SsangYong Motor Co., the South Korean unit of Indian carmaker Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., said Friday its fourth-quarter net losses widened from a year earlier due to weak sales amid the coronavirus pandemic. For the three months ended December, net losses deepened to 173.6 billion won ($155 million) from 155.9 billion won in the year-ago period, the company said in a statement. "Weaker sales and tougher competition with rivals weighed on the quarterly results as the COVID-19 pandemic p

LG International, the trading arm of LG Group, saw its operating profit climb 18.5 percent on-year in 2020, on the back of the improved profitability in logistics, the company said Friday in a regulatory filing. Data showed that the company’s yearly sales came to 11.28 trillion won ($10.06 billion), up 7.1 percent from a year earlier, and its operating profit reached 159.8 billion won, up 18.5 percent during the same period. The operating profit marked a visible expansion during the

The number of 5G subscribers in South Korea approached nearly 12 million last year since the launch of the latest mobile network in April 2019, data showed Friday. South Korea's 5G users stood at 11.85 million as of end-December last year, up over 900,000 from the previous month, according to the data from the Ministry of Science and ICT. The figure accounted for 16.8 percent of the total 70.5 million mobile network subscriptions in the country. The number of 5G users picked up in the second

South Korea's ICT ministry said Friday it will develop an artificial intelligence-powered translator for local video streaming services as part of its broader support plan for the fast-growing over-the-top (OTT) media industry. The Ministry of Science and ICT said it is pursuing the development of the AI-based translation technology as the country's OTT market experiences rapid growth and local OTT services begin eyeing overseas expansion with their Korean-language content. South Korea's OTT u

South Korea's science ministry said Friday it will extend research and development (R&D) support for the bio-health sector, bolstering efforts to develop regenerative medicine and homegrown medical devices. Under the Ministry of Science and ICT's bio-health strategy, the country will also expand R&D investment to converge cutting-edge technology, such as artificial intelligence, with new medicine development to boost efficiency. The ministry will also expand support for the development

South Korea's exports of autos declined 12.1 percent on-year last year due to the fallout of the pandemic, data showed Friday. The country's outbound shipments of cars came to $34.7 billion last year, compared with $39 billion the previous year, according to the data compiled by the Korea Customs Service. In 2020, the country's imports of autos rose 8.8 percent on-year to $12 billion, the data showed. The drop in auto exports was mainly attributable to a fall in demand over the COVID-19 pande

Samsung Electronics Co. said Friday its new flagship smartphone line has been officially launched globally as the South Korean tech giant hopes its latest handsets can drive the company's mobile business amid fierce challenges from its rivals. Sales of the Galaxy S21 series have started in 60 countries, including South Korea, the United States, Britain and India, according to Samsung. The new mobile devices will be available in 130 countries by the end of February. The Galaxy S21 series, which

SK hynix, the world’s second-biggest memory provider, reported Friday an 84 percent on-year growth in its annual operating profit in 2020. The chipmaker posted 31.9 trillion won ($28.6 billion) in revenue and 5.01 trillion won in operating profit in 2020, up 18 percent and 85 percent from a year earlier, respectively. Its net income of 2020 stood at 4.76 trillion won, while the operating margin was 16 percent, and net margin was 15 percent. “Due to the global pandemic and the in

Major South Korean credit card issuer Samsung Card Co. said Friday its net profit jumped nearly 16 percent in 2020 from a year earlier despite the coronavirus outbreak. Net profit came to 398.8 billion won ($357 million) last year, up 15.9 percent from a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing. Sales climbed 2.2 percent on-year to 3.37 trillion won, with its operating profit surging 18.8 percent to 534.3 billion won. Last year's solid performance by Samsung Card, the No. 2 indus

SK Innovation Co., a South Korean refinery-to-battery company, said Friday it will invest 1.3 trillion won ($1.2 billion) in its Hungary subsidiary to expand its electric vehicle battery production in Europe. SK Innovation said its investment in SK Battery Hungary Kft. is aimed at building "a new battery factory in Europe." The investment is expected to build a third battery factory in Hungary, as the company has been stepping up production capacity to meet growing demand for EV batt

SK hynix Inc., South Korea's No. 2 chipmaker, said Friday it expected strong demand for memory chips this year on the back of growth in the server and mobile sectors after reporting robust fourth-quarter earnings amid the pandemic. Its net income reached 1.76 trillion won ($1.6 billion) during the October-December period, turning from a loss of 125.6 billion won a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing. The world's second-largest DRAM producer said its fourth-quarter operating p

Posco, South Korea's top steelmaker, said Thursday its operating profit slipped 37.9 percent last year as the coronavirus pandemic ravaged global demand for steel.  Posco reported an operating profit of 2.4 trillion won ($2.15 billion) and a net profit of 1.7 trillion won for 2020. Net profit fell 9.8 percent on year in 2020. Sales dropped 10.2 percent on year to 57.7 trillion won last year, Posco said. Despite the pandemic, Posco's profitability showed signs of recovering in the sec

While logistics and biopharma companies across the world strive to secure “cold chain” channels to safely store and transport COVID-19 vaccines, a South Korean home appliance brand specializing in kimchi fridges is set to roll out an ultra-low temperature freezer for such use. Winia Dimchae, known for its kimchi fridge brand Dimchae, has successfully developed an ultra-low temperature freezer, jointly with its wire telecommunications apparatus affiliate Dayou Plus, officials said.

Lime, the world’s leading provider of rented electric scooters and electric bikes, will soon launch electric mopeds in Seoul, the company said Thursday. According to Lime, the e-mopeds will be introduced in selected cities in South Korea. Lime is also in discussions with Washington and Paris about introducing its e-mopeds there in the coming months. “Lime’s addition of e-mopeds makes it the first and only micro-mobility provider to offer three shared electric vehicle type

In a rare intervention, the top official urges two companies to swiftly resolve issue