my timesThe Korea Times
lkm

Lee Kyung-min

Korea Times AI content 2 team Reporter

Value context and insight. lkm@koreatimes.co.kr

Go to EmailGo to URL

Read more

Companies

HDC faces license cancellation over apartment building collapse in Gwangju

An official of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport speaks during a press briefing at the Sejong Government Complex, Monday. YonhapHDC Hyundai Development Company President & CEO Yu Byoung-gyuBy Lee Kyung-min HDC Hyundai Development Company is facing the cancellation of its construction license, as the government has recommended the heaviest punishment against the scandal-tainted construction unit of HDC Group over a lethal construction accident, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Monday.Six workers died and another was injured in January at the company's construction site in Gwangju, 330 kilometers south of Seoul, when an apartment building under construction collapsed partially. The ministry disissed concerns that the penalty of license cancellation could lose its effectiveness if the builder sets up a new company, because along with the license, the order will also erase its years-long track record and branch power. The ministry made its latest statement two weeks after saying the builder would face a “maximum penalty,” de

Mar 28, 2022By Lee Kyung-min
HDC faces license cancellation over apartment building collapse in Gwangju
Companies

Travel ban lifted on GM Korea CEO

GM Korea CEO Kaher Kazem. Korea Times fileBy Lee Kyung-min GM Korea CEO Kaher Kazem will be able to leave Korea after the justice ministry lifted a travel ban imposed on him by the prosecution, the company said Friday.“We are relieved by the decision. Kazem will leave the country whenever he deems fit,” an official of the Korean unit of the U.S. carmaker said. The comment came a few hours after the ban was lifted, Thursday, clearing uncertainties over whether he would be able to lead the global carmaker's Shanghai office starting on June 1, as planned. The U.S. head office said on March 5 (local time) that Kazem was to join SAIC General Motors Corporation Limited, a joint venture between GM and SAIC Motor. “Kazem will be able to lead the GM's office in China ― the largest and the most important market accounting for over half of the firm sales volume total. He was promoted in recognition of his outstanding performance in Korea over the past five years,” the official added. Thursday's unexpected decision removed factors that could threaten investment relations

Mar 25, 2022By Lee Kyung-min
Travel ban lifted on GM Korea CEO
Society

Labor influence to diminish under pro-biz Yoon administration

Members of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions hold a rally in Jongno, Seoul, Thursday. Yonhap'Snubbed' umbrella union vows all-out protest against 'anti-labor' president-electBy Lee Kyung-min Korea’s labor groups will no longer be able to thrive under the incoming Yoon Suk-yeol administration, whose management-labor dynamics is set to skew significantly in favor of businesses, according to market watchers and economists, Friday.President-elect Yoon was quick to meet with business leaders, Monday, to share their concerns about a number of pending issues, a demonstration of his pro-business priority. This was cemented further by the transition committee's characterization of labor group's street rallies as “a source of public distrust of the law enforcement authorities,” Thursday. Labor groups have repeatedly demanded talks with Yoon, but their requests have not been returned. The series of new, dramatic changes in treatment bode ill for the country's unions, experts say, since their immense influence with the top policymakers and state-run entities during

Mar 25, 2022By Lee Kyung-min
Labor influence to diminish under pro-biz Yoon administration
Companies

Businesses oppose transfer of trade function to foreign ministry

The transition committee for President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol in session in Jongno, Seoul, Tuesday. Korea Times file By Lee Kyung-min The Ministry of Foreign Affairs taking over the trade function of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy will significantly undermine Korea's national competitiveness by compromising the efficiency of coordinated responses between the public and private sectors in the event of external uncertainties, business representatives and economists here said Thursday. Korea's manufacturing-driven and export-reliant economy will face serious obstacles, if key trade directives are determined by the foreign ministry, governed almost exclusively by diplomatic interests, they say. In many cases, the country’s export growth will be subsequently undercut due to a lack of both predictability and influence on the international stage. Further supporting the view is the escalating disruption in the global value chain, the single most critical risk factor for Korea's exporters monitored and countered by the industry ministry. Policy responses wil

Mar 24, 2022By Lee Kyung-min
Businesses oppose transfer of trade function to foreign ministry
  • Foreign ministry seeks to regain authority over trade
Companies

Hanwha expands solar energy investment in US

Hanwha Solutions President Kim Dong-kwan / Courtesy of Hanwha SolutionsBy Lee Kyung-min Hanwha Solutions, the chemical and energy affiliate of Hanwha Group, said Thursday that it has become the largest shareholder of REC Silicon, a Norway-based U.S. polysilicon manufacturer, after acquiring a 4.67 percent stake from Aker Horizons. Polysilicon is the key raw material used in producing solar panels. The 4.67 percent stake combined with a 16.67 percent stake purchased in January increases the firm's total investment to $204 million (248 billion won) and ownership share to 21.34 percent. Thursday's acquisition is part of the firm's efforts to rebuild the U.S. solar value chain and supply customers with “Made in America” products. It aims to create well-paying jobs for American workers and secure the supply chain for clean energy technology. Key to achieving the goal is the implementation of a comprehensive manufacturing policy in the U.S., including the landmark Solar Energy Manufacturing for America Act (SEMA). Once implemented, the firm will lead a multi-phase, multi-billio

Mar 24, 2022By Lee Kyung-min
Hanwha expands solar energy investment in US
Companies

