[THE INVESTOR] US-based patent holding company NTP has requested Korea’s National Tax Service to return US$2.1 billion worth of corporate taxes it paid, according to industry and government sources on Sept. 26.They noted that NTP has filed a lawsuit for the tax refund at the Seoul Administrative Court. The US firm is demanding the local tax office to return taxes it paid on royalties it collected from Korean companies for using its patents.The move follows a lawsuit filed by another US company –

[THE INVESTOR]  Rolls-Royce said on Sept. 23 that it has teamed up with Hyundai Heavy Industries to build a vessel for the New Zealand Navy. Under the contract, Rolls-Royce will provide eco-friendly designs including a wave-piercing hull form for a 23,000-ton Polar-Class logistics support vessel that HHI will build to replace New Zealand’s 30-year-old vessel, the Endeavor. “For the first time in history, Rolls-Royce would be taking part in a military vessel design,” said Sam Cameron, vice presid

[THE INVESTOR] Hanwha Techwin has secured a multibillion dollar supply deal with the world’s third-largest aerospace engine maker Pratt & Whitney, it disclosed on Sept. 22.The firm said it signed a deal with US-based P&W to supply US$4.5 billion worth of aircraft engine parts over the next 40 years.  The parts will be manufactured by P&W’s Singapore-based joint venture, in which Hanwha will be taking up a 30 percent stake. The two sides declined to reveal the acquisition costs. Assuming it exerc

[THE INVESTOR]  Hanwha Life has submitted a letter of intent to acquire a stake in Woori Bank following a board meeting, the bank said on Sept. 22, a day before the bidding closed.In most cases, LOI submissions are not subject to board decisions, but Hanwha Life held the meeting due to its special relations with Woori Bank’s largest shareholder Korea Deposit Insurance Corp.State-run KDIC currently holds a 15.25 percent stake in the life insurance firm. KDIC said in a disclosure on Aug. 24 that i

[THE INVESTOR] South Korean chemical engineering firm OCI said on Sept. 21 it has completed its fourth coal tar refinery factory in China, the company said on Sept.22. The latest facilities will elevate OCI to the world’s third-largest with an annual coal tar refining capacity of 118 million tons. On Sept.20, OCI held a ceremony to celebrate the completion of Ma Steel OCI Chemical, a joint venture with China’s Maanshan Iron & Steel to produce an annual 350,000 tons of refined coal tar. OCI will

[THE INVESTOR] Park Geun-tae, CJ Korea Express CEO and head of the firm’s Chinese operations, has proclaimed a vision for undertaking a series of mergers and acquisitions in Europe and the United States to join the ranks of the global top five industry leaders by 2020. CJ Korea Express is currently the world’s 17th largest logistics firm. By 2020, the firm is looking to increase its sales by fourfold to 27 trillion won (US$ 23.95 billion). “Especially with the recent presidential pardon issued t

[THE INVESTOR] International credit rating agency S&P said on Sept. 19 that it has raised Woori Bank’s credit rating to “BBB+” from “BBB”. S&P attributed the upgrade to the bank’s upcoming issuance of BASEL III-compliant Tier 1 subordinated bonds, which it said would strengthen Woori’s capital adequacy. S&P also projected the bank’s risk adjusted capital ratio to stay above 7 percent over the next one to two years.Meanwhile, the government is seeking to privatize Woori Bank this year, with the s

[THE INVESTOR] Mirae Asset Daewoo Securities, formerly Daewoo Securities, is set to finalize its merger with Mirae Asset Securities in end-December, industry sources said on Sept. 19.The two sides are scheduled to hold respective board meetings on this day to change the merger date to Dec. 29 from the initially set Nov. 1. This follows reports last week that the merger deadline would be pushed back.The merged entity will be called Mirae Asset Daewoo, with its shares will be newly listed on the l

[THE INVESTOR] Although plants of major South Korean firms such as Samsung, LG and SK experienced temporary halts in operations following a series of earthquakes that hit the peninsula on Sept. 12, there were no major production disruptions, they said. A 5.1-magnitude tremor was detected at 7:44 p.m., followed by a record magnitude 5.8 earthquake that jolted most of South Korea at around 8:30 p.m.Samsung Electronics’ plants in Giheung and Hwaseong of Gyeonggi Province, along with those of SK hyn

[THE INVESTOR] Singapore-based asset management firm ARA is set to sell three office buildings in Seoul, industry sources said Sept.13. They include ING Center in downtown Seoul, CJ CheilJedang Center, also in downtown Seoul, and the YP Center located in northwestern Seoul. ARA is seeking to invite bids in October to sign a sales contract before the year is out. ING Center, measuring some 34,172 square meters, is expected to fetch around 23 million won (US$ 20,780) per 3.3 square meters, accordi

[THE INVESTOR] The planned merger between Mirae Asset Daewoo -- formerly Daewoo Securities -- and Mirae Asset Securities is expected to be postponed from Nov. 1 to December this year. The two sides are expected to issue a disclosure on the postponement following a board meeting on Sept. 19. Some say the merger may have been delayed due to a decline in Mirae Asset Daewoo’s stock price that recently fell below 8,000 won (US$7.22). On Sept.12, it closed at 7,860 won. The National Pension Service, w

[THE INVESTOR] Korea’s largest steelmaker POSCO is likely to bid for a stake in Woori Bank, which the government is planning to privatize this year, industry sources said on Sept. 9. The controlling stake of 51.8 percent is currently held by Korea Deposit Insurance Corp., which is looking to sell off 30 percent, which will be divided into 4-8 percent stakes. Woori Bank holds a 1 percent stake in POSCO. POSCO currently has an interest in Woori via K-Bank, an internet bank operated by a number of