South Korea

SK Innovation Co Ltd, the owner of South Korea’s largest refiner SK Energy said on Friday that it expects the refining margins to remain stable in the fourth-quarter amid global supply disruptions as well as the onset winter peak demand. The company reported an operating loss of 423 billion won in the period July-September, but a profit of 573 trillion won for that same period. This compares to an analyst's average forecast of 304 billion dollars in profit. The third-quarter revenue increased 16.3%, to 20.5 trillion won, from the same period last year. SK On, a battery supplier to Ford...

Here are some details from the U.S. White House Factsheet and South Korea's Chief Policy Advisor Kim Yong Beom on the recent trade agreement between the two nations. Washington and Seoul agreed that tariffs on U.S. auto imports from Korea and auto parts will be reduced to 15% from 25%. This is to bring them in line with their Japanese counterparts who pay the same 15% tariffs after Tokyo made a deal with Washington. South Korean wood product and pharmaceutical manufacturers will have the lowest tariffs of all countries. Generic drugs and aircraft parts will be exempt from tariffs. Kim...

Mark Carney, Canada's prime minister, will make his first official trip to Asia this Friday. He is hoping to strengthen trade and security links at a moment when North America struggles to reduce its dependence on the U.S. Canadian officials have said that Carney may also meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping during his week-long visit, as part of a possible attempt to restore a relationship previously strained by a trade war. Analysts say Carney will need to make it clear to Asian leaders that Canada is not as closely aligned to the U.S. President Donald Trump, who has threatened...

The oil prices rose more than 5% Thursday, after Washington announced sanctions against major Russian companies for the Ukraine War. Major stock indexes also rose as gains by U.S. energy stocks and European energy shares offset some disappointing earnings reports. The sanctions were announced on Wednesday night and targeted major Russian suppliers Rosneft, Lukoil. The European Union approved the 19th set of sanctions against Moscow, which included a ban on Russian gas imports. Britain imposed sanctions on Rosneft & Lukoil last week. Wall Street stocks rose with indexes picking up momentum following the White House You can also check out...

The Maeil Business Newspaper reported on Thursday that Brian Kemp, governor of Georgia in the U.S., will meet with South Korean leaders of business this week. This includes executives from Hyundai and LG Energy Solution. Kemp's trip comes after U.S. Immigration authorities raided in September the construction site of an under-construction battery plant in Georgia owned jointly by Hyundai Motor, LGES and LGE. After a week-long negotiation between South Korea, the United States and South Korea, hundreds of South Koreans were arrested on suspicion of working without visas. The local public relations agency that handled Kemp's visit refused to comment....

Trade sources reported on Tuesday that the arbitrage window for shipping U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude to Asia has shrunk as tanker rates have risen, and strong export demand has pushed up premiums for this grade to multi-month heights. The U.S. Asia arbitrage opened in late summer, and the demand for Very Large Crude Carriers to make this two-month journey prompted a tightening of vessel supply. Kpler's preliminary data shows that U.S. imports into Asia will increase in September. South Korea and India are the top buyers. The first shipment of U.S. oil for Pakistan's biggest refiner Cnergyico, and the...

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte announced that NATO launched on Friday an operation called Eastern Sentry in response to Russian drones entering Polish airspace this week. Rutte said at a NATO press conference in Brussels that "we must make it clear to the world our determination and our capability to defend our territories." He said this while standing next to NATO's top commander U.S. Air Force general Alexus Grynkewich. Rutte stated that NATO was still assessing possible intentions behind the incursion. This led to Polish and NATO allies shooting down drones, the first such action NATO has taken since Russia's...

Two sources revealed that India will cut the consumption tax on 175 different products, from hybrid cars and shampoos to consumer electronics. Modi has repeatedly called for increased usage of Indian products. This is the biggest reform to the goods and service tax system in almost a decade. Modi announced his first reform plan on Independence Day last month when he promised to make everyday products cheaper in the fifth largest economy of the world. His proposal reduces the goods and services (GST), which includes toothpaste, talcum, and shampoo, from 18% down to 5%. This is expected to increase sales...

