused carmakers to postpone their car production. The shortage has occurred as chip-making companies have given priority to chips for IT devices and home appliances, which have been in robust demand since the COVID-19 outbreak.Due to the shortage issue, TSMC, the world's largest foundry chip manufactu

Jan 27, 2021By Baek Byung-yeul
Kia dismisses concerns over automotive chip shortage
Companies

Hyundai Motor bets big on electric cars in 2021

By Baek Byung-yeulHyundai Motor has vowed to focus more on electric vehicles (EVs) in 2021 in a bid to make its way into the rapidly growing eco-friendly car market, the carmaker said Tuesday.“Despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, we sold around 100,000 EVs in 2020. This is a 55 percent increase year-on-year and the market portion of EVs accounted for about 5 percent of the total sales,” a Hyundai Motor official told investors during a conference call.The company added that its EV sales goal in the global car market this year is 160,000, up about 38 percent from 2020.Hyundai's new Ioniq 5 EV model will be first launched in the European market in March, where stricter CO2 emission regulations have been applied since 2020, the company said. The Ioniq 5 will be manufactured using the company's EV-only platform Electric-Global Modular Platform (E-GMP), which will be able to offer longer travel range.“The Ioniq 5 will be first rolled out in Europe at the end of March. Starting with Europe, the new EV model will then be launched in Korea and the United States,

Jan 26, 2021By Baek Byung-yeul
Hyundai Motor bets big on electric cars in 2021
  • Hyundai to acquire LG's automotive components firm
Tech & Science

INTERVIEW 'Samsung-Ericsson lawsuit could take longer'

Samsung Electronics' office in Seoul / YonhapBy Baek Byung-yeulThe escalating legal tussle between Samsung Electronics and Ericsson over patent infringements regarding network equipment technology is expected to be a long-running battle, as the Swedish telecom giant feels threatened by the Korean tech firm's fast-growing technological capability in the 5G market, according to a noted patent expert.“Ericsson and Samsung were embroiled in a patent licensing dispute from late 2012 to early 2014. The agreement they struck then has now expired. This reminds me of the situation between Apple and Nokia, which also seem to have a need to go to court every time their agreement is up for renewal,” Florian Mueller, who's best known for running the software patent blog FOSS Patents, told The Korea Times during a recent email interview.The two companies have been in a legal tussle after they failed to agree on a new contract for an expired cross-licensing agreement.In December, Ericsson filed a patent fee suit with a court in Texas demanding Samsung pay more royalties. The Swedish fir

Jan 26, 2021By Baek Byung-yeul
[INTERVIEW] 'Samsung-Ericsson lawsuit could take longer'
Companies

Volvo CE wins Best Prize at Customer Satisfaction Management awards

This photo shows a Volvo CE official holding a plaque after winning the Best Prize at the 2021 Customer Satisfaction Management Awards, Jan. 22 Courtesy of Volvo Group KoreaBy Baek Byung-yeulVolvo Construction Equipment (CE) Korea has won the Best Prize award in the 2021 Customer Satisfaction Management awards for its proactive sales and service efforts to drive customer success, the company said Monday.The company said it won the top prize at the award ceremony held on Jan. 22. The Customer Satisfaction Management Awards, overseen by the Korea Sustainability Management Evaluation and sponsored by the Association of Korean Journalists, has been rendering awards to companies that practice management for customer satisfaction and lead economic and social advances. This year marked its 15th anniversary.The company said it was recognized for its efforts to prioritize sustainable growth and success in every business step including production, sales, marketing and research and development.“In Korea, Volvo CE is continuing to enhance collaborations across function to provide innovativ

Jan 25, 2021By Baek Byung-yeul
Volvo CE wins Best Prize at Customer Satisfaction Management awards
Companies

Growing number of businesses seek to tap into EV battery waste

Hyundai Motor Group's energy storage system at its Ulsan plant. / Courtesy of Hyundai Motor GroupBy Baek Byung-yeulThe rising sales of electric vehicles (EVs) are leading to growing calls to establish a full ecosystem for them including the introduction of renting, charging, reuse and recycling of battery packs, industry analysts noted Friday.Around 120,000 EVs have been sold in Korea as of August, 2020, according to the Korea Automotive Technology Institute, which also warned that used battery packs equivalent to those used in 10,000 EVs will start to pile up at junkyards starting from 2026, creating a serious waste problem.By 2030, the number of used battery packs is expected to rise to 100,000. The estimated lifespan of an EV battery is around 10 years, which is when capacity starts to drop below 70 percent; but this offers an opportunity for other companies seeking to enter the battery value chain business. The government is encouraging firms to make the jump into battery recycling and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy recently kicked off a research project on the reuse

Jan 23, 2021By Baek Byung-yeul
Growing number of businesses seek to tap into EV battery waste
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