‘Kimchi Relish’: Pulmuone reinterprets kimchi for millennials

Pulmuone said on Monday it has launched “Kimchi Relish,” a new type of kimchi that “reinterprets” the spicy Korean side dish, in South Korea and the US. Made with plant-based ingredients including tomatoes and Sriracha sauce, the chopped vegan kimchi comes in two flavors, Mild and Spicy, and is recommended to be had with dishes such as pasta, salads, and tacos. Pulmuone said the new product is expected to appeal to millennial and gen-Z consumers, among which there is a

ConsumerOct. 19, 2020

Samyang Foods begins work on new export-oriented plant in Miryang

Samyang Foods began construction on a new manufacturing plant in the city of Miryang in South Gyeongsang Province on Monday which the company says will serve as its focal point for exports. A budget of 200 billion won ($175 million) has been set aside for the five-story factory with a basement. And with a total floor space of 69,801 square meters and boasting automated production lines for ramen noodles and soup powder, the project is expected to be completed by early 2022. “Many compani

IndustryOct. 19, 2020

Renault Samsung resumes plant operations amid pandemic

Renault Samsung Motors Corp. said Monday it has resumed the operation of its sole plant in South Korea following a monthlong suspension to control inventories amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Renault Samsung halted the operation of the Busan plant, 450 kilometers southeast of Seoul, from Sept. 25 through Oct. 18. The company said the upgrade and maintenance work has been done to the plant's production facility ahead of the manufacturing of the XM3 SUV. Renault Samsung plans to start exporting th

EconomyOct. 19, 2020

Samsung heir flies to Vietnam to discuss expansion of mobile biz

Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong on Monday flew to Hanoi to hold a meeting with Vietnamese Prime Minister to discuss possible additional investment plans in the country. The South Korean tech giant’s heir apparent is visiting the country for the first time since October in 2018. Samsung’s smartphone business chief Roh Tae-moon and display unit head Lee Dong-hoon joined Lee on the trip. Lee will meet with Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on Tuesday. Whether the two

TechnologyOct. 19, 2020

KIC under fire for investing in money-losing marijuana stocks

South Korea’s sovereign wealth fund Korea Investment Corp. was seeing a stock price fall in Ontario-based marijuana maker Canopy Growth, as its $18 million bet on the company lost glitter in the first half of 2020, a lawmaker said Monday. The ruling Democratic Party of Korea’s Rep. Jung Sung-ho added the investment in the pot producer is a point of contention, not only because KIC’s bet has not led to an instant success, but also because investing in marijuana makers is an &l

MarketOct. 19, 2020

Ratio of sovereign wealth fund's alternative assets dips in 2019

South Korea's sovereign wealth fund cut the ratio of alternative assets to its total investments for the first time in 10 years in 2019, data showed Monday. Korea Investment Corp. (KIC) had alternative assets worth $24.5 billion under its management as of end-2019, or 15.6 percent of its total assets worth $157.3 billion, according to the KIC data presented for an annual parliamentary audit. The proportion was down 0.8 percentage point from a year earlier. As of end-August this year, the figur

EconomyOct. 19, 2020

Jin Air to begin operating plane converted to carry cargo this week

Jin Air Co. said Monday it will begin operating a passenger plane converted to carry cargo to offset a sharp decline in air travel demand amid the coronavirus pandemic. Jin Air plans to deploy the B777-200ER jet, which has been converted into a cargo plane under approval from the transport ministry, on routes from Incheon to Bangkok and Qingdao from Saturday, the company said in a statement. The 315-seat converted plane will make two flights a week on the Bangkok route and three flights a wee

MobilityOct. 19, 2020

No deal looms between LG Chem and SK Innovation over trade secret case

LG Chem Ltd. and SK Innovation Co. -- South Korea's top two electric vehicle battery makers -- appear unlikely to produce a breakthrough in their high-stakes trade secret case over EV batteries ahead of next week's final ruling in the United States, industry officials said Monday.  A key issue is whether SK Innovation misappropriated and used EV battery trade secrets of its local rival as alleged by LG Chem.   In April last year, LG Chem filed a pair of lawsuits with the US Int

EconomyOct. 19, 2020

Hyundai's Kona EV recall potential hurdle in electrification plan

Hyundai Motor Co.'s planned global recall of 77,000 Kona Electric vehicles may be a drag on the company's electrification plan, analysts said Monday. Hyundai Motor plans to voluntarily recall 77,000 Kona Electric models for a faulty battery cell component, as 14 cases of fires in the model -- 10 domestically and four overseas -- have been reported since 2018. The Kona Electrics manufactured between Sept. 29, 2019, and March 13, 2020, are subject to the recall as a possible short circuit in th

EconomyOct. 19, 2020

Samsung Heavy succeeds in operating remote autonomous ship

South Korean shipbuilder Samsung Heavy Industries Co. said Monday it has successfully navigated its 300-ton remote autonomous ship. The 38-meter-long ship was operated in seas off Geoje Island, 398 kilometers south of Seoul, via a remote control system at a research center located in Daejeon, 250 kilometers away from the seas, Samsung Heavy said. The ship returned safely to a point of departure without the help of crew after reaching its destination, which was 10 kilometers away, the shipbuil

