South Korea's Economy Grows 1% in Third Quarter, Triple the Bank of Korea's Forecast
Chip exports and equipment spending drove the expansion, putting full-year growth on course to beat the central bank's 3.3% call.
Korea
Korea
- Samsung
Samsung's HBM4 Sales Triple and 2027 Supply Sells Out, but Finance Loss Dents Net Profit
Chips earned 99% of Samsung's operating profit, but a finance loss dragged net profit below forecasts and an open-ended payout plan pushed the shares lower.
- South Korea
South Korea's October Exports Jump 93.7% to $115.3 Billion as Chip Sales Rise 259%
Semiconductors made up nearly half of all shipments, and the trade ministry says annual exports will pass $1 trillion in November.
- Hyundai Motor
Hyundai Motor Q3 Profit Rises 5.5%, but It Cuts 2026 Margin and Sales Targets
A weaker won lifted operating profit past forecasts, while strikes and lost output pushed Hyundai to trim its full-year volume, margin and investment plans.
- Korea Trade
Korea's $350 Billion U.S. Deal Faces a $10 Billion Nuclear Bill and a 15% Tariff Test
Seoul has wired the first $2.4 billion to a Texas power plant. Washington wants $10 billion more for nuclear reactors by year-end, and an overcapacity probe is still pending.
- South Korea
South Korea's Early-November Exports Jump 112% as Chips Soar 331%, $1 Trillion Year Nears
Semiconductors made up half of all shipments in the first 10 days of November, leaving Korea about $36 billion short of its first $1 trillion export year.
- Kia
Kia Q3 Operating Profit Jumps 24.3% on Tariff Relief, but Its 8.3% Margin Goal Slips Away
Record third-quarter revenue and a lower U.S. tariff lifted earnings, while incentives, raw materials and the Middle East war kept Kia short of its 8.3% margin target.
- Samsung
Samsung's Second Texas Fab Fully Booked by AMD, Nvidia for HBM Base Dies, Report Says
The 2-nanometer plant in Taylor would make the logic layer under high-bandwidth memory, with tools arriving in 2029, a Korean newspaper reported, as Samsung and SK Hynix lock in multiyear orders.
- Korea
Kospi Erases 2.2% Opening Gain as Foreign Selling Resumes After a 3.6% Slide
Worries over how U.S. tech giants will fund AI spending hit Samsung and SK hynix on Tuesday. A Wall Street chip rally lifted Seoul at Wednesday's open, but foreign funds sold again by mid-morning.
- Samsung SDI
Samsung SDI Swings to 407.8 Billion Won Q3 Profit as U.S. Energy Storage Orders Top 60 GWh
Batteries for power grids and AI data centers lifted the Korean battery maker to its best quarter in three years, while U.S. electric vehicle demand stays weak.
- Korea
Kospi Jumps 4.4% to 5,239 as Foreign Buyers Return After Seven Sessions of Selling
A U.S. chip rally and lower oil prices triggered a buy-side sidecar in Seoul on Tuesday, a day after the index hit its lowest close since early February. Gains held into Wednesday morning.
- Korean batteries
BMW Picks Samsung SDI and LG Energy Solution for Gen6 Battery Cells in Europe and U.S.
The two Korean cell makers join China's CATL and EVE Energy as suppliers for BMW's sixth-generation electric vehicle batteries, with deliveries due in the late 2020s.
- Korea
Nvidia Signs SK Telecom, Kakao AI Deals in Seoul After $1 Billion Naver Stake
The U.S. chipmaker used its AI Day in Seoul to sign agreements with SK Telecom, Rebellions and Kakao Mobility, while Korean officials said promised GPU shipments remain on schedule.
- Autos and trade
Korea Keeps Tesla FSD Off 183,407 China-Built Cars as Exemption Request Stalls
U.S.-built Teslas can run Full Self-Driving under the Korea-U.S. free trade agreement, but the Shanghai-made Model 3 and Model Y that drive Tesla's record Korean sales cannot, and the land ministry says the company's paperwork falls short.
- Korea
Coupang Swings to $450 Million Q3 Operating Loss as Incheon Fire Costs $248 Million
Revenue rose 7% to $10 billion, but fire damage and thinner margins in its core Korean retail business pushed the e-commerce group deep into the red.
