The Korea Times

Lotte Chemical's hefty bonus irks shareholders

Lotte Chemical is facing shareholder backlash over its plan to reward employees at its naphtha cracking center (NCC) in Seosan, South Chungcheong Province, with their transfer to a new company created under the government-led restructuring of the domestic petrochemical industry. Citing the petrochemical firm’s mounting losses, minority shareholders questioned whether the company can afford the additional labor costs. According to industry officials Monday, Lotte Chemical recently notified NCC workers of a planned special bonus equivalent to 500 percent of their monthly base wages, and pledged job security to reassure and motivate them. The workers are scheduled to move to a company spun off from Lotte Chemical by June 1, and then transfer again to a joint venture between Lotte Chemical and HD Hyundai Oilbank by Sept. 1. As part of efforts to deal with the oversupply of petrochemical products, Lotte Chemical agreed last November to transfer its Seosan NCC to its joint venture with HD Hyundai Oilbank and raise its stake in the venture. Unlike HD Hyundai Oilbank employees who will return

Apr 13, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk

Lotte Chemical's hefty bonus irks shareholders

Companies

SK Chemicals showcases recycling tech to Japanese business leaders

A delegation of Japanese business leaders visited SK Chemicals to see firsthand how the company is commercializing next-generation plastics recycling. According to the company, the Kansai Association of Corporate Executives visited SK Chemicals’ plant in Ulsan on Friday, where they received a briefing on circular recycling technologies and toured production facilities. The association is considered one of the three major economic organizations in the Kansai region, alongside the Kansai Economic Federation and the Osaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The body comprises about 600 major companies, including Panasonic and Sony. The visit, aimed at exchanging technologies and market trends in the recycled-plastics sector, brought together 37 executives and representatives from companies affiliated with the association’s Circular Economy Committee. Participants included hygiene and household products firm Saraya and All Nippon Airways. During the visit, attendees were briefed on the entire recycling process — from collecting and sorting waste plastics to depolymerization, repolymeriza

Apr 13, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk

SK Chemicals showcases recycling tech to Japanese business leaders

Companies

More European offshore wind power firms exit Korea

European companies with extensive experience in offshore wind power are leaving Korea or downsizing their operations here, fueling uncertainty over the government's plan to shift from fossil fuels to renewable sources. Corio Generation, a British offshore wind power firm owned by Macquarie, disbanded its Korean unit last month following its withdrawal from joint offshore wind projects in Busan and Ulsan. Earlier this year, Germany’s RWE quit offshore wind projects in Taean County, South Chungcheong Province, and Sinan County, South Jeolla Province. Denmark’s Vestas announced last year an indefinite postponement of its offshore wind turbine factory construction in Mokpo, South Jeolla Province, while Norway’s Equinor began reducing its workforce at the Korean office amid uncertainty over its offshore wind power project in Ulsan. In 2024, London-based Shell exited the Korean offshore wind market after selling its 80 percent stake in a joint project in Ulsan to its Swedish partner Hexicon. These European companies largely attributed their withdrawals and downsizing to worsening profitab

Apr 13, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk

More European offshore wind power firms exit Korea

Companies

Samsung, LG tighten belts despite record earnings

Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics have stepped up efforts to reduce costs as uncertainty grows over the second-quarter sales of their home appliances, even after both firms made handsome profits during the first quarter. Despite estimating that its first-quarter operating profit surpassed 57 trillion won ($38 billion), Samsung has not scrapped its February order requiring all executives in its Device Experience division, which oversees smartphones and home appliances, to fly economy class on flights of less than 10 hours. The company is also reassigning employees in its television unit. After carrying out layoffs at its U.S. subsidiary, Samsung has taken steps to shut down its television factory in Slovakia as well. In China, rumors have circulated that Samsung will downsize its home appliance business there. The series of cost-cutting measures comes as most of the company’s operating profit has stemmed from semiconductor sales amid a slow recovery in earnings from smartphones and home appliances. The union’s ongoing threat to strike is regarded as another risk to Samsung's profi

Apr 12, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk

Samsung, LG tighten belts despite record earnings

Companies

POSCO draws backlash over plan to directly hire subcontracted workers

Controversy is growing over POSCO’s plan to directly hire around 7,000 subcontracted workers performing manual labor at its plants in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province, and Gwangyang, South Jeolla Province. While existing employees criticized the decision as unfair and voiced concerns that the company would cut welfare benefits to offset higher labor costs, subcontracted workers claimed they would continue to face wage discrimination even after being directly hired. “Management should not overlook our efforts to join the company or the value of each employee’s work,” the leader of POSCO’s regular workers’ union said after the company announced the plan Wednesday. “We will not accept any reduction in welfare benefits as the number of employees increases.” Some employees expressed frustration. “Hardworking staff have become discouraged and are considering leaving the company,” one employee wrote on Blind, an anonymous social media platform for verified workers. POSCO said the move is intended to halt the long-standing practice of outsourcing dangerous work and to conclude

