[Best Brand] Shinhan Card launches credit card tailored for contactless services

CREDIT CARD SHINHAN CARD From food ordering apps to streaming platforms, non-face-to-face services have become a new norm in the coronavirus era. Joining the contactless trend, Shinhan Card, a leading card issuer in South Korea, recently rolled out a credit card that offers services and benefits for consumers who prefer mobile services over face-to-face experiences at physical stores or restaurants amid the coronavirus pandemic. The new credit card, YaY, can be issued via the card company&rs

MarketJune 30, 2020

ECCK appoints Schenker Korea CEO Dirk Lukat as new chairperson

The European Chamber of Commerce in Korea has appointed Dirk Lukat, CEO of Schenker Korea, as the new chairperson, the organization said Tuesday. Lukat is a German citizen and has been the CEO of Schenker Korea in Seoul since January 2015. He will represent the ECCK and oversee its operations and activities, effective July 1, 2020. The new leader started his career at Schenker & Co. in Frankfurt in 1986 and held management positions at DB Schenker in Singapore, Vietnam and India. Befor

IndustryJune 30, 2020

[Best Brand] Charmzone’s Gingko stands as No. 1 cleansing brand

COSMETICS GINKGO (CHARMZONE) Since it was launched in 1993, Ginkgo has been the flagship cleansing brand for cosmetics company Charmzone, recording the company’s highest sales for 22 consecutive years. Charmzone recently released the renewed version of the Ginkgo All New Cleansing Tissue, which is a steady seller with accumulated sales of 1.25 billion sheets as of March this year. The cleansing tissue received much attention even before its renewal, as Korean actress Jang Nara endo

ConsumerJune 30, 2020

Daewoo E&C to start selling Giheung Prugio Forepiece apartments in July

Daewoo Engineering & Construction is slated to start selling apartment units of Giheung Prugio Forepiece in July, offering vicinity to capital Seoul and a peaceful life next to a park. According to Daewoo E&C Tuesday, Giheung Prugio Forepiece will offer a total of 677 households ranging from 59-84 square meters nestled right next to a 59,828-square-meter park in Giheung, Gyeonggi Province, just one bus stop away from Gangnam. When Yongin Station of GTX Line A opens in 2023, it will

IndustryJune 30, 2020

Finance minister urges National Assembly to swiftly approve 3rd extra budget

SEJONG -- Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki n Tuesday called for the National Assembly to swiftly approve a third extra budget to revive the virus-hit economy, saying the budget would benefit more than 6.4 million people if implemented. Hong made the remarks in a parliamentary speech as the National Assembly ended a monthlong standstill and the ruling Democratic Party paved the way for a budget review. Earlier this month, South Korea proposed the extra budget of 35.3 trillion won ($29 billion),

EconomyJune 30, 2020

[Best Brand] Coway water purifier changes kitchen culture

WATER PURIFIER COWAY Coway’s P-150N water purifier has steadily changed Korean kitchen culture since its launch in 2010, offering ease of use and high space-efficiency. The flagship Coway built-in water purifier P-150N is designed to reflect the lifestyles of consumers who want spacious kitchens. It is easy to place even in a small space by applying a slim 15-centimeter-wide design. The body is installed under a sink or an island table and only the faucet that water comes out of is ex

IndustryJune 30, 2020

[Best Brand] LocknLock caters to simpler home-cooked meal culture

KITCHEN UNTENSILS LocknLock Under the influence of COVID-19 this year, a new trend of having healthy home-cooked meals instead of eating out has spread further. In response to the trend, global household goods company LocknLock, has introduced a glass container for rice, called “Barohanki,” to propose a way of enjoying simple but healthy meals at home. The Barohanki container allows users to store rice in small amounts equivalent to a single portion. Users can store it in thei

IndustryJune 30, 2020

S. Korea, Russia hold 5th round of FTA talks on service, investment

South Korea and Russia started another round of negotiations Tuesday to clinch a free trade agreement (FTA) in the service and investment sectors. During the videoconferences that run through Monday, the two will narrow down differences on details in the two segments, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Seoul and Moscow first launched their FTA negotiations in June last year to lower barriers for the service and investment segments. South Korea has been making efforts to

EconomyJune 30, 2020

[Monitor] Fewer young Koreans willing to be entrepreneurs

Less than expected percentages of young Koreans are found to be willing to work on their own or for companies, showed data by Korea Entrepreneurship Foundation on Monday. The foundation conducted a survey on 12,004 individuals and 3,085 companies last year to measure entrepreneurship of Koreans by age group. Some 12.8 percent of the respondents in their 20s said they had plans to work or establish startups, a figure lower than expected. The remaining 87.2 percent said no to the same quest

IndustryJune 30, 2020

Korea Aerospace wins W688b trainer jet deal

Korea Aerospace Industries Co. (KAI), South Korea's sole aircraft manufacturer, said Tuesday it has received a 688 billion-won ($575 million) order to supply trainer jets for South Korea's Air Force by 2024. KAI signed the deal with the Defense Acquisition Program Administration to manufacture a total of 20 TA-50 lead-in fighter aircraft for radar tactical and combat mission training, the company said in a statement. KAI has exported a total of 148 trainer jets worth $3.1 billion -- 64 T-50 a

