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KOREA REPORT - OCTOBER, 2022.
TOPICS.
Halloween
festivities in Seoul's Itaewon neighborhood became a deadly disaster on 29th
night, killing and injuring hundreds. SKorea officially entered a
weeklong national mourning period until midnight of Nov 5th for victims of
human stampede, which was recorded as one of the worst peacetime disasters in
the country. At least 156 people were killed and many injured, particularly at
a narrow and sloped street in Itaewon, as over 100,000 partygoers flocked to
the capital¡¯s most popular party district for the first Halloween festivities
since the lifting of social distancing rules. Many of the victims were young
partygoers in their 20s, including 26 foreigners from 14 countries. Read more¡¦
SKorea,
Japan and some Western member countries of the UN issued a joint statement on
5th condemning NK for its ballistic missile provocation. The group
also called on all UN members, especially the UNSC members, to urge NK to
abandon its "unlawful weapons programs" in a complete, verifiable and
irreversible manner, and engage in diplomacy toward denuclearization.
SKorea's
industrial output declined 0.6% on-month in Sept,
following a 0.1% on-month decrease in Aug, according to Statistics Korea on
31st, falling for third month in a row, with retail sales and facility
investment also losing ground, hinting the country's economic recovery may be
losing steam. Output in mining, manufacturing, gas and electricity industries
fell 1.8%. Retail sales decreased 1.8% on-month.
SKorea
posted a trade deficit of $6.7 bil in Oct.
Exports posted $52.4 bil, falling 5.7% on-year, suffering negative growth in
exports for first time in two years amid sharply contracted demand for
semiconductors and China¡¯s economic slowdown. Imports increased 9.9% on-year to
$59.1 bil. SKorea suffered trade deficit for seventh consecutive month, which
marked the first time since it posted a protracted deficit between Jan 1995 and
May 1997. Exports of semiconductors declined 17.4% on-year. Read more¡¦
Of the
world's top 100 chipmakers in the world by average market cap from Jan to Sept
period, only three local players,
Samsung Electronics (SEC), SK hynix and SK Square, were listed, according
to Federation of Korean Industries. Korea was ranked No 6 in terms of the
number of companies in top 100 in market cap list, following China's 42, the
US' 28, Taiwan's 10, seven from Japan and four from the Netherlands. SEC moved
down to No 3 by market cap as of Oct, coming in behind Taiwan-based TSMC and
US-based Nvidia. SEC was ranked No 1 in 2018. SK hynix also saw its position
drop, falling four notches to No 14 in Oct.
PERFORMANCE OF THIRD QUARTER
SKorea's
foreign reserves stood at $414.01 bil as of end Oct, down
$2.76 bil on-month, as authorities unloaded dollars to support weakening local
currency, Bank of Korea said. Foreign securities was valued at $362.35 bil,
down $17.06 bil on-month, accounting 87.5% of the total. The value of deposits
also decreased $14.1 bil on-month to $28.29 bil, which made up 6.8% of the
total. SKorea had been ranked world's ninth-largest holder of foreign reserves
as of end Sept.
Bank
of Korea took a ¡®big step¡¯ on 12th by raising benchmark rate from 2.5% to 3.0% in line to bring inflation under control. It is first time in 10
years that the rate has risen to 3% range. BOK hiked its policy rate seven
times, a combined 2% points, since Aug last year, including unprecedented 0.5%
increase in July and 0.25% rise in Aug.
SKorea's
consumer prices rose 5.7% on-year in Oct,
staying above 5% level for six consecutive months amid higher utility bills and
lingering global economic uncertainties. The price of utility services gained
23.1% on-year in Oct amid high energy costs around the globe, marking the
highest level since Jan 2010. Read more¡¦
Global
shipyards won 984 newbuilds of 30.34 mil cgt from Jan to Sept this year, showing 32% on-year downturn (in terms of cgt). According to
Clarksons Research, Korea and China have still been the two top, with 44%
shares each. By country, Korea won 239
vessels of 13.22 mil cgt, while China secured 524 units of 13.27 mil cgt.
Both countries saw downturns in new order sales compared to a year ago. Read
more¡¦
KSOE announced
on 11th that the company signed a formal contract with its compatriot fuel cell
makers Doosan Fuel Cell, Hyaxiom, global oil giant Royal Dutch Shell and
world's leading classification society DNV to form a consortium for testing
ship fuel cell. Under the deal, HHI Group will install
600-killowatt solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) in a 174K cbm LNG carrier, which is
supposed to be operated from 2025 by Shell in order to generate electricity.
The ultimate goal of this project is to develop and supply high-efficient
eco-friendly vessel that is capable of using fuel cell as a main power source
on the long term. Read more¡¦
DSME
announced on 6th that it has recently verified the performance of 'Onboard CO2
Capture System' installed in an actual LNG carrier. DSME
explained that this accomplishment allows the company to step up its presence
in building eco-friendly vessels through carbon neutrality. DSME has developed
OCCS since 2020 together with its compatriot shipbuilding equipment provider Hi
Air Korea. Read more¡¦
Although
Korean shipbuilders have secured a lot of work against the backdrop of the
maritime industry boom, shipbuilding industry is having a hard time seeking
manpower. Even conglomerates such as HHI Group's three shipbuilders, SHI and DSME
have been going through shortage of workforce. According
to reports from major shipbuilders at the end of June, the number of their
employees decreased by 1.1% (401) from 38,071 to 37,670 seen at the end of
2021. By company, HHI fell 52 from 12,811 to 12,759. SHI fell 296 to 8,983 from
9,279. DSME fell 233 from 8,802 to 8,569. HSHI rose 58 from 3,506 to 3,564. HMD
increased by 34 from 3,024 to 3,058. Read more¡¦
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