Apr 9, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk

POSCO draws backlash over plan to directly hire subcontracted workers

Companies

POSCO Holdings completes lithium brine acquisition in Argentina

POSCO Holdings' Argentine subsidiary has completed the acquisition of full ownership of the Hombre Muerto North brine project from Canada’s Lithium South Development for $65 million, the company said Thursday. The deal was finalized five months after the Korean steelmaker’s holding company announced its investment plan last November. With the acquisition of the brine estimated to contain 1.58 million tons of lithium, POSCO Holdings now controls a total of 15 million tons of lithium brine resources in Argentina. The reserves are large enough to produce at least 3 million tons of lithium and supply batteries for about 70 million electric vehicles. The company operates a lithium plant in Argentina with an annual capacity of 25,000 tons and plans to complete construction of another facility with the same capacity during the second half of this year. “We plan to further strengthen our responsiveness to the global market and bolster our supply chain competitiveness,” POSCO Holdings President Lee Ju-tae said. Argentine Economy Minister Luis Caputo vowed to support the Korean firm’s lit

Apr 9, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk

POSCO Holdings completes lithium brine acquisition in Argentina

Companies

Petrochemical, shipping firms relieved at prospect of Strait of Hormuz reopening

The agreement among the United States, Israel and Iran for a two-week ceasefire, conditional on reopening the Strait of Hormuz, prompted cautious optimism Wednesday in Korea's petrochemical and shipping industries, which have suffered fallout from the war in the Middle East. Despite lingering uncertainty over the peace talks, expectations are growing that vessels stranded near the Persian Gulf may resume shipments of crude and naphtha, a liquid extracted from crude and used to produce raw materials for petrochemical products such as plastic bags, food packaging and cosmetic containers. "We see the ceasefire agreement itself as a positive signal," an official at one of Korea's major petrochemical firms said on condition of anonymity. With Korea relying on the Middle East for 45 percent of its naphtha supply, domestic petrochemical firms have reduced or suspended production since the war broke out, suffering a decline in revenue. The cutbacks have fueled concerns over shortages of petrochemical products across industries. According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources, a combin

Apr 8, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk

Petrochemical, shipping firms relieved at prospect of Strait of Hormuz reopening

Companies

Korean shipbuilders at center of US-China rivalry

Competition has intensified between the United States and China to strengthen cooperation with Korea’s shipbuilding sector, as the world’s two largest economies vie for maritime supremacy. Amid Washington’s push to revive American shipyards with Korean investments and technologies, Beijing has begun extending an olive branch to shipbuilders here after previously warning them about their ties with U.S. partners. China’s state-owned Global Times said in a column on Monday that Korea and China have different technological levels, cost structures and market positioning, which create room for mutually beneficial cooperation. Despite the rivalry between the two countries’ shipbuilders to win global orders, the newspaper emphasized their complementary strengths, citing Korea’s expertise in designing high-end vessels and China’s mass production efficiency. “South Korea still holds certain technological edge in manufacturing some key components, for which Chinese shipbuilders have strong demand,” it said. “In green shipbuilding technology, joint research and development, shared

Apr 8, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk

Korean shipbuilders at center of US-China rivalry

Companies

HMM CEO sued for pushing ahead with headquarters relocation

The union representing HMM’s land-based employees filed a complaint with the Ministry of Employment and Labor against CEO Choi Won-hyok of the nation’s largest container shipping firm, accusing management of pushing ahead with plans to move the company’s headquarters from Seoul to Busan in line with the government policy. The legal action followed HMM’s board of directors’ decision on March 30 to approve revising the head office location stipulated in the company’s articles of association. The proposed amendment is set to be submitted for approval at the general shareholders’ meeting on May 8. “This is clearly an unfair labor practice, as management has been trying to sideline the union and neglecting its duty to engage in good-faith negotiations,” the union said in a statement Tuesday. The union has threatened to file additional lawsuits against other board members, accusing them of dereliction of duty. Unless management agrees to hold talks, the union plans to ask the National Labor Relations Commission later this week to begin arbitration. If the arbitration fails and

Apr 7, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk

HMM CEO sued for pushing ahead with headquarters relocation

Companies

Taekwang's rapid expansion seen as signal of disgraced owner's return

Taekwang Group has continued its expansion across industries, fueling speculation that its former chairman may soon return to management and begin handing over control of the petrochemical-to-financial conglomerate to his children. According to industry officials on Monday, a consortium led by Taekwang Industrial — the group’s key unit — has recently emerged as the strongest candidate to acquire K Shipbuilding, after HJ Shipbuilding & Construction and Pavilion Private Equity dropped out of the main bid. Although TPG withdrew from the Taekwang Industrial-led consortium in February, the Korean company found another partner and moved closer to entering the shipbuilding industry. In March, Taekwang Industrial completed the acquisition of Aekyung Industrial, a soap and toothpaste maker, following its purchase of Courtyard by Marriott Seoul Myeongdong last December. The process to acquire Dongsung Bio Pharm has been underway since January. Taekwang Industrial is expected to mobilize its real estate, valued at more than 1 trillion won ($664 million), and cashable assets, which totaled 426

Apr 7, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk

Park Jae-hyuk

Read more

Lotte Chemical's hefty bonus irks shareholders

SK Chemicals showcases recycling tech to Japanese business leaders

More European offshore wind power firms exit Korea

Samsung, LG tighten belts despite record earnings

POSCO draws backlash over plan to directly hire subcontracted workers

POSCO Holdings completes lithium brine acquisition in Argentina

Petrochemical, shipping firms relieved at prospect of Strait of Hormuz reopening

Korean shipbuilders at center of US-China rivalry

HMM CEO sued for pushing ahead with headquarters relocation

Taekwang's rapid expansion seen as signal of disgraced owner's return

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