Vacation rental management startup snaps up $7m funding

H2O Hospitality, a Korean startup dedicated to vacation rental management in Japan, said Tuesday it has raised $7 million funding from five investors to meet its fast-growing working capital needs on the back of strong growth. Joining the latest round were Samsung Venture Investment, Stonebridge Ventures, IMM Investment, Shinhan Capital and Wonik Investment Partners. The round brought H2O’s total funding to $18 million. The valuation of the firm has jumped threefold since the previous

MarketFeb. 4, 2020

SK batteries to become more ethical

SK Innovation, an energy solution affiliate of SK Group, said Tuesday it has joined the Responsible Minerals Initiative to facilitate ethical sourcing of minerals for its battery production. RMI is a global association established in 2008 that monitors the ethical sourcing of minerals mined in conflict regions including cobalt, a key ingredient for lithium-ion batteries, which are parts for mobile devices and electric vehicles. Other members include Samsung Electronics, Apple and Tesla. T

IndustryFeb. 4, 2020

Films on epidemic disease go viral on OTT platforms in Korea

More people are using OTT services amid mounting fears over the month-old coronavirus epidemic, according to data collected by local over-the-top streaming service operators. Disaster films are especially popular, the data showed. According to data collected by Watcha, the number of viewers using its OTT service Watcha Play peaked Jan. 27-31. The total number of minutes that viewers spent on the platform reached its highest point Jan. 27 and remained at similar levels throughout that time fram

IndustryFeb. 4, 2020

Hyundai's 'Smaht Pahk' places 2nd in ranking of Super Bowl ads

WASHINGTON -- Hyundai's new Sonata commercial featuring Chris Evans and other stars came in a close second in USA Today's ranking of Super Bowl ads, the outlet said Monday. The 60-second commercial played during the first quarter of Sunday's Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League. It garnered 6.98 points out of a total 10 on USA Today's Ad Meter, which ranks Super Bowl commercials by consumer rating. The winner was Jeep, which scored an average of 7.01 points. In th

IndustryFeb. 4, 2020

S. Korea reports 16th case of novel coronavirus, 129 quarantined for checks

South Korea on Tuesday confirmed its 16th case of novel coronavirus infection, with the latest patient having recently visited Thailand, as the country takes more stringent quarantine measures to stem the spread of the virus. The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) said the patient, a 42-year-old South Korean woman, returned from a trip to Thailand on Jan. 19 and started feeling chills on Jan. 25. Her condition did not improve despite receiving treatment for several days,

Social AffairsFeb. 4, 2020

[News Focus] Korea sees population fall for 2 consecutive months

SEJONG -- South Korea may have already entered the era of population decline, as the official government figure fell for the second consecutive month. According to data from the Ministry of Interior and Safety, Korea’s population posted 51.847 million in January 2020, down 2,352 from 51.849 million in December 2019. In particular, the female population dropped for the first time in history -- by 399 people -- since the government started compiling data. The figure for men and boys dropp

Social AffairsFeb. 4, 2020

Authorities to provide liquidity to coronavirus-hit firms

South Korea's financial authorities said Tuesday that they are working on a plan to provide emergency liquidity to smaller firms and self-employed people hit hard by a new coronavirus. The plan includes extension the maturity of debts and provision of fresh loans to eligible smaller firms and self-employed people, officials said. Businesses that could be eligible for the financial assistance are likely to include restaurants, lodging facilities and others in the tourism sector. The authoriti

EconomyFeb. 4, 2020

BTS overtakes Justin Bieber's longest dominance record on Billboard's Social 50 chart

K-pop superstars BTS defeated Justin Bieber this week to become the longest-running artists atop Billboard's Social 50 chart, the American pop magazine said Tuesday. "A long-standing record on Billboard's Social 50 chart has been broken, as BTS spends its 164th week atop the list dated Feb. 8," besting Justin Bieber's 163, Billboard said on its website Tuesday (Korean Time). According to Billboard, the Social 50 is powered by data tracked by music analytics company Next Big Sound an

K-popFeb. 4, 2020

Duty-free sales hit record high in 2019

Sales at South Korean duty-free stores hit a new annual high of over 24 trillion won last year, industry data showed Tuesday, mainly on the back of more foreign customers, mainly Chinese visitors. The combined sales of local duty-free shops reached 24.86 trillion won ($20.87 billion) in 2019, up 31.1 percent from a previous record of 18.96 trillion won a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Duty Free Shops Association. Sales at the local duty-free shops witnessed a slight fall i

IndustryFeb. 4, 2020

[Monitor] Samsung chairman receives W1.4tr in dividend payouts over decade

According to local corporate tracker Korea CXO Institute, Samsung Electronics’ ailing Chairman Lee Kun-hee will soon receive a dividend of 353.8 billion won ($296 million) for 2019. The firm analyzed the dividend status of Lee Kun-hee, his wife Hong Ra-hee and his son Lee Jae-yong for 10 years from 2010. Hong, formerly director of Samsung Museum of Art Leeum, is estimated to receive dividends of 76.7 billion won, and Lee Jae-yong receives about 59.5 billion won. Over the last decad

