[DISCLOSURE] CJ Group has submitted a letter of intent to join the bid for acquiring McDonald's Korea, CJ said in a regulatory filing on July 28.

[THE INVESTOR] Hyundai Motor, the world’s fifth-largest carmaker, said it posted second-quarter operating profit of 1.76 trillion won (US$1.54 billion), up 0.6 percent on-year. Sales stood at 24.67 trillion won after selling 1,285,860 units in the cited period, Hyundai said in a regulatory filing on July 26. By Kim Ji-hyun (jemmie@heraldcorp.com)

[THE INVESTOR] NHN Entertainment has joined hands with KG Group to submit a bid to acquire McDonald’s Korea. The two will now be pitted against Korean food and entertainment giant CJ Group.KG Group is a local operator of mobile payment service, Kpay. Together with NHN Entertainment -- split off from Naver in 2013 -- it submitted a letter of intent to the sale manager Morgan Stanley, according to financial sources on July 25. KG Group is said to have joined the bid in order to apply its payment s

[THE INVESTOR] State-run Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power said on July 25 it has clinched a deal with its United Arab Emirates counterpart to operate four nuclear reactors under construction there through 2030.KHNP president Cho Seok said the latest operating support services agreement with the UAE is unprecedented in the nuclear sector.“Globally, too, it’s rare that a country has foreigners handling nuclear reactors. South Korea’s relationship with the Middle East has evolved around the construction

[THE INVESTOR] South Korean share prices are expected to remain in a tight range next week as investors wait for key economic events and take profit, analysts said on July 23.On July 22, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index had closed 0.34 percent down from a week ago to 2,010.34 points.This week, foreign investors scooped up stocks worth 800 billion won (US$704 million). They extended their buying binge to an 11th consecutive day on Friday. But experts say rising expectation for a ra

July 21, 2016 Korea Hyundai Motor wage talks resume POSCO Q2 earnings report KT&G Q2 earnings report Shinhan Financial Group Q2 earnings report KB Financial Q2 earnings report LG Life Sciences Q2 earnings reportLotte Fine Chemical Q2 earnings report S1 Q2 earnings reportKorea Exchange market calendar:  http://engkind.krx.co.kr/disclosure/marketcalendar.do?method=readMarketCalendarMain#US Announcement on anti-dumping tariffs including those on Korea May housing price indexJune existing home sales

By Kim Tae-wooProfessor at Konyang University and former president of the Korea Institute for National Unification A Terminal High Altitude Area Defense interceptor being fired during an exercise in 2013. / WikipediaOn July 8, the South Korean Defense Ministry agreed to deploy the controversial Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system on the Korean Peninsula. China’s response was strong and immediate. It protested the move publicly, and also lodged formal complaints with the ambassadors of Sou

■ Optopac Corp.'s secondary public offering ■ Dual anchor book subscription ■ Paxnet anchor book subscription■ SH Holdings’ shares resumes trading ■ Cheil Industries Q2 earnings reportSee full monthly schedule: The Korea Exchange

■ US (5:30) – API Weekly Crude Inventories Report (Records draw of 2.3 million barrels) ■ Japan (14:30) – Tokyo June department store sales/ June steel production ■ Germany (15:00) – PPI ■ UK (17:30) – June unemployment rate / July industrial production ■ Eurozone (17:00) – May current account ■ Earnings – eBay / Intel / Morgan Stanley                 (* Korea time)

[THE INVESTOR] South Korea’s producer prices fell 27 percent from a year earlier in June to 99.01 on declining coal and petroleum product prices, central bank data showed on July 19. Compared to the 98.79 in May, the June figure reflected a slight increase. Producer prices are a major indicator of future consumer inflation.Prices of manufactured goods gained 0.5 percent on-month in June while those for agricultural and fisheries suffered a 1.7-percent on-month decline.Utility prices, including e

[THE INVESTOR] The second-quarter operating profit of Kyongdongd Navien, a Korean condense boiler maker, is likely to rise 106 percent, according to IBK Securities on July 15.Revenue for this year is expected to rise 13.3 percent to 580 billion won (US$505.81 million), while operating profit stands at 50 billion won. The company’s operating profit ratio was expected to rise more than 6 percentage points in the second quarter.IBK said enhanced efficiency at the company’s plants will help bolster

