Daewoong Pharmaceutical announced Tuesday that it has filed for a domestic patent for a new obesity drug that suppresses appetite and promotes fat burning. The company said the candidate drug targets both GLP-1 and GIP receptors and is designed as a small molecule-based oral agonist. GLP-1 and GIP are hormones that help regulate blood sugar levels and body weight. GLP-1 boosts insulin secretion to control blood sugar and suppress the appetite, while GIP supports insulin release and promotes fat

Young Poong’s bid to buy Korea Zinc has been met with concerns that the takeover of the world’s largest zinc smelter could erode its position in the global markets and cause high-tech supply disruptions. Industry watchers have cast doubt over the ability of Young Poong and private equity firm MBK Partners to run Korea Zinc, which exerts negotiation power in setting global zinc prices. “Based on Korea Zinc’s track record in the zinc smelting market, which has been built

LG Chem is ramping up efforts to strengthen ties with partner companies through a series of new initiatives to promote sustainable development across its supply chain, the firm said Sunday. The South Korean chemicals giant outlined five key strategies under its “Shared Growth Solutions” framework: promoting fair trade, providing financial support, advancing environmental, social and governance practices, enhancing partner capabilities and improving communication. As part of the plan,

Hyundai Motor Group appointed Jose Munoz, global chief operating officer at Hyundai Motor Co., as the next CEO of the auto brand on Friday, marking the conglomerate’s first-ever appointment of a foreign leader. The appointment is to take effect on Jan. 1. Munoz, a native of Spain and a US citizen, joined the Korean automaker in 2019 and has served as president and global COO of Hyundai Motor Co. as well as president of Hyundai and Genesis Motor North America. “Through strengthening d

Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-youn has taken a top position at the conglomerate’s main defense affiliate, Hanwha Aerospace, to ramp up the firm’s global expansion. According to Hanwha Aerospace’s quarterly report released on Thursday, Kim has been appointed as the defense firm's chairman. With the newly given title, the Hanwha Group head now has five chair positions, at Hanwha Corporation, Hanwha Solutions, Hanwha Systems, Hanwha Vision and Hanwha Aerospace. “Chair

Samsung Electronics and its largest labor union reached a preliminary agreement on a 5.1 percent pay increase Thursday, officials said, paving the way for ending stalled wage negotiations that have involved a weekslong strike. The tech giant and the National Samsung Electronics Union -- which represents 31,000 workers, or about 24 percent of the company's workforce -- have held multiple rounds of talks since January over the wage increase rate, vacation systems and bonuses without avail. Th

HD Hyundai announced new nominees to head its affiliates on Thursday as the Korean shipbuilding conglomerate aims to cope with changes in the global business environment in the wake of the US presidential election. HD Hyundai Vice Chairman Chung Ki-sun has been promoted to the group’s executive vice chairman. With the promotion, Chung is expected to play a bigger role in leading HD Hyundai’s key projects and eco-friendly and technological innovation, discovering future growth engines

LG Energy Solution has secured a contract to supply up to 8 gigawatt-hour energy storage systems to US renewable energy firm Terra-Gen, the Korean battery-maker announced Thursday. Under the deal, LG Energy Solution Vertech will deliver the ESS to Terra-Gen from 2026 to 2029. The Korean battery maker acquired NEC Energy Solutions, a grid battery integrator based in the US, in 2022 and renamed it LG Energy Solution Vertech. The deal marked the biggest supply contract since the launch of LG Energy

South Korean cosmetics giant Amorepacific has unveiled its new global business strategy, aiming to strengthen its position as a leader in the beauty industry amid the rising influence of Korean culture. At its 2024 Investor Day event in Seoul on Tuesday, CEO Kim Seung-hwan and North America regional headquarters CEO Giovanni Valentini presented the plan to around 80 institutional investors and analysts, emphasizing growth opportunities across both advanced and emerging markets. “As Korean

Toss Securities said Tuesday it has named Richard Hagen, a digital finance veteran, as the new CEO of its US subsidiary, TSA Financial. Under Hagen’s leadership, the company said, TSA Financial will initiate the regulatory process to expand its presence in the US brokerage market. In August, Toss Securities established two US subsidiaries: Toss Securities Americas and TSA Financial. The latter, in particular, aims to manage the firm’s broker-dealer business operations. Hagen brings o

