Hyundai Electric to build eco-friendly energy system in industrial complex

Hyundai Electric & Energy Systems Co. (HE) said Monday it will launch a 26.6-billion won ($22.5 million) project to build an eco-friendly electricity generation and supply system in an industrial complex in South Korea. To that end, HE signed a deal to carry out the project with Korea Industrial Complex Corp., an operator of industrial complexes in South Korea, the company said. HE has formed a consortium with 13 entities, including industrial artificial intelligence company Thingspire, to

IndustryNov. 15, 2021

[Newsmaker] Small business revenue bounces back amid ‘living with COVID-19’

Small business revenue has returned to pre-pandemic levels after the government kicked off the “living with COVID-19” scheme designed to gradually open up the economy, according to new data. According to Korea Credit Data’s database on Monday, revenue from small businesses during the first week of November saw a 10.4 percent jump on average compared to the same time one year ago. It was also up 2.6 percent compared to the previous week. Compared to the same week in 2019, befo

IndustryNov. 15, 2021

[Feature] From bugs to delicacies, insect proteins find niche in pet food market

Edible insects like fly larvae, crickets, and mealworms are hailed as a healthy and more sustainable source of protein for the mankind. But not many people seem to find them appetizing enough, at least not yet, to include them in their regular diet. For dogs and cats, it’s a different story. “Our products are loved by pets as they taste nutty and also like cheese biscuits” Kim Tae-hoon, the CEO of Foody Worm, which sells insect-based pet food, told The Korea Herald. The

ConsumerNov. 15, 2021

Solus Advanced Materials buys copper foil plant site in Canada

Solus Advanced Materials is extending its business to North America having secured a copper foil production base in Canada. The South Korean battery foil maker previously named Doosan Solus announced Monday that it has purchased a copper foil plant site with an annual production capacity of 60,000 tons in Quebec, Canada. The factory was previously a Solus property. Established in 2001 by the firm’s European unit Circuit Foil Luxembourg, it ceased operation in 2014, when Solus was acquir

IndustryNov. 15, 2021

Watchdog slaps fine on Naver Financial for security issues

South Korea’s financial watchdog imposed a fine of 23.6 million won ($20,000) on Naver Financial and issued sanctions on its executives, citing the lack of security of its e-payment system and other violations tied to management, reports said Monday. According to local reports, the Financial Supervisory Service earlier this month slapped a fine on Korean portal giant Naver’s wholly owned financial technology unit and issued “warnings,” the lowest level of its five-tier s

MarketNov. 15, 2021

Taihan Cable and Solution clinches $60b deal in California

Taihan Cable & Solution, a maker of electric wires and steel products for electricity and communication, has clinched a $60 billion deal to supply medium voltage cables in California, the company said Monday. The contract, which calls for provision of the cables over the next three years until October 2024, is another megasized order the Korean firm has received in the US, following a $42 billion deal for ultrahigh voltage cables in September.  It puts the total orders the company has

IndustryNov. 15, 2021

SsangYong Motor Q3 net narrows on self-help measures

SsangYong Motor Co., the South Korean unit of Indian carmaker Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., said Monday its third-quarter net losses narrowed from a year earlier due to self-help measures. SsangYong Motor's net losses narrowed to 59.29 billion won ($50 million) for the three months ended in September from 102.44 billion won in the year-ago period, the company said in a statement. "An extended global chip shortage affected vehicle production and sales but employees' acceptance of pay cuts

IndustryNov. 15, 2021

EV sales almost double this year in Korea

Over 71,000 units of electric vehicles have been sold in South Korea so far this year, nearly doubling the previous year’s record, a market data showed. According to Korea Automotive Technology Institute, the accumulated domestic sales of EVs up to the end of September came in at 71,006 units, compared to the 36,268 units sold during the corresponding period last year. The domestic sales volume places South Korea as No. 7 globally, Katech said. The world’s No. 1 market, up to

MobilityNov. 15, 2021

S. Korea to offer $100m in loans for Bangladesh's economic recovery

South Korea said Monday it plans to provide $100 million in financing for a joint project with multilateral lenders to help Bangladesh recover from the fallout of the pandemic. South Korea's Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF) will offer its low-interest rate loans for the $700 million joint project to support Bangladesh's economy, the finance ministry said. The project will also be supported by the Asian Development Bank with $250 million, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AI

EconomyNov. 15, 2021

Shinhan Investment partners UK advisory firm to support bio firms’ overseas entry

Shinhan Investment said Monday it has signed a memorandum of understanding with PharmaVentures, a UK-based leading advisory firm providing whose main clients are health care life science companies, to diverse its investment banking services.  Under the partnership agreement, the two companies will boost cooperation in supporting South Korean biotech and pharmaceutical companies to advance to the global stage, while arranging international firms’ investments in the domestic health car