EconomyOct. 19, 2020

Auto exports snap 5-month decline in Sept. amid pandemic

South Korea's exports of automobiles rebounded in September to snap a decline of five consecutive months on the back of improved shipments to North America, data showed Monday. Local carmakers shipped 193,081 units of cars overseas last month, up 14.8 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. In terms of value, auto exports advanced 23.2 percent to $3.8 billion. Over the January-September period, the country shipped 1,330,859 uni

IndustryOct. 19, 2020

[Monitor] BTS' stocks plunge 22% on 2nd day

South Korea’s stock market has been reinvigorated by a series of major initial public offerings this year. Starting with the IPO of SK Biopharmaceuticals in July, promising biopharmaceutical firms and other tech companies went public with their initial prices soaring rapidly ahead of IPOs. But recently, newly listed stocks were bearish unlike initial expectations. Big Hit Entertainment, the entertainment agency behind K-pop boy band BTS, slid for two straight days right after the hig

IndustryOct. 19, 2020

Airlines to levy no fuel surcharges on int'l routes in Nov.

South Korean airlines will not impose fuel surcharges on international routes in November on low oil prices due to the coronavirus pandemic, industry sources said Monday. The surcharge for one-way tickets on international routes will remain at zero next month, unchanged from a month earlier, according to the sources. Local air carriers' fuel surcharges on international routes will stay at zero for the eighth consecutive month, raising expectations that the zero rate may last down the road. L

MobilityOct. 19, 2020

S. Korea to ease regulations on EV battery recycling

South Korea on Monday eased regulations to allow for environment friendly ways to utilize used batteries from electric vehicles. The approval came as the number of scrapped EV batteries is anticipated to increase sharply down the road with the country's green energy drive, which centers on promoting EVs and hydrogen fuel-cell cars. "While the used EV batteries can have adverse impacts on the environment, they can create new business opportunities when recycled," the Ministry of Trade

IndustryOct. 19, 2020

Retail giants' sales dip over 2tr won this year amid pandemic: poll

Combined sales by South Korea's retail giants are estimated to have declined more than 2 trillion won ($1.75 billion) on-year in the first nine months of this year on the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic, a poll showed Monday. Industry leader Lotte Shopping and its rivals Shinsegae and Hyundai Department Store are projected to have posted a combined 17.3 trillion won in sales in the January-September period, down 2.2 trillion won from the previous year, according to the survey by Yonhap Infomax

EconomyOct. 19, 2020

LG Electronics signs partnership with Italian luxury furniture brand Molteni&C

LG Electronics Inc. said Monday it has signed a partnership with Italian luxury furniture maker Molteni&C SPA to better promote its high-end brand LG Signature. Under the deal, the two sides will collaborate in marketing, promotion and product development related with LG Signature home appliances, Molteni&C residential furniture and Dada kitchen furniture for the next three years. The South Korean tech firm said the collaboration will create synergy between their premium brands and d

IndustryOct. 19, 2020

Seoul stocks open higher on bargain hunting

South Korean stocks opened higher Monday on investors' bargain hunting rush following a drop for four straight days. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) advanced 15.37 points, or 0.66 percent, to 2,356.9 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks came to a strong start, led by gains in tech and bio firms. Most large caps traded higher, with top market cap Samsung Electronics adding 1.18 percent and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix gaining 1.88 percent. Giant pharmaceutical firm

MarketOct. 19, 2020

LG Display tipped to swing to black in Q3 on price hike, firm demand

LG Display Co., a major display maker in South Korea, is expected to return to the black in the third quarter of the year, analysts here said Monday, on the back of a price increase in LCD panels and solid demand for displays used in IT gadgets amid the pandemic-driven stay-at-home economy. LG Display was projected to log 6.8 trillion won ($5.9 billion) in sales in the July-September period, up 17 percent from a year earlier, while its operating profit was estimated at 106 billion won, shiftin

IndustryOct. 19, 2020

S. Korea eyes duty-free cap on overseas direct buying

South Korea may set an annual ceiling on duty-free direct purchases from foreign countries by its citizens starting in 2022, officials said Monday. The Korea Customs Service (KCS) has recently broached the idea of setting a cap on the duty-free amount of South Koreans' overseas direct purchases in an effort to enliven domestic consumption. Currently, South Koreans are exempt from duties or value-added taxes if the price of an item bought directly from overseas is $150 or lower. There is no up

EconomyOct. 19, 2020

S. Korea's national debt to jump over next 4 years: report

South Korea's national debt is expected to soar over the next four years, which may have a negative impact on the country's creditworthiness, a report said Monday. In particular, Seoul's interest-bearing state debt is likely to rocket nearly 78 percent over the period based on the government's 2020-24 fiscal management plan, the report from the Korea Institute of Public Finance (KIPF) said. According to the government plan, South Korea's debt that has to be repaid with tax revenues is forecast

EconomyOct. 19, 2020