[THE INVESTOR] Hana Financial Investment on July 15 said defense parts maker Poongsan ’s second quarter earnings would surpass market estimates, with operating profit reaching 45.8 billion won (US$ 39.94 million) and sales at 496.7 billion won. The market consensus put operating profit at 43.3 billion won. The brokerage said rising demand for copper manufacturing is the main driver for growth, forecasting prices to further rise on anticipation of more economic stimulus measures in China.By Kim J

[THE INVESTOR] South Korea is planning to launch a euro-based payment system for companies doing business with Iran. This is after the US government gave its nod of approval to the move in June during a Korea-US finance ministers meeting.The Seoul government is now in the process of selecting a bank to manage the new system. The two candidates are the Industrial Bank of Korea and Woori Bank. Partner banks in Europe will also be selected following further talks with Washington. Pixabay.comEuro is

[THE INVESTOR] Farmers are strongly resisting a plan by LG Group to invest 380 billion won ($309 million) to develop smart farm technology. They view the investment as another attempt by a chaebol to engage in large-scale fruit cultivation, which would threaten the livelihoods of many small fruit growers.But the farmers’ resistance is short-sighted and goes against the government’s push to revolutionize Korea’s agriculture with smart farm technology.A smart farm refers to an automated, remotely

[THE INVESTOR] The European Union delegation to Korea and Korea’s Ministry of Strategy and Finance launched a project last week to tackle greenhouse gas emissions as part of bilateral cooperation to curb climate change. The emissions trading scheme cooperation project -- worth over 3.5 million euros ($3.87 million) -- will run until January 2019. The EU will offer technical assistance and expertise to Korea through consultations, workshops and study visits to the EU. Through the three-year initi

[THE INVESTOR] South Korean share prices are likely to be stuck in a tight range next week, with a slight chance of them moving upward on eased Brexit woes, analysts said on July 9.“The KOSPI will likely defend the 1,950-point level next week as problems stemming from Europe seem to be abating, but the index will still likely be at a lower level than the one seen immediately following the Brexit vote,” Bookook Securities analyst Kim Sung-hwan told Yonhap News. Investors were expected to stay on

[THE INVESTOR] Naver CEO Kim Sang-hun on July 8 apologized for plagiarizing local translation service Flitto, adding that Naver would halt its services. “We have decided to stop our translation services as of this month after receiving complaints that they appear to be a rip-off of Flitto,” Kim said.Flitto CEO Lee Jung-soo on July 7 had raised issue with Naver’s latest translation service that allow people to freely solicit translation work and take part in the translation process, saying it was

[THE INVESTOR] Korea’s largest steelmaker POSCO will provide its latest hadfield steel for the building of the world’s largest LNG bulk carrier, the company said Wednesday. Starting from the third quarter, the steel company will supply the self-produced hadfield steel to Hyundai Mipo Dockyard, which will build the world’s largest LNG propel bulk carrier. The hadfield steel, with 20 percent manganese, is durable under cold temperatures of up to minus 162 degrees Celsius. The size of the new bulk

[THE INVESTOR] LINE Corp., the Japanese mobile messaging affiliate of Naver, said on July 4 that it will raise its initial public offering price band to 2,900-3,300 yen.On June 28, LINE had set the range at 2,700-3,200 yen. The official IPO price will be fixed on July 11. LINE shares will be floated simultaneously in Japan and the US on July 15. Market consensus has it that LINE would be able to secure 132.8 billion yen (US$129.4 million) worth of funds from the IPOLINE officials said it decided

[THE INVESTOR] Economic policymakers and business circles in Korea are on alert over signs that trade protectionism is rising across the globe.A report released by the World Trade Organization last month showed that in the seven months leading up to mid-May 2016, G20 economies introduced 145 protectionist measures, the highest since 2009.Some economists say this phenomenon may not necessarily prompt a grave worry as it remains within the boundaries of the existing mechanisms and relates partly t