Asiana Airlines delays decision on cargo business sell-off

Asiana Airlines board members plan to hold another round of meetings soon after they failed to reach an agreement on the previous day on whether to sell the air carrier’s cargo business to clear the way for approval of its planned merger with Korean Air. On Monday, Asiana’s five board directors discussed the sell-off plans but failed to reduce their differences even after a seven-hour meeting. Some members reportedly opposed the plans, saying that the sale of the cargo unit could pot

IndustryOct. 31, 2023

NCSoft to unveil new titles at G-Star in Busan

NCSoft, one of South Korea's major game developers and publishers, is set to showcase its latest entertainment content via various on-site events at the upcoming global game expo, G-Star 2023, to be held in Busan Nov. 16-19. A total of 200 booths will be featured to have demos, events and special stage zones at Korea's largest game trade show, according to the company, Tuesday. Visitors can test out three new titles slated for global debut, including shooting game "LLL," ac

IndustryOct. 31, 2023

[Photo News] Hyundai Elevator's Global Top Talent Training

Hyundai Elevator invited a total of 12 outstanding employees from overseas subsidiaries in China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia and Turkey to join its annual Global Top Talent Training event held in Seoul and Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province, Oct. 24-27. During the event, attendees participated in a comprehensive training program to enhance their understanding of the company’s core mission and develop hands-on technical skills. They also explored Korean culture through visits to cultu

IndustryOct. 31, 2023

STX, Triple-A team up for crypto payment services on Trollygo

South Korean trading company STX said Tuesday that it had signed a payments partnership agreement with Triple-A to provide crypto payment services on Trollygo, its business-to-business online trading platform set to be launched in November. The signing ceremony was attended by STX CEO Park Sang-jun and Triple-A CEO Eric Barbier at the trading company’s office in central Seoul, Monday. Based in Singapore, Triple-A is Asia’s largest crypto payment gateway and obtained a license from th

IndustryOct. 31, 2023

KT unveils large language model Mi:dm for corporate customization

South Korean telecommunications giant KT Corp. on Tuesday unveiled Mi:dm, a customizable large language model aimed at corporate clients looking to develop their own advanced AI services in the booming field of generative AI technologies. The name Mi:dm is based on the word "mideum," which means "belief" in Korean. Unlike generic models such as OpenAI's GPT, KT posits that Mi:dm allows companies to incorporate their own specialized datasets to produce tailor-made AI prod

TechnologyOct. 31, 2023

Seoul shares drop to 10-month low ahead of Fed meeting

South Korean stocks slid to the lowest point since early January on Tuesday as investors await the Federal Reserve's policy meeting this week. The local currency rose against the greenback. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 32.56 points, or 1.41 percent, to close at 2,277.99, marking the lowest point since Jan. 5, when the comparable figure was 2,264.65. Trading volume was moderate at 387.6 million shares worth 8 trillion won ($5.95 billion), with losers outnumbering gain

MarketOct. 31, 2023

Samsung reduces chip losses in Q3, eyes rebound

Samsung Electronics said Tuesday it reduced its deficit in the memory chip business in the July-September period while posting better-than-expected profits in mobile and display businesses. Samsung's device solutions division in charge of the company’s semiconductor business marked losses of 3.75 trillion won ($2.78 billion) for the division's third consecutive quarter of losses. So far this year, its chip losses have amounted to 12.7 trillion won, the company said in its third-q

TechnologyOct. 31, 2023

[Gadget Review] iPhone 15 Pro is lighter and more versatile but lacks 'wow' factor

Apple’s latest flagship smartphone series -- the iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max -- debuted in Korea earlier this month with higher price tags than elsewhere. The new phones are priced from 1.25 million won to 1.90 million ($926.20-$1,407.80) here. Compared to their prices sold in the US, Japan and China, the Korean prices are almost 10 to 20 percent higher. But Apple’s pricing policy seems to have little impact on Koreans’ love for iPhones. Accor

TechnologyOct. 31, 2023

LX chairman offers unwavering support for women’s baseball

LG Group spinoff LX Group is sparing no efforts for the growth of Korean women’s baseball, having hosted the nation’s only corporate-sponsored women’s baseball competition for a second time. Co-hosted and organized by LX Group and Women’s Baseball Association Korea, the 2023 LX Cup Korea Women’s Baseball League kicked off on Oct. 21. Classified as an amateur league, the competition drew a total of 41 teams and over 1,000 players and staff this year. Koo Bon-joon, ch

IndustryOct. 31, 2023

Korean financial firms' overseas expansions to get regulatory boost

The Financial Services Commission announced on Tuesday that it will ease regulations on credit lending limits for overseas subsidiaries of financial holding companies starting from Jan. 1, 2024. The regulation revision comes after the FSC pledged in July to help local financial companies beef up their presence in overseas markets. Under the current regulation, the credit lending limit for each subsidiary must not exceed 10 percent of the parent company's equity, and the total credit lendi

