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  • Companies

    Will Homeplus liquidation decision be postponed again?

    Homeplus has submitted an amended rehabilitation plan just three days before a court deadline, but its failure to secure a crucial 200 billion won ($129 million) capital injection is increasing uncertainty over whether the troubled retailer will face liquidation, industry sources said Wednesday. The Seoul Bankruptcy Court will now assess the feasibility of the revised proposal to determine whether to continue with rescue proceedings or dissolve the company. Although the current deadline expires this Friday, expectations are rising that the court will defer the date once more to review the new submission. The country’s second-largest retail chain, controlled by private equity firm MBK Partners, filed for corporate rehabilitation on March 4 last year after struggling with financial difficulties and facing credit rating downgrades. The original deadline for court approval of its rehabilitation plan was March 4 this year, but the court first extended it to May 4 before granting an additional extension until this Friday. Bankruptcy law dictates that a rehabilitation scheme must receive appr

    3 MIN READBy Jun Ji-hye
    Will Homeplus liquidation decision be postponed again?
  • Tech & Science

    SK hynix finishes filing for US depositary share offering

    2 MIN READBy Nam Hyun-woo
    SK hynix finishes filing for US depositary share offering
  • Companies

    Renault Korea's June sales plunge 45 % on weak demand

    1 MIN READBy Yonhap
    Renault Korea's June sales plunge 45 % on weak demand
  • Companies

    GM Korea's June sales rise 6.6% on robust overseas demand

    1 MIN READBy Yonhap
    GM Korea's June sales rise 6.6% on robust overseas demand
  • Companies

    Hyundai Motor's global sales down in June on weaker demand

    1 MIN READBy Yonhap
    Hyundai Motor's global sales down in June on weaker demand
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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.

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Companies

Theborn Korea shares in freefall despite CEO's apology

Theborn Korea shares have been on a sharp downtrend for days, battered by a slew of product quality scandals and alleged mismanagement, market analysts said Thursday. Company CEO Paik Jong-won said recently that he would indefinitely suspend TV and online broadcast appearances, pledging a support package of 5 billion won ($3.5 million) for its franchisees. However, investor sentiment remains deeply negative. The analysts say the shares will not be able to find a breakthrough, given “stock overhang,” a large block of shares that could significantly depress the stock price if released into the market all at once. The share lock-up period of six months expired as the company went public on Nov. 6, 2024. This means that more than 4.8 million shares, or about 33 percent of the total, held by Paik and other firm executives will be able to be traded. Also up for release are 282,000 shares held by institutional investors. According to the Korea Exchange, Theborn Korea shares closed at 26,400 won on Wednesday, down about 2 percent from the previous session. This was the lowest closing price si

May 8, 2025By Lee Kyung-min
Theborn Korea shares in freefall despite CEO's apology
Companies

Renault Korea expands sales into Latin America

Renault Korea is diversifying its export channels into Latin America, with the first shipment of its flagship Grand Koleos SUVs heading to Mexico and Colombia, the carmaker said Thursday. According to the company, a total of 894 Grand Koleos vehicles were loaded for export to the two countries on Wednesday. The company also plans to gradually expand its export destinations to additional Latin American countries in the future. The target nations for future exports include Brazil, Uruguay, Panama and the Dominican Republic. In March, some Grand Koleos SUVs were preshipped to the Middle East before its full-fledged entry into the region. The vehicle achieved immediate success in the Korean market following its debut last year. The Grand Koleos has since won multiple auto awards for its strong commercial value and unmatched safety features. Renault Group identifies Korea as its strategic hub to drive its global exports. The Korean subsidiary of the French automaker runs a major production line in the nation’s southern port city of Busan. The company is going all out to maximize its productio

May 8, 2025By Lee Min-hyung
Renault Korea expands sales into Latin America
Companies

