[THE INVESTOR] Eugene Investment & Securities on Oct. 18 lowered the target stock price of Kakao from the previous 130,000 won (US$115) to 100,000 won, as the internet giant is showing no immediate signs of earnings turnaround. The securities firm predicted the company’s third-quarter operating profit at 21.4 billion won, a 19.4 percent decline from the previous quarter. Revenue was estimated to see a slight increase of 0.3 percent to 377.7 billion won. “In order to elevate the stock price, earn

Oct. 18, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] HP Inc. confirmed it has no plans to cut jobs in Korea after its planned acquisition of Samsung Electronics' printer-copier business division next year.Since the US$1.05 billion high-profile deal was announced in September, about 2,000 researchers and engineers in Korea have expressed concerns about their job security under new ownership. In response to an inquiry by The Investor, HP said that during its first meeting with Samsung employees recently, the company affirmed its commi

Oct. 17, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] Apple’s latest iPhone 7 and 7 Plus phones have sold out in Korea after preorders started on Oct. 14, ahead of their official launch on Oct. 21 here. Amid the unprecedented recall of Samsung Electronics’ Galaxy Note 7 globally, the new iPhones have been speculated to benefit most from the bigger-screen rival’s withdrawal from the market, including on Samsung’s home turf. Apple iPhone 7 and 7 Plus “Jet Black” editionAccording to the nation’s top three telecom carriers, their first b

Oct. 14, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Electronics on Oct. 14 estimated the opportunity cost of its ongoing Galaxy Note 7 recall at about mid 3 trillion won (US$2.6 billion) in the coming months. The announcement comes after the Korean tech giant earlier this week slashed its third-quarter earnings estimates to reflect the direct recall cost of about 4 trillion won. Samsung is recalling about 2.6 million units of the fire-prone Note phones, including 1.9 million in the US, 500,000 in Korea and 190,000 in China,

Oct. 14, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Electronics on Oct. 13 issued a second recall of its latest fire-prone Galaxy Note 7 smartphone in the US following the first one announced a month ago. The Korean tech giant said it was voluntarily recalling the bigger-screen flagship phones, including all original and replacement devices, sold or exchange in the US before and after the first recall on Sept. 15.About 1.9 million phones, including those recalled during the first recall, are being recalled in the US alone.

Oct. 13, 2016

[THE INVESTOR]  Full-screen displays that are widely rumored being adopted by Samsung Electronics and Apple will make up 17 percent of organic light-emitting diode panels for smartphones in 2017, a local research firm said on Oct. 13. UBI Research added that the mobile adoption of more futuristic displays, including rollable and foldable screens, could surge to almost 60 percent by 2020.According to industry sources, Samsung and Apple, the world’s top two smartphone makers, are currently working

Oct. 13, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Electronics on Oct. 12 lowered its third-quarter earnings estimates following the sales and production suspension of its latest Galaxy Note 7 smartphone. Its July-September operating profit was lowered from 7.8 trillion won (US$6.90 billion) to 5.2 trillion won, while revenue was also down from 49 trillion won to 47 trillion won. The operating profit is a 29.63 percent plunge from a year ago. The company said the estimated figures have been adjusted to reflect losses follo

Oct. 12, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Securities said on Oct. 12 that Samsung Electronics ’ recall costs for the Galaxy Note 7 smartphone could surge to 2 trillion won (US$1.80 billion), almost doubling from the earlier estimates. The securities firm had estimated that the recall of 2.5 million Note phones could cost 1 trillion won in the fourth quarter. But it raised the figure, following the company’s ultimate sales and production suspension of the fire-prone flagship smartphone on Oct. 11. Samsung Securitie

Oct. 12, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Electronics on Oct. 11 announced it has decided to stop the production of its Galaxy Note 7 smartphone following the fire-prone phone’s sales suspension due to safety concerns. 　“We had adjusted the phone’s supplies for a thorough inspection but has finally decided to stop the production for consumer safety,” the company said in a regulatory filing on the day. 　The announcement comes after the Korean tech giant announced the suspension of the Note phone’s sales and replace

Oct. 11, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] Ssangyong Motor announced on Oct. 11 that it will establish a joint venture with China’s Shaanxi Automobile Group in the country. The Chinese automotive company signed a letter of intent on establishing a JV, and the two companies will conduct a feasibility study, the automaker owned by India’s Mahindra and Mahindra said. If the two companies go ahead with the plans, it will be Ssangyong Motor’s first production base outside South Korea. Ssangyong Motor CEO Choi Johng-sik (left) a

Oct. 11, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Electronics is recalling almost 200,000 Galaxy Note 7 smartphones in China following the company’s decision to halt sales and replacement of the bigger-screen phone due to safety concerns. The Korean tech giant excluded China when it announced the first recall of 2.5 million Note phones in September, saying the phones sold in China used different batteries from those that caught fire while charging.But the situation has been reversed in recent weeks as there have been seve

Oct. 11, 2016