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Outlet profile

KED Global

South Korean conservative pro-business

Owned byKED Global News Network, a subsidiary of The Korea Economic Daily (한국경제신문), a Seoul-based business newspaper majority-owned by South Korea's major conglomerates — Hyundai Motor Group (largest single shareholder), Samsung Group, LG Group, and SK Group among roughly 52 corporate shareholders controlling about 91.5% of shares
FundingSubscriptions (including a premium membership tier launched in 2025 at $10/month or $100/year), advertising, and support from its corporate parent The Korea Economic Daily
On the administrationmostly neutral

Background

The Korea Economic Daily (KED) was founded on October 12, 1964, originally under the name Daily Economic Newspaper, and took its current name in 1980. It grew into South Korea's largest business newspaper by revenue, with a stated founding philosophy of promoting democracy and a free-market economy. The paper has long been characterized as economically conservative, with a strong pro-business, anti-regulation, and neoliberal orientation in its editorial positions, though it is generally assessed as less overtly partisan in strictly political coverage than in economic commentary. Ownership is heavily concentrated among South Korea's biggest industrial conglomerates — Samsung, Hyundai Motor, LG, SK, and others — giving the paper a structural alignment with large-business interests. KED Global, the English-language international edition, was launched in 2020 under the stated mission of 'bringing Korean corporate and investment news to the world,' staffed in part by editors recruited from outlets like The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, and Reuters. By 2025 it reported attracting roughly 100,000 daily overseas readers and launched a paid premium membership to diversify beyond advertising revenue. KED Global's coverage of the Trump administration's second term has focused primarily on concrete policy consequences for South Korea, including tariff threats, the Korea-U.S. trade deal signed in late 2025, and South Korea's $350 billion investment pledge to the United States — consistent with its role as a business intelligence outlet serving investors and executives rather than a general-interest political news source.

Sources

  1. About Us – KED Global
  2. The Korea Economic Daily – Wikipedia
  3. The Korea Economic Daily: Contact Information, Journalists, and Overview – Muck Rack
  4. KED Global launches premium membership for international readers – Open Korea
  5. South Korea may fast-track US investment law as early as late February – KED Global
  6. The Korea Economic Daily – GlobalEDGE, Michigan State University

Profile compiled 2026-07-16; refreshed when ownership, funding, or the administration changes.

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