Two sources revealed new details about Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s major tax reform. India will cut consumption tax on 175 products, including shampoos, hybrid cars, and consumer electronics. Two sources revealed that India plans to reduce goods and services taxes (GST) from 18% down to 5% on products like talcum, toothpaste, and shampoo. This is expected to boost sales at companies such as Hindustan Unilever, and Godrej Industries. Before the Diwali shopping period, which begins in October, brands such as Samsung, LG Electronics and Sony will dominate sales, consumer electronics, like air conditioners, televisions and other electronic devices, could see...

EnergyX, a lithium-technology startup backed up by General Motors has purchased 35,000 acres from Pantera Lithium in the Smackover Formation. This is the latest deal to gain access to the brine formation of the United States, which is teeming full of supplies for the battery metal. EnergyX, a privately-held company, now owns roughly 47,500 acres of the Smackover formation, a geological formation that stretches from Florida to Texas and is filled with brine rich in lithium. The deal also shows the increasing interest in increasing U.S. metal production despite the low market price. Chevron has purchased Smackover land in recent...

As part of a broader tax reform bill, Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives proposed Monday to kill the electric vehicle credit and repeal fuel efficiency regulations designed to encourage automakers to build more zero-emission cars. The proposal is scheduled for a House Ways and Means Committee Hearing on Tuesday. It would repeal the $7,500 tax credit for new vehicles and the $4,000 credit for used vehicles on December 31, but it would keep the credit for new cars for an extra year for automakers who haven't sold 200,000 electric cars. Genevieve Cullen - the president of the Electric...

Republican lawmakers who are working to extend President Donald Trump’s tax cut legislation face a clean-energy dilemma at home. Major clean energy investments are being made in their districts, but Trump’s skepticism about the industry is at odds. The Ways & Means committee of the House of Representatives, which is responsible for drafting the tax legislation to extend the 2017 tax cuts, has 11 Republicans who represent regions that have seen green energy investments of hundreds of millions or billions of dollars over the past few years. Clean energy investments boomed after former President Joe Biden's Inflation Reduction Act passed...

State media reported that Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim stated that the development of a 600-million-ringgit ($142-million) super magnet production facility in Pahang would strengthen the nation's rarity earth sector. In July, Australia’s Lynas Rare Earths signed a contract with South Korea’s JS Link to build a 3,000-tonne neodymium magnetic manufacturing facility near Lynas’ advanced materials plant located in Malaysia’s Kuantan District. Anwar told state news agency Bernama that Malaysia's Trade Minister would monitor the project, as it involves rare earth processing. Anwar stated that "JS Link already bought the land and is ready to start operations. This is no...

After his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Donald Trump announced on Thursday that the United States would reduce its tariffs on Chinese products from 20% to 10%. Trump said that Xi would work "very hard" to stop the flow of fentanyl and that the tariffs were reduced "because they really are taking strong actions." Trump described his meeting with Xi Jinping as "an incredible meeting" and said that many decisions were taken. Trump announced that China would purchase "tremendous quantities" of U.S. soya beans and other farm products, "starting immediately". A one-year agreement regarding rare earths was also reached...

Sanae Takaichi, the new Japanese premier, gave a putter that Shinzo Abe used to use. Shinzo was his friend and former leader of Japan. The club, displayed in a case with a gold-leaf ball and bag autographed by Japanese major champion Hideki Matsuzaya, was one of many references to Trump’s bond with Abe which underpinned relations between the two countries during Trump's first term. Analysts say that Takaichi will want to rekindle the bond with Abe's protegee Takaichi who was killed by a single gunman in 2022 to help her minority government navigate any thorny matters that may arise, such...

The White House announced that U.S. president Donald Trump and Japan prime minister Sanae Takaichi signed a framework deal on Tuesday to secure the supply of rare earths and critical minerals through mining and processing. Both countries want to strengthen the supply chains of rare earths, which are used in everything from electronics to cars and renewable energy. The statement stated that the U.S., Japan, and other countries will cooperate by using economic policy tools, as well as coordinated investment, to develop a diversified, liquid and fair market for rare earths and critical minerals. China processes 90% of rare earths...