MobilityJune 30, 2020

Seoul stocks open higher on Wall Street gains

South Korean shares opened higher Tuesday, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street led by estimate-beating housing data. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 24.64 points, or 1.18 percent, to 2,118.12 in the first 15 minutes of trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average spiked 2.32 percent to end at 25,595.80 on Monday (New York time), with a 1.2 percent gain on the tech-laden Nasdaq. The gain was largely attributed to a record gain in the US pending home sales. A 14

MarketJune 30, 2020

SK hynix Q2 profit tipped to more than double on chip prices

SK hynix Inc., South Korea's second-largest chipmaker, is likely to see its second-quarter profit more than double from a year earlier, analysts here said Tuesday, thanks to strong memory chip prices amid the novel coronavirus pandemic. SK hynix was expected to log 8.29 trillion won ($6.9 billion) in sales in the April-June period, up 28.6 percent from a year earlier, while its operating profit was estimated to surge 166 percent on-year to 1.7 trillion won over the period, according to the dat

IndustryJune 30, 2020

S. Korea's industrial output suffers extended slump in May amid virus pandemic

SEJONG -- South Korea's industrial output extended its slump in May as the coronavirus pandemic disrupted supply chains, but retail sales reported a robust gain, data showed Tuesday. The nation's overall industrial production fell 1.2 percent on-month in May, following a 2.8 percent on-month plunge in April, according to data compiled by Statistics Korea. Compared with a year earlier, overall industrial production also plunged 5.6 percent in May. Production in the mining, manufacturing, gas

EconomyJune 30, 2020

WTO to decide on opening panel on Seoul-Tokyo trade row next month

The World Trade Organization (WTO) will decide next month whether to set up a panel to look into South Korea's complaint against Japan's export restrictions, officials said Monday. The Geneva-based trade body held discussions on the issue that day but stopped short of reaching an agreement because of Japan's rejection. The matter will be dealt with in the next Dispute Settlement Body session slated for July 29.  According to WTO rules, the panel will be set up automatically, even with

IndustryJune 29, 2020

Prosecutors drop charges against Elliott in connection with Samsung mergers

South Korean prosecutors have dropped charges against US hedge fund Elliott Management Corp. suspected of violating its duty to report a stake increase in Samsung C&T Corp. prior to its 2015 merger with another Samsung unit, prosecution officials said Monday. The Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office decided not to indict the company because its probe has found no grounds to bring charges, they said.  South Korea's financial regulator filed a complaint in early 2016 seeking a

IndustryJune 29, 2020

NH Bank hires ex-Samsung exec as new chief digital officer

  NH NongHyup Bank said Monday that it will hire Lee Sang-rae, a former executive of Samsung SDS as its chief digital officer, a position that has been vacant for nearly six months. Lee, 56, is the first outsider to the bank to take a senior post. The lender launched a digital finance department in 2018. Having in 1991 joined Samsung SDS, the information and communication technology service arm of Samsung Electronics, Lee climbed the corporate ladder by serving senior posts at various de

MarketJune 29, 2020

[Best Brand] Time for innovative brands to shine

Be it a business-to-business or business-to-consumer trade, the revenue of a company is deeply associated with the power of its brand. 　 Brand power refers to the influence the name holds over the spending behavior of consumers, which can also be used to predict future spending patterns. 　 The power of a brand can be measured in terms of statistics, and also in reference to consumer cognition. It can thus be detrimental for a business in its daily, monthly and yearly operations as well as in e

IndustryJune 29, 2020

Government opens chip design center for local fabless companies

South Korea‘s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on Monday launched an innovation center aimed to support local fabless companies and system semiconductor developers. The newly opened semiconductor center, located in Pangyo, Gyeonggi Province, will function as a base that nurtures capabilities of chip design companies, known as fabless, the ministry said. It was a follow-up measure of the government-led plan to foster the logic chip industry where Korean chipmakers have not bee

TechnologyJune 29, 2020

Changes in economic structures may dent growth in post-virus era: BOK

South Korea is expected to see an accelerated slowdown of its potential economic growth rate, with domestic and global economic structures facing radical transformation in the post-coronavirus era, the central bank said Monday. “Due to COVID-19, Korea’s potential growth rate faces a sharp decline, with changes in economic structures regarding labor, trade and industries coupled with sluggish input of factors linked to labor and capital,” the Bank of Korea said in its latest r

EconomyJune 29, 2020

NHN launches automated in-hospital messenger service

Korean information technology firm NHN said Monday it has launched an automated in-hospital messenger service setting out to streamline medical professionals’ workflow. The system is optimal for cases where medical professionals from several disciplines have to collaborate, NHN said. TOAST MedicalTalk will first be applied at Severance Hospital in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province. The communication tool aids medical professionals in delivering patient-centered treatment. It combines the preexi

IndustryJune 29, 2020