Kakao Corp., the operator of South Korea's dominant mobile messenger, has filed an administrative lawsuit against a government fine of 15.1 billion won (US$11 million) over the leaking of personal information on a large scale, according to sources Monday. The Personal Information Protection Commission, the government's personal information watchdog, ordered the fine in May, concluding that Kakao's lax user data scrutiny and protection measures led to the data leak of some 65,000

Pizza Hut Korea Ltd., the South Korean operator of the namesake American pizza franchise, on Monday received approval from a court to proceed with an autonomous restructuring support plan, putting on hold court-mandated rehabilitation proceedings after losing a lawsuit brought by store owners. The Seoul Bankruptcy Court said it approved the ARS rehabilitation plan requested by Pizza Hut Korea earlier in the day. An ARS program is a system where a company negotiates debt repayment plans autonom

South Korean construction giant GS Engineering and Construction announced Monday that it had won a $375.7 million contract to build a subway tunnel in Melbourne, Australia. Awarded by Victoria’s Suburban Rail Loop Authority, the contract is part of the broader Suburban Rail Loop project, which aims to construct a 90-kilometer orbital rail line connecting various regions of the city. GS E&C said it will participate in the SRL East project, valued at $1.1 billion in total, to build a 10-

Hyundai Motor has missed out on the United States tax incentives for its new $7.6-billion manufacturing plant -- Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America -- in Bryan County, Georgia, but said the credit did not affect its investment in the plant. According to industry sources Monday, Hyundai Motor did not make the list of companies that will receive tax incentives in the second round allocations of the Qualifying Advanced Energy Project Credit, or 48C, which is an allocated tax credit funded by Pre

South Korean builder Daewoo Engineering & Construction said Monday that Chairman Jung Won-ju recently visited Turkmenistan to attend CIET2024, an annual event focusing on the country’s construction, industrial and energy sectors. During the event, which took place in the capital Ashgabat from Nov. 3 to Nov. 5, Jung met with key officials to discuss Daewoo’s plans for local business growth, building on the company’s recent win of a mineral fertilizer plant project in Turkmen

South Korea's top tobacco company KT&G unveiled a new program designed to enhance its corporate value, primarily focused on increasing shareholder returns, Monday. The program centers on improving profitability, optimizing asset efficiency and streamlining financial operations to reach a return-on-equity target of 15 percent by 2027. To drive profitability, KT&G will focus on its three core business areas: overseas cigarette sales, next-generation products and healthy functional foo

For over half a century, yellow banana-flavored milk has held a special place in Korean culture, gracing supermarket shelves as a nostalgic favorite across generations. Now, its maker, Binggrae Co., aims to elevate the beloved drink’s status even further. The Korean dairy maker said Sunday that it is launching an effort to have the chubby shape of its top-selling drink’s bottle included on the state-registered cultural heritage list. It is currently gathering data to apply for elig

South Korea’s Supreme Court has decided to review SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won’s bid to overturn the country's most expensive divorce suit, opening up the possibility for the head of the nation’s second-largest conglomerate to reduce the size of the settlement. On Saturday, the justices accepted the appeal by Chey who was ordered by the Seoul High Court in May to pay his estranged wife Roh Soh-yeong 1.38 trillion won ($1 billion), or 35 percent of their common wealth, in

South Korean biopharmaceutical company Celltrion said Friday it achieved record revenue in the third quarter, driven largely by increased global prescriptions of its flagship biosimilar products. According to a regulatory filing, Celltrion posted consolidated sales of 881.9 billion won ($645.7 million) for the quarter, a 31.2 percent increase from the same period last year. Operating profit totaled 207.7 billion won, with an operating margin of 23.6 percent. In particular, cumulative sales for t

Krafton, the South Korean gaming giant behind the popular title PUBG: Battlegrounds, on Thursday posted record-breaking financial results for the third quarter of 2024, fueled by strong demand for its flagship game and ongoing investments in artificial intelligence. The company reported third-quarter revenue of 719.3 billion won ($516.18 million) and an operating profit of 324.4 billion won, reflecting year-over-year increases of 59.7 percent and 71.4 percent, respectively. This strong performan