The benchmark KOSPI index in South Korea rose above 4,000 for the first time. This was boosted by optimism surrounding trade talks between China and the U.S., two of the country's biggest trading partners. The benchmark KOSPI closed Monday at 4,042.83, a record high, up 101.24 or 2.57% points. Chinese and U.S. official on Sunday hashed the framework of a deal that U.S. president Donald Trump and Chinese president Xi Jinping will decide on Thursday on the sidelines an Asia-Pacific Summit in South Korea, boosting the risk appetite. Scott Bessent, the U.S. Treasury Secretary, also stated that a deal on...

Japan, Spain, and South Korea released a rare statement together on Wednesday to express deep concern over the tumbling copper refining and treatment charges (TC/RCs). They warned that both smelters as well as miners could not develop sustainably in current conditions. Copper smelters are struggling with shrinking margins and falling processing fees due to a tight supply of concentrates and the expansion of smelting capacities in China. Some Chinese smelters processed copper at no cost for Chilean miner Antofagasta in June. After an online meeting, the industry ministers of three countries expressed their concern that the deterioration of TC/RCs has...

Stanton in Tennessee, population 450, welcomed two massive new neighbors a few decades ago: A Ford electric-truck plant and a joint venture battery factory that was to employ 6,000 people. Ford's 2022 groundbreaking has triggered a construction boom in the former cotton and soybean farmlands near Memphis. Hard-hatted construction workers filled the local restaurants. Developers scrambled for homes and fire stations. Stanton has become quieter. Ford has repeatedly delayed phases of this project over the last 18 months. The EV plant will start initial production in 2027, and begin sending out deliveries the following year. This is several years behind...

Anson Resources, an Australian miner, signed a deal on Wednesday with LG Energy Solution in South Korea for the supply and purchase of battery-grade Lithium Carbonate. This led to a nearly 25% increase in its share price. The agreement stipulates that the South Korean battery maker will purchase up to 4,000 dry tons of lithium-carbonate per year from Anson's Paradox Basin project in southern Utah in the United States. Supply is expected to begin in 2028. The initial term of the agreement is five years, with an option to extend it by another five years. The partnership is expected to...

Hyundai Motor announced on Thursday that it will produce over 80% of its vehicles sold in the U.S. by 2030, in response to U.S. Tariff Policies. The South Korean automaker is ramping up capacity at their Georgia plant. In a press release, the automaker announced that it had lowered its target for 2025 operating profit to 6-7%. This was down from an earlier stated 7-8%. The company cited U.S. Tariffs as a reason. The company still expects its profit margins will improve to 7-8% in 2027, and 8-9% in 2030. Hyundai Motor and Kia Corp, the third largest automaker in...

TechMet, a U.S.-based investment vehicle backed by the government of the United States, is launching an arm that will specialize in trading critical minerals in burgeoning markets for Western supplies in materials where China dominates. This was announced on Thursday by its CEO. Many Asian countries, Europe, and the United States are all scrambling to increase domestic production of rare earths as well as other critical materials and reduce dependence on China. TechMet SCM will be a new trading unit that will concentrate on the speciality metals from its portfolio companies as well as third-party sources. Quentin Lamarche is the...

TechMet, a U.S.-government-backed investment vehicle, is launching an arm to trade critical minerals following further investment by commodity trading house Mercuria. This was announced on Wednesday. TechMet, a private company, owns stakes in 10 different companies including Brazilian Nickel, Cornish Lithium, and Rainbow Rare Earths. According to a press release, TechMet SCM will be a new trading unit that will concentrate on specialty metals from its portfolio companies as well as third parties. Mercuria has increased its investment to make possible the launch the trading arm. It did not specify how much Mercuria had invested. TechMet stated that "it will......

An official announced on Tuesday that the Indonesian sovereign fund Danantara would invest in developing a nickel-processing hub with Chinese battery recycler GEM. The funds, which total $8.3 billion, will be available for investment by 2025. Danantara will be making its first venture into Indonesia's nickel sector, which is crucial to the country. The government wants to capitalize on the vast amount of nickel in the country that's used for electric vehicle batteries. Indonesia is the largest nickel producer in the world. In an interview, Pandu Sjahrir, the investment chief of the fund said that they had just signed a...