The state-run Industrial Bank of Korea has decided to issue a refund guarantee to Samsung Heavy Industries, supporting the company in its latest shipbuilding deal, industry sources said Thursday.Samsung Heavy Industries on Wednesday clinched a deal worth 240 billion won ($220 million) to build four oil tankers for Norwegian company Viken. This is the company’s second order obtained this year. A refund guarantee is a form of security for purchasers who generally pay for a substantial part of vess

Industry Oct. 13, 2016

Samsung Heavy Industries won a deal to build four oil tankers worth 240 billion won ($220 million), the company said Wednesday.The shipbuilder said it won a contract to build two 123,000-deadweight-ton oil tankers and two other 157,000-DWT oil tankers for Norwegian firm Viken.This is the firm’s second deal of the year, following the first contract two weeks ago involving an order to construct two 180,000-cubic-meter class liquefied natural gas carriers worth 420 billion won for Monaco’s GasLog.

Industry Oct. 12, 2016

Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering will speed up its job cut plan as part of its restructuring scheme, the company said Wednesday, amid growing concerns over the company’s fate.The ailing shipbuilder said it is pushing for a faster self-rescue plan to cut some 3,000 jobs, thereby, keeping its total staff number under 10,000 by the end of this year. As of June, about 127,000 workers are employed, according to DSME. The company initially sought to gradually cut the jobs by 2020 but the com

Industry Oct. 12, 2016

Korea’s No. 1 steelmaker Posco was picked as the top steelmaker in the world for its climate change efforts, the company said Thursday. According to the Carbon Disclosure Project, the UK-based non-governmental organization which assesses the green policies and emissions level of companies, Posco topped the steelmaker’s ranking for its efforts into cutting the emissions, followed by Saab in Sweden and Thyssenkrupp in Germany. Korea’s Hyundai Steel stood at No. 4. This is the first time that the C

Industry Oct. 12, 2016

For all businesses, production starts with design and ends with design. Regardless of the type, design has become instrumental in developing a product’s identity. With technology evolving at an ever rapid pace, design has become more than just an expression of aesthetics and a tool of convenience. The convergence of design with technology has brought about new industries as it allows the businesses to break down the often fine lines that traditionally demarcate traditional industries. Creating t

Arts & Design Oct. 11, 2016

Korea’s oil refiner S-Oil provided 100 million won ($89,000) of financial help for Ethiopian children in need as part of its program to support the underprivileged, the company said Tuesday. The donation will be used for constructing and repairing classrooms and purchasing livestock for a school in Beritene town in the Enemorena Ener district where 120,000 students attend, it said.  S-Oil CEO Othman al-Ghamdi (left) poses for a photo with World Vision Korea CEO Yang Ho-seung after offering finan

Industry Oct. 11, 2016

Doosan Bobcat said Monday it will delay its slated initial public offering on the local stock market to next month, due mainly to low market response. Doosan Group’s subsidiary was seeking to offer a price band between 40,100 won ($36) and 50,000 won for the IPO next week amid concerns that the sale price was too high. It had been projected to draw 2.45 trillion won if the price reaches the upper limit. “(Doosan Bobcat) will make a public announcement over the changed public offering conditions

Industry Oct. 10, 2016

Korea’s top steelmaker Posco has succeeded in producing the thinnest hot rolled coil plate with its own technology, the company said Monday, opening the way for cheaper steel for carmakers and other manufacturers. The steelmaker said it produced a hot rolled coil plate that is 0.8 millimeters thick. This is the world’s second success following Italian firm Arvedi. The development of thinner hot rolled coil is expected to reduce factory costs for its customers, as that thickness could previously

Industry Oct. 10, 2016

Tension escalated Friday over a planned nationwide strike by truck drivers next week and its impact on the already strained transport industry. Earlier this week, Korea’s largest freight transport union threatened that it would refuse cargo loading and unloading starting Monday against the government’s recent reform outline on the freight transport market. Of about 11,000 trucks joining the union, over 70 percent are container-transporting trucks. If it goes ahead, this will mark the fourth gene

Industry Oct. 7, 2016

More than 97 percent of asset heirs in Korea were found to have been legally exempt from paying inheritance taxes, a lawmaker said Friday. According to Rep. Park Kwang-on of the Minjoo Party of Korea, quoting the National Tax Service’s data, about 1.45 million people inherited a total of 151.6 trillion won ($136 billion) from their relatives between 2011 and 2015. Of them, only 2.2 percent actually paid taxes on their inheritance while others benefited from tax exemption. Rep. Park Kwang-on of T

Oct. 7, 2016

The Seoul court on Thursday upheld a ruling that the controversial electricity power rate system is valid, amid persistent public criticism over the cumulative bill scheme. The Seoul Central District Court ruled in favor of Korea Electric Power Corp stating that the company’s policy terms that allow the cumulative increase of power bills along with the amount of electricity used is valid.“It is difficult to acknowledge that the power company’s terms are legally invalid based on the evidence that

Industry Oct. 6, 2016

The enactment of Korea’s landmark anti-graft law appears to be shifting the country’s social bonding culture for businessmen, especially in the game of golf.Since the Improper Solicitation and Graft Law came into force on Sept. 28, those working for public institutions, private education bodies and the media are banned from giving and receiving free meals, presents or monetary gifts respectively worth 30,000 won ($27), 50,000 won and 100,000 won or higher. Offering or receiving rounds of golf wo

Industry Oct. 5, 2016

The South Korean court is considering putting troubled STX Offshore and Shipbuilding on sale with the company’s two affiliates as a package, sources said Tuesday.STX, the nation’s fourth-largest shipbuilder, has been under court receivership since June, upon its request, due to massive debt caused from mismanagement and an industrywide slump. Sources said that the Seoul Central District Court is reviewing a plan to simultaneously sell off near-bankrupt STX along with two affiliates Goseong Offsh

Industry Oct. 4, 2016

Posco Daewoo signed a memorandum of understanding with Chinese state-run grain company Sichuan Cereals and Oils Group as part of its moves to expand the grain trading business in China, the company said Friday. The two parties agreed to strengthen the ties for grain import and export and boost the joint efforts for facility investment and grain storage. Sichuan Cereals and Oils Group is a state-run company that deals with imports and exports of grains up to 300,000 tons in Sichuan. “The new MOU

Industry Sept. 30, 2016

Financially troubled Daewoo Shipping and Marine Engineering on Friday denied the rumor that the company would reduce its share capital as part of moves to improve its financial status. The ailing shipbuilder made a public announcement that nothing had been determined over its financial plans and that various options were under discussion with creditors to improve the financial structure. “(The company) will again offer an announcement as soon as concrete financial plans are finalized,” said the

Industry Sept. 30, 2016