Daily Brief South Korea: Nongshim Co Ltd, Ecopro BM , Korea Zinc and more

In today’s briefing:

Nongshim’s Thriving Collaboration with K-Pop Demon Hunters

K-Pop Demon Hunters (KDH) started streaming on Netflix on 20 June 2025. KDH has become the most watched film on Netflix history, achieving 291.5 million views as of 11 September.
Nongshim has a collaboration with Netflix, releasing ramyun and snacks featuring characters from K-Pop Demon Hunters. The sale of these products (especially overseas) are likely to result in higher sales.
Nongshim has hit a big home run in this collaboration with Netflix and the K-Pop Demon Hunters film. Additional series related to KDH are highly likely.

Ecopro’s PRS: KRW 700bn, 2-year, BM shares underlying, 5.85% coupon; SK’s July PRS was bigger (KRW 1.4tn, 3-year, 4.3%), same payoff mechanics.
Watch for hedge-flow side trades: Ecopro’s KRW 700bn PRS on BM shares should mirror SKI’s setup, likely triggering a noticeable pop when the primary buyer hedges.
PRS likely hits Sept 24–25; Mirae Asset leads. Be ready to catch flow-driven whipsaws from local institutions around execution.

Recent News: CZSPT’s Sep 9 guidance points to imported zinc concentrate treatment charges of US$120-140/dmt for Q4, and Bloomberg confirms Chinese smelters are tightening terms.
Impact: This rebound in TC/RC levels should lift Korea Zinc’s EBITDA by approximately US$100-135 million, representing a ~5-7% earnings upside over current troughs.
Valuation: On normalized earnings, Korea Zinc could re-rate to 8–9× EV/EBITDA. At $120–150/dmt TCs, this points to ~20–50% upside, with further headroom if multiples expand alongside earnings recovery.

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