[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Group’s five affiliates have cut 5,700 employees in the first half of this year, the companies said in their semiannual reports. The companies include Samsung SDI, Samsung Electro-Mechanics, Samsung Heavy Industries, Samsung Engineering and Samsung C&T, five of the group’s 15 listed companies. Samsung SDI, the battery-making unit, shed the largest 15 percent, or 1,662 people, since the sell-off of its chemicals business to Lotte Group. The total employee number was 9,422. 

[THE INVESTOR] Hyundai Motor President Chung Jin-haeng on Aug. 17 hinted the Korean carmaker was in talks with US internet giant Google on a possible partnership for self-driving technology. “It is true that we are communicating with Google,” he told reporters after an industrial meeting with the trade minister in Seoul. “We are seeking ways to collaborate.”Google is one of the leading players in terms of self-driving technology. Its test-drive course with global carmakers such as Toyota and For

[THE INVESTOR] Hyundai Mobis, the parts-making unit of Hyundai Motor Group, is in talks with Israel’s self-driving tech firm Mobileye for possible partnership, a news report said Aug. 17. According to Seoul Economic Daily, Mobileye has tentatively agreed to offer its chips for Advanced Driver Assistance Systems to the Korean firm. Hyundai Mobis has poured resources into self-driving technology together with Hyundai Motor. The possible partnership could speed up its ongoing research efforts, the

[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Electronics is expected to see preorders for its latest Galaxy Note 7 smartphone exceed 400,000 units on its home turf, nearly triple the figure for the Galaxy S7 and its Edge variant, which launched in March. According to industry sources on Aug. 17, preorders for the larger-screen Note phone have already reached some 350,000 units and are likely to reach the 400,000 mark before the preorder period ends Aug. 18. In Korea, a phone selling some 10,000 units is considered a

[THE INVESTOR] CJ HelloVision, the nation’s No. 1 cable TV operator, said on Aug. 17 it has named Byun Dong-sik, senior vice president and chief of management support, as the company’s new co-CEO. The 56-year-old previously served as the company’s CEO between 2008 and 2013. After its failed attempt to merge with SK Telecom in July, CJ HelloVision is seeking to breathe fresh air into the company. Byun will lead the firm together with current CEO Kim Jin-seok.  CJ HelloVision co-CEOs Byun Dong-sik

[THE INVESTOR] LG Electronics plans to start producing automotive parts for General Motor’s fully electric Chevrolet Bolt at its research center in Incheon, some 40 kilometers west of Seoul, from later this month. The Korean tech giant confirmed on Aug. 17 that it has recently installed a large-scale production line at the Incheon campus that has mostly been used for research activities. The upcoming GM Chevrolet Bolt“The production line aims to seek synergies among research and production organ

[THE INVESTOR] LG Hausys and Hanwha Chemical are joining the heated bidding war to acquire Continental Structural Plastics, the US vehicle lightweight technology developer. The two firms submitted separate letters of intent to win the deal worth up to US$700 million over the weekend, while Germany’s BASF and Japan’s Mitsubishi Motors are also said to have joined the bidding war.LG Hausys, the materials unit of LG Group, had planned to create a consortium with its sister firm LG Chem, but the che

[THE INVESTOR] GS Group Chairman Huh Chang-soo topped a list of highest-paid executives in the first half of the year, receiving a combined 5.21 billion won (US$4.75 million) for running the refinery and retail giant, according to the nation’s financial regulator on Aug. 17. The Korea Financial Supervisory Service unveiled wages of the nation’s best-paid executives, including conglomerate owners and CEOs, who take home more than 500 million won per year. Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Mong-k

[THE INVESTOR] Shipments of organic light-emitting diode panels for mobile use are estimated to exceed 300 million units this year and a whopping 1 billion units by 2019, a market research firm predicted on Aug. 16. Currently, Samsung Electronics dominates the market with nearly 97 percent of smaller OLED sales.  The Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge uses flexible OLED to feature a curved display screen. The curvy model has outsold its flat-screen sibling. Samsung ElectronicsAccording to UBI Research, ship

[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Electronics is expected to double shipments of its latest smartphone Galaxy Note 7 compared to those of its predecessor Note 5, a news report said on Aug. 16. According to local news daily Chosun Biz, the Korean tech giant will produce a monthly average of 3 million units of the Note large-size smartphone in the third quarter, which compares to some 1.6 million units for the Note 5 last year. Samsung Electronics’ mobile business chief Koh Dong-jinConsidering the upbeat pre

[THE INVESTOR] The Korea Fair Trade Commission has recently begun probes of four software firms -- Kakao, NC SOFT, Hanwha S&C and Hanjin Information Systems and Telecommunication -- for their heavy-handed subcontracting practices with smaller suppliers.According to industry sources on Aug. 16, the companies are accused of making verbal contracts without specifying details, delaying or reducing payments and enforcing unfair commitments. Hanwha Group headquarters in central SeoulHanwha S&C and Han

[THE INVESOTR] The Fair Trade Commission plans to charge CJ Group for illegal inter-subsidiary transactions, industry sources said Aug. 16. The antitrust watchdog has recently found that CJ CGV, the food and entertainment giant’s multiplex chain, has ordered from its sister ad affiliate JS Communications, owned by CJ Group Chairman Lee Jay-hyun’s younger brother Lee Jay-hwan. Inter-unit trading is not illegal here but is subject to criminal charges when it is used to elevate sales and stock pric

[THE INVESTOR] President Park Geun-hye has replaced three ministers on Aug. 16. 　Cho Yoon-sun, former minister of gender equality, to lead the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, while Kim Jae-soo, CEO of the Korea Agro-Fisheries and Food Trade Corp., as minister of agriculture, food and rural affairs. 　Cho Kyeung-kyu, deputy chief of the Office for Government Policy Coordination under the Prime Minister’s Office, as environment minister. 　(theinvestor@heraldcorp.com)　  

[THE INVESTOR] Shinsegae Duty Free store has succeeded in bringing in Louis Vuitton, one of the most coveted luxury brands, according to industry sources on Aug. 12.“Louis Vuitton will open a boutique in Shinseage Duty Free’s fashion luxury zone in April 2017,” said a company official following negotiations with the Louis Vuitton Moet Hennesy Group. This is the second Louis Vuitton store slated to open at a downtown duty-free store recently granted license. Along with Chanel and Hermes, the Fren