LG Chem CEO retains post despite NPS opposition

LG Chem CEO and Vice Chairman Shin Hak-cheol speaks at the firm's general shareholders' meeting at LG Twin Towers on Yeouido, Seoul, Wednesday. Courtesy of LG ChemBy Lee Kyung-min LG Chem CEO and Vice Chairman Shin Hak-cheol has been reappointed as an inside director, underpinned by overwhelming support of LG Corp., its largest shareholder with a 33.5 percent stake, the firm said Wednesday.The retention of the highly controversial figure overrides fierce opposition from LG Chem's minor shareholders. They are furious over the stock price losing half of its value over the past year, due in large part to the firm having spun off its key battery business into LG Energy Solution in 2020 under Shin's leadership. Also sharing the need to hold LG Chem accountable was the National Pension Service (NPS), the firm's second-largest shareholder with a 6.8 percent stake. The state-run pension fund voted against the reappointment, saying that LG Chem's spinoff has led to a significant deterioration in corporate value and infringement of shareholders' rights. However, a slew of agenda items proposed

Mar 23, 2022By Lee Kyung-min
LG Chem CEO retains post despite NPS opposition
Companies

Naver's dividends fall to record low despite handsome net profit

Naver CEO Choi Soo-yeon / Courtesy of NaverBy Lee Kyung-min The dividend payout ratio for Naver, which operates Korea's largest online portal, fell to a record low of 0.5 percent last year, despite a significant increase both in its net income and payout total, data showed Wednesday.The figure is the lowest since it began paying dividends to shareholders in 2011. Dividend payout ratios are measured by the paid dividend total divided by net income.The IT giant with a market cap of over 56.26 trillion won ($46.38 billion), the fourth-largest on the benchmark KOSPI, paid over 76.29 billion won in dividends last year, up from 17.13 billion won in 2020. Naver's net income was 16.4 trillion won last year, up more than 16-fold compared to 2020. Net income was 1 trillion won and the payout ratio was 5.9 percent in 2020. In contrast, the ratio for its major competitor Kakao, spiked to 16.4 percent last year, double from 8.3 percent in 2020.Naver shareholders are expressing frustration over the low payout, citing up to 25 percent in dividend payouts by financial firms.“It is such a shame

Mar 23, 2022By Lee Kyung-min
Naver's dividends fall to record low despite handsome net profit
Companies

Yoon transition team to enhance nuclear energy policy

Then-presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol speaks about his energy policy near a nuclear reactor in Uljin, North Gyeongsang Province, Dec. 29, 2021. Korea Times fileBy Lee Kyung-min Four mid- and senior-level officials from the industry, science and environment ministries with expertise in energy policy have joined the presidential transition team to advise President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol, setting the stage to strengthen the incoming administration's nuclear-centered energy policies, according to market watchers, Tuesday.The four are expected to lead a drastic revision in cooperation with private sector experts to discard the much-blasted nuclear phase-out policy spearheaded by the Moon Jae-in administration. Greater efforts will follow to further advance the affordable and stable energy source to develop Korea as a global leader in nuclear technology, one of Yoon's major campaign pledges. Nuclear experts According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, Deputy Minister for Energy and Resources Joo Young-joon has been dispatched to the committee. He oversees energy and industrial

Mar 22, 2022By Lee Kyung-min
Yoon transition team to enhance nuclear energy policy
Companies

Gov't preorders locally made COVID-19 vaccines from SK bioscience

A manufacturing plant of SK bioscience in Andong, North Gyeongsang Province Korea Times fileBy Lee Kyung-min The government has signed a pre-order to buy 10 million vaccine doses being developed by SK bioscience, a local biotech affiliate of SK Group, advancing a swift and stable supply of a domestically produced key agent needed to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, health authorities said Monday.A portion of the doses will be released in the latter half of this year, conditioned upon the approval following the ongoing Phase 3 clinical trials overseen by local and overseas health institutions. Among  them are the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) in the U.K. and the World Health Organization (WHO). The success in the development of the first domestically manufactured vaccine will pave the way for the SK affiliate's local peers, functioning as valid reference material to hasten the rollout of similar agents. Currently, all COVID-19 vaccines are imported. According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) and SK bioscience, the two signed

Mar 21, 2022By Lee Kyung-min
Gov't preorders locally made COVID-19 vaccines from SK bioscience
Companies

KEPCO stalls on electricity rate rise due to political pressure

Then-presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol walks to a podium for a press conference to announce his plan to scrap an electricity rate hike for April at an office in Yeouido, Jan. 13. Korea Times fileKEPCO CEO Cheong Seung-ilBy Lee Kyung-min Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) has postponed its announcement on an electricity rate hike for the second quarter, a move to conform to President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's campaign pledge to freeze the power bills of consumers, according to market watchers Monday. The state-run utility firm has little incentive to railroad a rate hike unilaterally at the risk of defying Yoon's transition committee, extremely mindful of public sentiment deteriorated due to surging living costs brought on by pandemic-sparked inflation.However, the inability to broach the highly sensitive issue key to limiting crashing corporate profit will hasten the deterioration of KEPCO's financial soundness, a grim yet highly probable scenario given it registered a 5.86 trillion won ($4.8 billion) operating loss last year. Financial market consensus has it that the loss will

Mar 21, 2022By Lee Kyung-min
KEPCO stalls on electricity rate rise due to political pressure
previous page
184185186187188
next page

Top 5 stories

Korea Times
About Us
Introduction
History
Contact Us
Products & Services
Subscribe
E-paper
RSS Service
Content Sales
Site Map
Policy
Code of Ethics
Ombudsman
Privacy Policy
Youth Protection Policy
Terms of Service
Copyright Policy
Family Site
Hankookilbo
Dongwha Group
FacebookXYoutubeInstagram
CEO & Publisher: Oh Young-jinDigital News Email: webmaster@koreatimes.co.krTel: 02-724-2114Online newspaper registration No: 서울,아52844Date of registration: 2020.02.05Masthead: The Korea TimesCopyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.