Qoo10 CEO seeks to merge Tmon, WeMakePrice amid payment scandal

SEOUL, August 9 (AJU PRESS) - Singapore-based Qoo10, at the center of a payment crisis involving e-commerce platforms Tmon and WeMakePrice, announced Friday that it has initiated the process to merge the two Korean subsidiaries. Qoo10 applied on Thursday for the establishment of a new corporation, named KCCW (K-Commerce Center for World), with a paid-in capital of 999,999,900 won ($732,493) to push for the merger of the two companies. Tmon and WeMakePrice are facing a financial c

August 9, 2024

Naver reports record Q2 operating profit with strong growth across most segments

SEOUL, August 9 (AJU PRESS) - Korean tech giant Naver reported a record-high operating profit for the second quarter on Friday, fueled by strong growth across most business segments, including search services, commerce and financial technology. Naver said in a regulatory filing that its operating profit increased by 26.8 percent year-on-year to 472.7 billion won ($343.6 million) for the April-June period. Revenue surged 8.4 percent to 2.6 trillion won. Its adjusted EBITDA (Earnin

August 9, 2024

Kakao founder indicted for stock price rigging

SEOUL, August 8 (AJU PRESS) - The prosecution indicted Kim Beom-su, the founder of Kakao Corp., on Thursday on charges of stock manipulation related to the tech giant's 2023 takeover of SM Entertainment. Kim had been arrested on July 23 for violating the Financial Investment Services and Capital Markets Act. The Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office also sent former Kakao Corp. CEO Hong Eun-taek and former Kakao Entertainment CEO Kim Sung-soo to trial on the same ch

August 8, 2024

S&P upgrades SK Hynix rating, citing strong HBM performance

SEOUL, August 08 (AJU PRESS) - S&P Global Ratings has upgraded SK hynix's credit rating to 'BBB' from 'BBB-', the company's highest-ever rating from the agency. The outlook remains stable. The upgrade reflects SK hynix's strong market position in high bandwidth memory (HBM) and expectations of improved financial performance. S&P projects the company's annual earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) to reach 34

August 8, 2024

Kakao reports record Q2 revenue, profit surge, driven by platform businesses

SEOUL, August 8 (AJU PRESS) - Kakao Corp., Korea's leading tech company, reported record revenue and double-digit profit growth for the second quarter on Thursday, driven by its advertisement, e-commerce and other platform-based businesses. The company, which operates Korea’s largest mobile messaging app, KakaoTalk, said in a regulatory filing that revenue increased by 4 percent year-on-year to a record 2 trillion won ($1.4 billion) for the April-June period. Net incom

August 8, 2024

'Buldak' maker Samyang establishes Dutch subsidiary for European expansion

SEOUL, August 8 (AJU PRESS) - Samyang Food Co., known for its "Buldak" spicy chicken-flavored instant noodles, has established a subsidiary in the Netherlands to spearhead its business expansion in European markets, industry sources said Thursday. The Korean food maker chose the Netherlands for its well-developed infrastructure for trade, investment, information and services, which will help enhance logistics efficiency across Europe, they said. It is Samyang's fift

August 8, 2024

Asiana Airlines' cargo operations to be sold to Air Incheon for 470 billion won

SEOUL, August 7 (AJU PRESS) — Korean Air, which is in the process of acquiring Asiana Airlines, said Wednesday that it has signed a master agreement with Air Incheon, a domestic cargo airline, to sell Asiana’s cargo operations for 470 billion won ($341.9 million). In June, Korean Air named Air Incheon as the preferred bidder for the deal. The European Union's competition regulators required the sale as a precondition for approving the Korean Air-Asiana merger. In

August 7, 2024

HYBE reports sharp decline in profits despite record revenue

SEOUL, August 7 (AJU PRESS) — HYBE, the entertainment powerhouse behind global K-pop sensation BTS, on Wednesday reported a sharp decrease in profits despite achieving record revenue in the second quarter, due to higher costs associated with new ventures and artists. The company posted a record 640.5 billion won ($465.26 million) in sales during the April-June period, a 3.1 percent increase year-on-year. The figure surpasses the previous high of 621 billion won set in the s

August 7, 2024

AI patent registrations by major Korean companies more than triple this year

SEOUL, August 7 (AJU PRESS) - The number of artificial intelligence (AI)-related patents registered by South Korea’s large companies with local authorities more than tripled this year, data showed Wednesday. According to a survey by CEO Score, a local research institution focused on business corporations, 111 major companies have registered 1,503 AI patents with the Korean Intellectual Property Office as of last month, up 273 percent from 403 last year. Samsung Electroni

August 7, 2024

Coupang posts first operating loss in eight quarters despite record revenue

SEOUL, August 07 (AJU PRESS) - South Korea's e-commerce giant Coupang reported its first operating loss in eight quarters, despite surpassing 10 trillion won ($7.2 billion) in quarterly revenue for the first time. In its second-quarter earnings report filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday, Coupang's revenue was 10.03 trillion won, up 30 percent from the same period in 2023. The company, listed on the New York Stock Exchange, reported an opera

August 7, 2024