South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics Co. broke ground on a new chip-production line on Thursday, aiming to further expand its clout in the semiconductor sector amid its ailing smartphone business. The 15.6 trillion won ($14.4 billion) chip line in Pyeongtaek, some 70 kilometers south of Seoul, is scheduled to be ready to start production in the first half of 2017. It marks Samsung's large...

Hyundai Motor Co. and its smaller affiliate Kia Motors Corp. logged lower-than-expected sales during the first four months of this year, raising worries that they might not be able to achieve their annual sales targets for this year. Hyundai Motor, South Korea's leading automaker, earlier aimed to sell 5.05 million cars this year, while No. 2 Kia Motors targeted 3.15 million units. The two pushe...

South Korean retailer Hanwha Galleria said Wednesday it aims to raise sales at its Jeju duty-free branch to 90 billion won ($83 million) this year on a continued influx of Chinese shoppers to the country's southern resort island. The Hanwha affiliate began operations of its first duty-free store in Jeju last year after winning an operational license to run a 409-square-meter duty-free shop in th...

SK Telecom Co., South Korea's top mobile carrier, said Wednesday its first-quarter net profit hiked 65.6 percent from a year earlier, mainly due to the absence of one-off costs. Net income reached 442.8 billion won ($409.5 million) in the January-March period, compared with 267.3 billion won the previous year, the company said in a regulatory filing. The figure, however, falls far short of the ...

South Korea's top tech giant Samsung Electronics Co. said Wednesday it will release its new virtual-reality device later this week that works on its latest Galaxy S6 smartphones. The new Samsung Gear VR device, which will be slightly smaller than the previous version that links with the Galaxy Note 4 through a micro USB port, will be available for purchase with a price tag of 249,000 won ($230.1...

Renault Samsung Motors Co., the local unit of French automaker Renault SA, said Monday that it is seeking to introduce its popular Twizy ultra-small electric vehicle in South Korea amid "satisfactory" progress in talks with relevant authorities for its sale here. The Twizy is a battery-powered two-passenger electric vehicle that produces no emissions. Renault started to sell the vehicle in Paris...

South Korea's top automaker Hyundai Motor Co. has withdrawn a subcompact car from the Indian market as the company seeks to sell other new models in Asia's second-largest economy, industry sources said Monday. The Santro city car, also known as the Hyundai Atoz in South Korea, was pulled off the Indian market in January after Hyundai Motor decided to cease its production late last year, accordin...

Renault Samsung Motor Co., the local unit of French automaker Renault SA, is recalling more than 20,000 units of its QM3 crossover SUV due to the defective brake system, the transportation ministry said Monday. A potential problem in the QM3 mini SUVs could corrode the brake hose and cause the brake system to leak, which may compromise the car's ability to stop, according to the Ministry of Land...

Overseas production by South Korea's leading carmaker Hyundai Motor Co. and its corporate cousin Kia Motors Corp. touched record-high numbers in March on the back of a boost in output in their factories in Turkey and China, data showed Sunday. The combined number of cars produced abroad by the carmaking duo under Hyundai Motor Group came to 401,784 units in March, up 5.2 percent from a year ear...

A daughter of the chairman of SK Group, South Korea's No. 3 conglomerate, will be dispatched to the Gulf of Aden for an anti-piracy mission, the Navy said Wednesday. Chey Min-jung, the second daughter of convicted SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, has drawn media attention after being commissioned as a naval officer last November. "The ensign is to be sent to the Gulf of Aden as the 19th batch of...

South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics Co. said Wednesday its net profit plunged 39 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier due to weak earnings from its mobile business. Net income reached 4.63 trillion won ($4.32 billion) in the January-March period, compared with 7.6 trillion won a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing. Operating profit came to 5.98 trillion won...

LG Electronics Inc., South Korea's No. 2 smartphone and home appliance maker, said Tuesday it is considering joining the global partnership for ultra high-definition television and digital content, following rival Samsung's announcement to become a member at the beginning of this year. "We're looking into joining the UHD Alliance. If we do so, we'll be taking part in setting the standards for UH...

The antitrust watchdog said Monday it has fined retail giant Homeplus and its affiliate Homeplus Tesco for providing local insurers with the personal information of applicants for giveaway events. The 435 million won ($404,500) fine was slapped on the retailers after they collected information on customers between August 2011 and June 2014, the Fair Trade Commission said. Homeplus, which has mo...

Dongkuk Steel Mill Co., South Korea's third-largest steel maker, said Friday it plans to sell its headquarters building in downtown Seoul to a local insurer as part of its efforts to bolster its financial status. Dongkuk's board of directors approved the deal worth 420 billion won ($389 million) to sell the building to Samsung Life Insurance Co., an insurance unit of the country's top conglomera...

Hyundai Motor Co., South Korea's largest automaker, said Thursday its first-quarter net profit dropped 2.2 percent from a year earlier, affected by the strong local currency that hurts its sales in emerging markets. Net profit came to 1.98 trillion won ($1.83 billion) during the January-March period, compared with 2.03 trillion won a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing. The fi...