South Korean financial firms have increased the number of foreign branches over the past five years, but such operations suffer from low profitability, the financial regulator said Tuesday. The number of overseas branches by local banks, credit card and other financial firms rose to 410 in 45 countries at the end of March this year, up 11 percent from the end of 2012, the Financial Supervisory Service said in a statement.  Asia accounted for 67.8 percent of all overseas branches. North and

New foreign direct investment pledged to come into South Korea fell 9.1 percent in the first six months of the year, amid rising uncertainties at home and abroad, the government said Tuesday.Fresh FDI commitments made in the January-June period came to $9.6 billion, down from $10.56 billion a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The amount of new FDI actually entering the country also retreated 4.4 percent on-year to $4.96 billion over the cited period, the mini

Samsung Electronics said Tuesday it has started full-fledged chip production at its Pyeongtaek plant and announced it will continue making more investments to expand its output capacity.The announcement came two years after the South Korean tech giant started the construction project in May 2015. The new Pyeongtaek facility, 70 kilometers south of Seoul, is the biggest of its kind in the country, Samsung added.  bird's-eye view of Samsung Electronics Co.'s new chip production line located in Pye

South Korea's new government will unveil a comprehensive macroeconomic road map, including plans on taxation and public finances, later this month, the country's top economic policymaker said Tuesday."Some day in mid-July, the president and other officials will hold a meeting to discuss the government's fiscal policies and strategies for the next five years," Finance Minister Kim Dong-yeon said at a policy meeting with ministers in Seoul. He said after such gatherings, the finance mini

Jin Air said Tuesday it will increase its fleet to 24 airplanes this month to meet growing travel demand during the summer peak season.  The budget carrier unit of Korean Air Lines has added a 189-seat B737-800 jet, its 23rd plane, to the Gimpo-Jeju Island route Tuesday, the company said in a statement. (Yonhap)It also plans to introduce its 24th plane later this month to meet higher demand on international routes to Southeast Asia and Japan, the statement said. Jin Air currently operates three

The chief of South Korea's central bank vowed Tuesday to take "appropriate" steps amid signs that major economies could change their monetary policies going forward.Last month, the U.S. Federal Reserve raised key interest rates by 0.25 percentage point, marking up the target range for the federal funds rate to 1-1.25 percent. The move marked the second time the Fed raised rates this year after the first hike in March. The Fed also said it plans to reduce its securities holdings, a move

South Korean stocks opened slightly higher Tuesday on overnight gains on Wall Street.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 1.34 points, or 0.06 percent, to 2,395.82 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Market kingpin Samsung Electronics climbed 0.25 percent, and SK hynix was 0.6 percent up.Hyundai Motor, the No. 1 automaker, surrendered 2.75 percent, while AmorePacific, the country's top cosmetics maker, rose 1.25 percent.LG Chem, the country's top chemicals firm, fell 0.12 percent.

South Korea's two leading battery manufacturers are racing to develop a new type of smartphone power source that can significantly improve safety, industry sources said Tuesday. According to industry watchers, Samsung SDI Co. and LG Chem Ltd. are currently seeking to commercialize solid-state batteries, which use solid-type electrolytes. The move came as the existing lithium-ion batteries utilizing liquid-type electrolytes may catch fire and even explode if they are subject to strong shock.  (Yo

Some foreign investment banks have raised their growth forecasts for South Korea's economy this year, thanks to better-than-expected exports and facility investment, a financial research institute said Tuesday.The Bank of Korea has upgraded its growth forecast for the country to 2.6 percent from 2.5 percent, citing improving exports, the Korea Center for International Finance said.  The British bank Barclays also recently raised its outlook for South Korea's gross domestic product this year

Global sales of image sensors are expected to rise through 2021 in line with the development of virtual reality and wearable devices, industry data showed Tuesday.According to the data compiled by IC Insights, the global market for CMOS image sensors is expected to reach $11.5 billion this year, up 9 percent from $10.5 billion posted a year earlier. Image sensors refer to system chips that detect images and converts them into electronic signals. They are installed in digital cameras and smartpho