MarketNov. 15, 2021

S. Korea's 2021 rice output rises for first time in 6 years

South Korea's rice output rose for the first time in six years due mainly to favorable weather conditions and an increase in the cultivation area, data showed Monday. The country's rice production reached 3.88 million tons in 2021, up 10.7 percent from a record low of 3.51 million tons the previous year, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. It marked the first rebound since 2015 when rice output rose 2 percent on-year to 4.33 million tons. The figure declined for the fifth strai

IndustryNov. 15, 2021

S. Korea customs seizes 4 tons of smuggled urea solution

The South Korean customs agency said Monday it has confiscated some 4 tons of smuggled urea solution and is planning to distribute them to the market. The Korea Customs Service (KCS) said it had caught a group of local importers Friday for attempting to bring in 416 10-kilogram containers of urea solution hidden in lawfully imported goods from China through the western port of Incheon. The service said it was investigating those smugglers of urea solution, a key fluid used in diesel vehicles t

IndustryNov. 15, 2021

Kim Jong-kook truly ‘unnatural’? What does science say?

Singer and entertainer Kim Jong-kook has enjoyed over two decades of success in TV and music. But the 45-year-old recently made headlines for something other than his voice: his workout routine. Controversy broke out one faithful Halloween to spook fans of the beloved TV personality, when a fitness YouTuber named Greg Doucette called him out for likely not being “natural” when working out to build his body. “Is he natural? Of course not!” Doucette said in his video. He

TechnologyNov. 15, 2021

Seoul stocks open higher on Wall Street gains

South Korean stocks opened higher Monday, taking a cue from the Wall Street gains. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) rose 16.43 points, or 0.55 percent, to 2,985.23 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite rose 1 percent, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.5 percent Friday. Investors are waiting for the release of China's economic data and the virtual summit of the leaders of the US and China set for this week. China's October

MarketNov. 15, 2021

S. Korea's EV sales nearly double this year, 7th-largest worldwide

Sales of electric vehicles (EVs) in South Korea almost doubled in the first three quarters of this year from a year earlier, ranking seventh in the world, data showed Monday. A total of 71,006 EVs were sold in Asia's fourth-largest economy in the January-September period, up 96 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Automotive Technology Institute. The figure was the seventh-largest in the world. China sold the largest number of EVs with 1.76 million units in the nin

IndustryNov. 15, 2021

S. Korea's household debt-GDP ratio highest worldwide: report

South Korea has the highest ratio of household debt to gross domestic product (GDP) among major economies in the world, a report showed Monday, indicating it could crimp consumption and weigh on the economy down the road. The country's household debt stood at 104.2 percent of its GDP as of end-June this year, the highest among 37 economies, according to the report by the Institute of International Finance. Hong Kong came next with 92 percent, followed by Britain with 89.4 percent, the United S

EconomyNov. 15, 2021

Hyundai Futurenet co-hosts metaverse conference ‘Coming-M 2021’ with The Korea Herald

The “Coming-M 2021” metaverse conference kicked off Monday, with representatives from around 50 companies from 11 different countries taking part. Hyundai Futurenet announced Friday that it was co-hosting the interactive metaverse conference with The Korea Herald to “make an arena where global corporations, governments, and individuals preparing for the post-pandemic era can share ideas and work together.” The conference will be held for five days from Monday to Fr

IndustryNov. 15, 2021

AmCham, US senator discuss greater opportunities for businesses in US, Korea

Members of the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea and Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff discussed measures to increase cooperation between the United States and South Korea in various industries that seek innovation, AmCham said Friday. AmCham’s delegation met with the American senator on Thursday during his weeklong trip to Seoul and conveyed the organization’s mission to promote the growth of US businesses in Korea as well as investment in the US by Korean companies, AmCham said. The

IndustryNov. 15, 2021

Hyundai Mobis develops driving assistance system for tight spaces

Hyundai Mobis, Hyundai Motor’s future mobility software and component unit, announced Sunday that the company has developed a new driver assistance system, specifically designed to help drivers navigate narrow streets and get in and out of small parking spaces. The company said the Mobis Parking System, the first of its kind in the world, is specialized for countries like South Korea and European countries, which have a lot of urban areas with narrow streets. Hyundai Mobis expects its

TechnologyNov. 14, 2021

Corporate sector secures 64 million liters of urea solution amid supply crunch

South Korean firms have set out to secure urea or urea solution using their global networks with foreign partners in an effort to help alleviate the domestic shortage of an additive critical for diesel cars.  According to figures gathered by The Korea Herald, some 64 million liters of urea solution, or diesel exhaust liquid, has been sourced by the corporate sector.    The supply accounts for more than two-thirds of some 82 million liters of urea solution the government said woul

IndustryNov. 14, 2021