- Korea
NC Swings to 119.6 Billion Won Q3 Profit as Aion 2 Doubles Sales, Sets 2027 Target
The Korean game maker raised its 2026 sales guidance to 2.8 trillion won and forecast up to 3.4 trillion won next year, though net income fell 94% on currency effects.
- Korea
Krafton Q3 Operating Profit Falls 35.5% to 225 Billion Won as PUBG Maker Posts Net Loss
The PUBG developer's sales rose 11.6% on its ADK advertising acquisition, but it booked a second straight quarterly net loss while keeping a record 917.2 billion won shareholder return plan.
- Korea
KT Q3 Operating Profit Falls 6.1% to 505.3 Billion Won, Sets 1 Trillion Won Buyback Goal
South Korea's No. 2 carrier missed analyst estimates as wireless revenue shrank after a subscriber reward program, but it set a 2028 target for a 1 trillion won share buyback and a 9% to 10% return on equity.
- Korea
Korea's Foreign Reserves Rise $2.6 Billion to $443.16 Billion as Won Holds Near 1,340
A jump in bank dollar deposits offset a drop in Treasury holdings, while bond yields sit near multi-month lows ahead of the Bank of Korea's Nov. 26 rate decision.
- Shipbuilding and DefenseAnalysis
Korean Shipyards' Q3 Profits Jump Up to 68% as Hanwha Aerospace Slips to a Net Loss
Pricier LNG carriers lifted HD Korea Shipbuilding and Hanwha Ocean, while delayed howitzer shipments to Poland helped push Hanwha Aerospace into the red.
- Korea
Shinsegae Q3 Operating Profit Jumps 65% to Record as Foreign Shoppers Double Spending
The Korean retailer will double its quarterly dividend and cancel treasury shares after its duty-free arm returned to profit and flagship stores drew record sales to visitors.
- Korea
Emart Q3 Net Profit Falls 99.8% to 600 Million Won as Starbucks Korea Posts Loss
Korea's largest discount retailer said its hypermarkets earned more, but losses at the coffee chain and its e-commerce affiliate wiped out group profit, and October sales slipped.
- Korea
Korea's Tourist Boom Moves Beyond Seoul as Busan Foreign Spending Tops 1 Trillion Won
Regional airport arrivals rose about 37% in nine months, and Shinsegae, Lotte, Olive Young and Musinsa are shifting store investment to Busan and other cities outside the capital.
- Korea
KakaoBank Q3 Net Profit Jumps 27% to 141.7 Billion Won as Deposits Top 70 Trillion
South Korea's largest internet-only lender added 4.7 trillion won of deposits in three months, and fee and platform income rose 10.9% in the first nine months.
- Korea
South Korea's Industrial Output Jumps 3% in September, the Fastest Gain in 15 Years
Chips and cars drove factory production up 9% in a month, and output, retail sales and facility investment all rose together for the first time since June.
- Korea
Hanjin's Cho Buys 37 Billion Won of Hanjin KAL Shares as Hoban Says It May Now Lead
Korean Air's parent cannot yet say who its largest shareholder is, six weeks before the airline absorbs Asiana.
- Korea
South Korea Adds 139,000 Jobs in October as Youth Employment Falls for 48th Month
Headline hiring held above 100,000 for a fourth month and unemployment fell to 2%, but restaurants, construction and young workers lost ground.
- Korea
Korea Household Loans Jump 6.4 Trillion Won in October as Banks and Nonbanks Lend Again
Financial regulators said lending across all lenders swung back to growth after September's decline, led by mortgages and a rebound in credit loans.
- Korea
Korea Fines 15 Banks and Brokers Record 1.63 Trillion Won for Rigging Government Bond Auctions
The antitrust regulator said primary dealers coordinated bid yields and volumes in 145 Treasury bond auctions from 2020 to 2023, raising the state's borrowing costs.
- Korea
Kospi Climbs 2.6% to 5,375 as Foreigners Buy 655 Billion Won and the Won Firms to 1,333
Seoul stocks added to Tuesday's 4.4% jump despite hot U.S. inflation data, with chipmakers and defense names leading while Hanjin KAL slumped nearly 15%.
