Industry

  • Korean manufacturers turn sharply pessimistic in steepest BSI drop since Covid
    Korean manufacturers turn sharply pessimistic in steepest BSI drop since Covid SEOUL, March 26 (AJP) -South Korean manufacturers turned abruptly pessimistic, with sentiment posting its sharpest drop since the Covid-19 shock in early 2020 as the Middle East crisis spilled into the real economy a month after U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran. The country's largest business association, Federation of Korean Industries (FKI), said Thursday its Business Survey Index (BSI) outlook for April stood at 85.1, based on a survey of the country’s 600 largest compan March 26, 2026
  • S.Korea says U.S. cleared sanctions risk on Russian naphtha imports amid Middle East supply crunch
    S.Korea says U.S. cleared sanctions risk on Russian naphtha imports amid Middle East supply crunch SEOUL, March 25 (AJP) - South Korea said it had secured confirmation from the U.S. Treasury Department that domestic companies face no secondary sanctions risk when purchasing Russian crude oil and petroleum products using non-dollar currencies, clearing a major hurdle to alternative supplies as the Strait of Hormuz blockade tightens its grip on energy flows. Yang Ki-wook, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources director-general of industrial resource security, said at a gover March 25, 2026
  • Govt mulls export restrictions on naphtha amid supply disruptions
    Gov't mulls export restrictions on naphtha amid supply disruptions SEOUL, March 24 (AJP) - The government is considering imposing restrictions on exports of naphtha amid supply shortages as the ongoing conflict in the Middle East drags on. At a press briefing at the government complex in the administrative city of Sejong on Tuesday, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said, "We are discussing with relevant ministries steps to take, which would include restrictions on exports and a ban on hoarding." Naphtha, a primary raw materia March 24, 2026
  • Samsung SDI signs mid-to-long-term LFP cathode supply deal with L&F
    Samsung SDI signs mid-to-long-term LFP cathode supply deal with L&F SEOUL, March 24 (AJP) - Samsung SDI said it has signed a mid-to-long-term supply agreement with domestic battery materials maker L&F to secure lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cathode materials outside of China, as it accelerates its push into the North American energy storage system (ESS) market. Under the agreement announced Tuesday, Samsung SDI will procure about 1.6 trillion won ($1.06 billlion) worth of LFP cathode materials from L&F over three years beginning next year for March 24, 2026
  • Celltrion to invest 1.2 trillion won in new Songdo plant, expanding drug substance capacity to 571,000 liters
    Celltrion to invest 1.2 trillion won in new Songdo plant, expanding drug substance capacity to 571,000 liters SEOUL, March 24 (AJP) - Celltrion announced plans to invest about 1.23 trillion won ($821 million) to build two new drug substance manufacturing plants at its Songdo campus in Incheon, as it moves to meet rising global demand for its biosimilar and novel drug products. The new Plants 4 and 5 will add 180,000 liters of drug substance (DS) production capacity to Celltrion's existing network, the company said Tuesday. Combined with a separately announced expansion at its Branchb March 24, 2026
  • Korean cracking facilities shuttering amid naphtha crunch, Seoul reacting to crisis
    Korean cracking facilities shuttering amid naphtha crunch, Seoul reacting to crisis SEOUL, March 23 (AJP) - South Korea's major naphtha cracking facilities at the Yeosu Industrial Complex are shuttering as a worsening naphtha supply crunch triggered by the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz forces the industry into emergency measures. LG Chem, the country's largest petrochemical firm, said Monday it would suspend operations at its No. 2 naphtha cracking center (NCC) plant in Yeosu, which has an annual ethylene production capacity of 800,000 tons. The company March 23, 2026
  • LG Energy Solution pivots to energy storage as EV battery demand slows
    LG Energy Solution pivots to energy storage as EV battery demand slows SEOUL, March 20 (AJP) - LG Energy Solution announced it is accelerating a strategic shift toward energy storage systems as slowing electric vehicle demand reshapes the global battery industry, with the South Korean company moving to rebalance a business long anchored to the automotive sector. Chief Executive Kim Dong-myung told shareholders Friday at the company's annual general meeting in Seoul that the industry has entered a period of "value shift," in which growth i March 20, 2026
  • GULF CRISIS: Hormuz as much insurance chokepoint as energy lifeline
    GULF CRISIS: Hormuz as much insurance chokepoint as energy lifeline SEOUL, March 19 (AJP) - The Strait of Hormuz is not just a chokepoint for global energy flows, but for insurance that is turning pricier every day from the protracted suspension and growing risk. Ships do not pass through Hormuz simply because sea lanes are physically open. They move only when insurers are willing to price and underwrite the risk. That makes U.S. President Donald Trump’s proposal to provide war-risk insurance more than a shipping support measure. It is an March 19, 2026
  • LG Energy Solution to start producing ESS batteries at Tennessee plant
    LG Energy Solution to start producing ESS batteries at Tennessee plant SEOUL, March 18 (AJP) - LG Energy Solution (LGES) will begin producing lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery cells for energy storage systems at its plant in Spring Hill, Tennessee, the battery maker said on Wednesday. Production will be carried out through LGES' joint venture with General Motors, Ultium Cells, with an investment of about US$70 million to convert part of its existing electric-vehicle battery line for ESS production. Mass production is scheduled to start in the March 18, 2026
  • South Korea hit hard by rising costs as Middle East conflict drags on, think tank warns
    South Korea hit hard by rising costs as Middle East conflict drags on, think tank warns SEOUL, March 16 (AJP) - A prolonged conflict between the U.S. and Iran could drive up energy and logistics costs for South Korea, with a 10-percent rise in global oil prices projected to push domestic manufacturing production costs up by an average of 0.71 percent, a report released by a state-run think tank on Monday suggests. The Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade (KIET) warned that ongoing tensions around the Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint for roughly o March 16, 2026