A slew of controversies surrounding the English translation of Han Kang’s award-winning "The Vegetarian" have started numerous conversations about accuracy and readability. Even if there were some mistranslations, they should not offend the masses, a literary critic said."The Vegetarian," winner of the 2016 Man Booker International Prize with translation by British translator Deborah Smith."The Vegetarian" tells the story of a woman who decides to become a vegetarian after waking up from a blood

Kia Motors Corp. said Monday its vehicle sales fell 13 percent last month from a year earlier largely hit by lower demand in China. The country's second-biggest carmaker by sales sold a total of 232,370 vehicles in June, down from 267,976 units a year earlier, the company said in a statement. "Among others, sharp sales declines in China continued to drive down monthly results," the company said in a statement, citing a row between Seoul and Beijing over the deployment of the Terminal High Altitu

Hyundai Motor said Monday its sales fell 16 percent last month from a year earlier hit by weakening overseas demand, particularly in the Chinese market.  The country's biggest carmaker by sales sold a total of 376,109 vehicles in June, down from 445,021 units a year earlier, the company said in a statement."Declining demand from China continued to affect the company's monthly sales results amid a diplomatic row (between Seoul and Bejing) over the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Def

Lotteria, the operating unit o the fast-food chain, said Monday it has changed the official company name to Lotte GRS to reflect its vision to expand its presence in the global market.During its shareholders meeting Friday, the new name, which stands for Global Restaurant Service, was approved, the company said. (Yonhap)Founded in 1979, the food affiliate of South Korea's retail giant Lotte has some 2,500 stores under seven brands nationwide, including the hamburger chain Lotteria and the cafe A

Renault Samsung Motors, the South Korean unit of French carmaker Renault S.A., said Monday its June sales rose 15 percent from a year earlier on increased exports. Renault Samsung sold a total of 26,815 vehicles in June, down from 23,254 units a year earlier, due to strong demand for its SM6 flagship sedan, the company said in a statement. Domestic sales fell 17 percent on-year to 9,000 units from 10,778 units a year earlier. But exports jumped 43 percent to 17,815 units from 12,476 units during

GM Korea, the South Korean unit of General Motors, said Monday its June sales fell 21 percent from a year earlier due to weak domestic demand. GM Korea sold a total of 43,692 vehicles in June, down from 55,077 units tallied a year earlier, the company said in a statement. Exports declined 13 percent to 32,237 from 37,019 over the cited period. Domestic sales also plunged 37 percent to 11,455 units from 18,058 during the same period, it said. The sales slump was mainly affected by the sharp decli

South Korea's mobile shopping sales surpassed those of online purchases made on personal computers for the first time last year, industry data showed Monday, with the country having one of the highest smartphone penetration rates in the world.Mobile shopping sales surged 45.7 percent to 35.5 trillion won ($30.9 billion) in 2016, from 24.4 trillion won for the previous year, according to the figures provided by the Korea Online Shopping Association. (Yonhap)Online shopping sales using personal co

Seoul City said Monday that it will host an annual international forum on the present and future of the so-called imagination industries like cartoons, animation, games, VR and AR later this week. "The 2017 Seoul International Imagination Industry, titled "Attractions of Media, Media of Attractions," will open Wednesday for a three-day run at the S-Plex Center in Seoul," a city official said.  (Yonhap)Among the participants are Dennis Hong, an American mechanical engineer and roboticist; Kenji O

Mortgage lending by six major retail banks grew to a seven-month high in June, as more people sought to receive mortgages before the government tightens lending regulations for home mortgages, data showed Monday. The value of home loans at the six banks, including Shinhan, Kookmin and Woori, rose by 2.7 trillion won ($2.36 billion) to 383 trillion won at the end of June. It was the fastest monthly growth since November last year, when mortgage lending by the six banks grew by 3.1 trillion w

SsangYong Motor said Monday its June sales fell 10 percent last month from a year earlier due to slowing demand in emerging markets. The South Korean unit of Indian carmaker Mahindra & Mahindra sold 12,697 vehicles in June, down from 14,167 units a year earlier, the carmaker said in a statement. Domestic sales rose 8.1 percent to 10,535 units last month from 9,750 units a year earlier. But exports plunged 51 percent to 2,162 autos from 4,417 during the same period, the statement said. In the Jan