Naver hit by Apple's 'AI replacing search engine' remark

Naver shares took a dive Thursday, rattled by remarks from a top Apple executive about artificial intelligence (AI) potentially replacing online search engines, according to market analysts. This concern also sent shares of Alphabet, Google’s parent company, tumbling by 7 percent, Wednesday (local time). The analysts say the share prices will not be able to see a breakthrough due to concerns that AI-powered programs would take over the search engine market, the main revenue generator for Naver, the country’s top web portal. Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of services, said Wednesday that the rise in AI use “will eventually replace standard search engine use.” He made the comments during a court hearing, according to a report by Bloomberg. According to Korea Exchange, Naver shares closed at 188,700 won, down 5.22 percent from the previous session. Naver is scheduled to release its first-quarter earnings Friday. Analysts expect both revenue and operating profit to post growth from the previous year. Shinhan Investment said Naver’s revenue in the first three months is expec

May 8, 2025By Lee Kyung-min
Naver hit by Apple's 'AI replacing search engine' remark
Companies

LG Q1 net profit up 65.2% to $436.8 mil.

lg LG on Thursday reported its first-quarter net profit of 608.5 billion won ($436.8 million), up 65.2 percent from a year earlier. The company said in a regulatory filing that operating profit for the January-March period rose 51 percent on-year to 638 billion won. Sales increased 19.2 percent to 1.93 trillion won.

May 8, 2025By Yonhap
LG Q1 net profit up 65.2% to $436.8 mil.
Tech & Science

SK Networks charts bold AI vision

SK Networks said Thursday it has produced tangible results in its ongoing efforts to transition from a trading firm to an artificial intelligence (AI) company. Last month, the company launched a new brand, NamuhX, aimed at promoting wellness through robotics. After a teaser ad for the brand garnered more than 9 million views, SK Networks showcased its wellness robot, which can purify air, monitor vital signs and engage in conversation with users. The robot was also exhibited at the World IT Show 2025 in Seoul from April 24 to 26. SK Networks will begin selling the robot in July, with preorders starting next month. The company also plans to expand sales to the United States, Malaysia and various other countries. "Rather than people chasing technology, technology should reach out to people," said SK Networks President Choi Sung-hwan, who also serves as executive adviser to NamuhX and PhnyX Lab, the company's in-house venture consisting of AI experts from Silicon Valley. Late last year, PhnyX Lab unveiled Cheiron, Korea's first modular retrieval augmented generation-based AI solution tailore

May 8, 2025By Park Jae-hyuk
SK Networks charts bold AI vision
Companies

LG Electronics breaks ground on new plant in India

LG Electronics broke ground Thursday on its third Indian home appliance plant in Sri City, Andhra Pradesh, as part of its strategy to expand its presence in the world’s most populous country and meet the growing consumer electronics demand in nearby regions. The company said that its President of Home Appliance and Air Solution, Lyu Jae-cheol, the Minister for Human Resources Development of Andhra Pradesh, Nara Lokesh, and several senior officials from both the company and the state government attended the groundbreaking ceremony. The plant will be LG Electronics’ third manufacturing complex in India following, those in Noida and Pune. With an investment of $600 million, the plant will occupy 1 million square meters of land, producing 800,000 refrigerators, 850,000 washers and 1.5 million air conditioners annually. It is scheduled to begin production with air conditioners by the end of 2026 and will expand to manufacturing washers and refrigerators by 2029. The plant is part of LG Electronics’ strategy to secure growth momentum in emerging markets, including Asia, Latin America, th

May 8, 2025By Nam Hyun-woo
LG Electronics breaks ground on new plant in India
Tech & Science

Samsung to unveil slimmer Galaxy S25 Edge on May 13

Samsung Electronics will unveil a slimmer version of its Galaxy smartphone, the Galaxy S25 Edge, on Tuesday, setting the stage for a showdown with Apple over slimmer form factors. Samsung said Thursday it will hold the Galaxy S25: Beyond Slim Unpacked event online at 9 a.m. Tuesday. The event will be streamed via the company’s official website and YouTube channel. Since launching the Galaxy S20 series in 2020, the company has maintained a three-model form factor lineup for its S series, comprised of standard, plus and ultra models. The upcoming S25 Edge will be the first new form factor in years. Samsung has yet to disclose details of the S25 Edge, but it is believed it will be just 5.8 millimeters thick, the thinnest in Samsung’s Galaxy smartphone lineup. It will have a 6.7-inch display like the Galaxy S25 Plus model, but it will weigh 163 grams, which is similar to its 6.2-inch standard model. Its casing will feature a titanium alloy frame with a ceramic finish to address concerns about the structural strength of slimmer smartphones. While it will be powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdrag

May 8, 2025By Nam Hyun-woo
Samsung to unveil slimmer Galaxy S25 Edge on May 13
Others

Oman seeks enhanced partnerships with Korean investors

By Shim Jae-yun MUSCAT, Oman — In a bid to attract foreign investment and showcase Oman's growing economic potential, the Gulf nation recently hosted the exclusive Advantage Oman forum. During the event, an Omani official shared insights about the country's economic vision and its desire to strengthen ties with South Korean businesses, particularly medium-sized enterprises. The invitation-only forum was designed as a platform for exchanging ideas and connecting potential investors directly with Omani decision-makers. Qais Mohammed Al Yousef, Omani minister of commerce, industry and investment promotion, emphasized that the event comes at a time of global economic uncertainty, with increasing trade challenges, tariff wars and growing polarization between nations. "What we thought with Advantage Oman is that investors are looking and wanting to know what is happening around the world, especially in the Arabian Gulf," Al Yousef stated during an interview with The Korea Times on April 27. "The GCC countries — Gulf Cooperation Council: Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait — are expe

May 8, 2025By Shim Jae-yun
Oman seeks enhanced partnerships with Korean investors
Companies

Eco-friendly cars account for 81% of new imported car sales in April

The number of imported vehicles sold in South Korea last month dropped slightly from a year earlier, but eco-friendly vehicles such as hybrids and electric vehicles (EVs) accounted for a record 81 percent of the total, industry data showed Thursday. According to the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association (KAIDA), a total of 21,495 imported cars were newly registered in April, down 0.3 percent from a year ago. KAIDA attributed the decrease to price hikes and inventory shortages for certain brands. By brand, BMW retained the top spot with 6,710 units sold, followed by Mercedes-Benz, Tesla and Lexus, with 4,908, 1,447 and 1,353 units, respectively. In terms of fuel type, hybrid vehicles led the sales, accounting for 63.7 percent, followed by EVs and gasoline models, at 17.3 percent and 17.1 percent, respectively. Diesel models accounted for 1.9 percent of total imports. By individual model line, Mercedes-Benz's E-Class topped the sales chart with 2,151 units, followed by BMW's 5 Series and Tesla's Model Y, with 2,040 units and 804 units, respectively.

May 8, 2025By Yonhap
Eco-friendly cars account for 81% of new imported car sales in April
Companies

SK earthon discovers oil reserves at offshore site in Vietnam

SK earthon Co., a Korean oil exploration and production (E&P) company, said Thursday oil reserves have been discovered in a Vietnamese block in which the company holds a stake. U.S.-based Murphy Oil Corp., the operator of Block 15-1/05, recently found a 32-meter-thick oil layer in the block located in the Cuu Long Basin and has been testing production of 2,500 barrels of light crude oil per day, SK earthon said in a press release. SK earthon holds a 25 percent stake in the block, based on its 2007 investment. Murphy Oil and Vietnam's state-run Petro Vietnam Exploration Production (PVEP) own 40 percent and 35 percent, respectively. In January, oil reserves were also discovered in Block 15-2/17, located 64 kilometers southeast of Vietnam's Ho Chi Minh City, in which SK earthon likewise holds a 25 percent stake. SK earthon has been expanding its E&P activities in China and Southeast Asia to bolster the bottom line of its refining parent company. Since 2022, it has generated over 1 trillion won ($716.6 million) in annual sales from overseas E&P projects. SK earthon is a wholly owned energy un

May 8, 2025By Yonhap
SK earthon discovers oil reserves at offshore site in Vietnam
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