IndustryFeb. 4, 2020

S. Korean figure skaters to test mettle against int'l stars on home ice

Budding South Korean figure skaters will go up against some of the sport's biggest stars at an international competition on home ice this week. The Four Continents Figure Skating Championships, organized by the International Skating Union (ISU), will run from Thursday to Sunday at Mokdong Ice Rink in Seoul. Skaters from Asia, the Americas, Oceania and Africa -- four of the continents represented by the Olympic Rings -- will compete in four disciplines: men's singles, ladies' singles, pairs and

More SportsFeb. 4, 2020

Majority of public against release of jailed ex-President Park: survey

A majority of the public opposes the release of former President Park Geun-hye, who has been detained for nearly three years now after a corruption scandal took down her presidency in 2017, a poll finds. According to local pollster Realmeter on Monday, which conducted the survey of 503 adults nationwide, some 56 percent of respondents voiced opposition to Park’s early release. Slightly less than 40 percent supported the idea, while 4.6 percent chose neither answer. People in the count

PoliticsFeb. 4, 2020

China virus death toll rises to 425: govt.

BEIJING (AFP) -- The number of confirmed deaths from China's coronavirus outbreak spiked to 425, after authorities in Hubei province reported 64 new fatalities Tuesday. In its daily update, figures from the health commission in Hubei, which has been hit hardest by the virus, also showed a sharp increase in confirmed infections with 2,345 new cases. That puts the national total at 19,550, based on numbers previously issued by the central government. The epidemic, which has spiralled into a gl

World NewsFeb. 4, 2020

Korea's consumer price growth hits 14-month high in January

SEJONG --South Korea's consumer prices rose 1.5 percent on-year in January, marking their fastest gain in 14 months, the statistics agency said Tuesday. The country's inflation also rose 0.6 percent on-month in January on the back of increased prices of agricultural and industrial products, according to Statistics Korea. Core inflation, which excludes agricultural and petroleum products, increased 0.9 percent from a year earlier. Utility prices were unchanged on-year in January, while prices

EconomyFeb. 4, 2020

Samsung to temporarily close flagship store in China amid coronavirus fears

Samsung Electronics will temporarily shut down its flagship store in China amid growing fears of the spread of the novel coronavirus, company officials here said Monday. Samsung will close its flagship store in downtown Shanghai until Sunday, they said. The 800-square-meter store, the largest Samsung store in China, opened last October and sells various products, from smartphones to tablets. "We decided to temporarily close the store for safety," a company official said. "

TechnologyFeb. 3, 2020

SNU's dorm to separate Chinese students deemed at risk of coronavirus

South Korean universities are taking various measures to halt the spread of the new coronavirus, including the separation of Chinese students deemed at risk of the viral disease, officials said Monday. A recent decision by Seoul National University (SNU) to assemble all Chinese students who have recently visited China in one dormitory building appears to be the most radical of them all. Under the decision announced by SNU's Global Residence, all Chinese students who have visited China's Hub

Social AffairsFeb. 3, 2020

Samsung Heavy Q4 net losses widen on one-off costs

Samsung Heavy Industries, a major shipyard in South Korea, said Monday that its net losses widened in the fourth quarter from a year earlier due to one-off costs.  Net losses for the October-December period deepened to 124.2 billion won (US$104 million) from 105.7 billion won a year earlier, the company said.  The company said it set aside 67 billion won as loan-loss provision for the delay in payment from a client.  Samsung Heavy posted an operating loss of 215 billion w

IndustryFeb. 3, 2020

Global memory chip production unaffected by coronavirus: report

Global memory chip production appears to be unaffected by the outbreak of the novel coronavirus in China, a market researcher said Monday, as no chip manufacturing facilities in the virus-hit country have so far closed or suspended operations.  TrendForce said overall production of memory chips, such as DRAM and NAND flash, is likely to remain unaffected by the deadly virus in the short term as global chipmakers' plants, including those run by South Korea's Samsung Electronics and SK h

TechnologyFeb. 3, 2020

BiBi, Seo Samuel and Balming Tiger to Perform at TGE in May

Korean performers Balming Tiger, BiBi and Seo Samuel were among 100 additional groups announced for The Great Escape festival’s 2020 lineup, as posted on its official website on Jan. 28. This is the second round of groups, following the initial 50 participating groups who were announced earlier in September. The Great Escape will be held in Brighton, England, from May 13-16, where over 400 emerging artists from over 25 countries are expected to participate this year. It is known as the

PerformanceFeb. 3, 2020

[Graphic News] South Korea’s percentage of social media users dips in 2019

　A slightly lower proportion of South Koreans used social media in 2019, amid the waning popularity of platforms such as Facebook, data showed. 　According to data from the Korea Information Society Development Institute, 47.7 percent of people surveyed used social media last year, down from 48.2 percent the previous year. 　The figure had risen steadily since 2011, when it stood at 16.8 percent. It surpassed 30 percent in 2013 and 40 percent in 2015. (Yonhap)

Social AffairsFeb. 3, 2020