IndustryOct. 31, 2023

Lunch with Mirae Asset, Naver chiefs to be auctioned

Mirae Asset Financial Group founder and Chairman Park Hyeon-joo will sit down with the younger generation to better communicate with them at a private luncheon to be held in Seoul on Dec. 11, the Federation of Korean Industries said Tuesday. Earlier in May, the business lobby invited Hyundai Motor Group Chief Executive Chung Euisun along with car-sharing company SoCar CEO Park Jae-uk and TV celebrity Noh Hong-chul to take part in the event, akin to Warren Buffett's famous annual charity l

IndustryOct. 31, 2023

Hyundai Oilbank renews push for biofuel business

HD Hyundai Oilbank announced Tuesday that it has signed two new agreements to secure some 80,000 tons annually of palm fatty acid distillates, a key renewable raw material for biodiesel production, as part of its push to propel its biofuel business. Through the latest deals, Hyundai has managed to stabilize and bolster the supply chain for its biodiesel plant with a total annual capacity of 130,000 tons, set to be operational by the end of this year, the company added. In an agreement inked with

IndustryOct. 31, 2023

Hahn & Co. to acquire SKC’s fine ceramics biz for W360b

Hahn & Co., one of the largest private equity firms in Korea, announced Tuesday it had signed a definitive agreement with SKC, a semiconductor material arm under SK Group, to acquire its fine ceramics business for 360 billion won ($267 million). The company said SKC is a major player in the semiconductor industry with its fine ceramics business producing high-purity quartz and silicon carbide consumable materials crucial for manufacturing advanced chips. “SKC’s fine ceramics busi

CompaniesOct. 31, 2023

Industrial output, retail sales, investment all rise in September: data

South Korea's industrial output rose for the second consecutive month in September on the back of the turnaround in the semiconductor sector, data showed Tuesday. Retail sales, a gauge of private spending, and facility investment also logged an on-year growth last month, signaling a gradual economic recovery, according to Statistics Korea. It was the first time since May that the country reported an increase in the three major indicators on industrial activities. Industrial output advanced

EconomyOct. 31, 2023

Seoul shares open higher on US gains

South Korea stocks got off to a strong start Tuesday, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 7.09 points, or 0.31 percent, to 2,317.64 in the first 15 minutes of trading. US stocks closed higher overnight, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average advancing 1.58 percent and the Nasdaq Composite rising 1.16 percent. The rebound came after investors scooped up bargain shares ahead of the US Federal Reserve's monetary policy mee

MarketOct. 31, 2023

Court rules against Meta over penalty on illegal user info sharing

Meta Platforms Ireland Inc. has lost a legal battle to defy the South Korean data protection watchdog's decision to slap a fine for providing users' personal information to other operators without consent, officials said Monday. In November 2020, the Personal Information Protection Commission (PIPC) fined Meta, formerly known as Facebook Inc., 7.8 billion won ($5.78 million) after its probe found that the personal information of at least 3.3 million out of 18 million Facebook users in

TechnologyOct. 30, 2023

Korea's national pension fund logs over 10% return through October

South Korea's state pension fund registered some 10 percent yield through October on the back of good performance in its investments in local and overseas stocks, its operator said Monday. The National Pension Service (NPS) said the national pension fund logged a 10.27 percent return in the January-October period, with the value of its assets under management reaching 997.38 trillion won($739 billion) as of end-October. Last year, the pension fund logged its worst return at minus 8.28 perce

MarketOct. 30, 2023

S. Korea's homegrown spacecraft to moon project on track: science ministry

South Korea's science ministry said Monday its project to develop a homegrown spacecraft to the moon has passed through a preliminary feasibility study and will officially begin next year. With the passage of the 530 billion won ($392.9 million)-project, the Ministry of Science and ICT plans to develop a 1.8-ton spacecraft to land on the moon in 2032 as part of the country's plan to begin exploring lunar resources under its ambitious road map for a "future space economy." The

TechnologyOct. 30, 2023

Korean Air orders 20 more Airbus A321neo aircrafts

Korean Air Co., South Korea's No. 1 flag carrier, said Monday it has placed an order for 20 additional Airbus A321neo aircrafts as part of its fleet modernization plan. Korean Air had already ordered 30 units of the model and so far has received eight units in December of last year. The latest order brings the company's total A321neo orders to 50. Korean Air is operating the next-gen Airbus fleets on its short and medium-haul routes to Southeast Asia, China and Japan. Korean Air said i

IndustryOct. 30, 2023

Lotte Biologics to begin ADC production in 2025

BARCELONA, Spain -- Lotte Biologics will begin antibody-drug conjugate manufacturing at its site near Syracuse, New York, starting in the first quarter of 2025, according to CEO Lee Won-jik, who also goes by Richard Lee. The company expects its ADC production to account for some 10 percent of its total sales in 10 years, Lee added. “Lotte Biologics is building an ADC facility within its Syracuse facilities. The company expects the construction to be completed by 2024 and the operation to b

IndustryOct. 30, 2023