After Chuseok, Koreans to face further restaurant inflation

With inflation showing no signs of abating, South Koreans are likely to suffer more financial burden from eating out after the Chuseok holiday, as even low-cost foods like gimbap see a surge in price. The average price of gimbap, one of the more budget-friendly meals, in Seoul surged 2.6 percent to surpass the 3,000 won ($2.2) mark as of August compared to a month earlier, according to data from the Korea Consumer Agency. Among restaurant meals, the price of pork belly increased the most, fro

ConsumerSept. 8, 2022

SK Bioscience applies for SKYCovione's WHO emergency use listing

SK Bioscience has completed the application for an emergency use listing of SKYCovione -- South Korea’s first homemade COVID-19 vaccine -- with the World Health Organization, the local vaccine developer said Thursday. The WHO’s emergency use listing is the global health body’s procedure for reviewing vaccines, therapeutics and in vitro diagnosis with the goal of expediting the availability of such products to people in case of a public health emergency. As the WHO’s asse

TechnologySept. 8, 2022

[Herald Interview] 'COVID-19 is not over; people are still getting sick'

It has been almost 1,000 days since the first case of COVID-19 was reported from Wuhan, China, at the end of December 2019. The unprecedented pandemic swept the world. Humanity fought back fiercely. The world now appears to have an upper hand over the novel coronavirus as borders are crossed and masks are taken off. However, a global expert on immune therapies and vaccines says the COVID-19 pandemic is not done yet. “Everyone wishes (the pandemic) would go away but it really hasn’t

TechnologySept. 8, 2022

S. Korea is world's fourth-largest EV exporter

South Korea shipped a total of $7 billion worth of electric cars last year, taking the fourth spot in terms of exports by value, following Germany ($28.8 billion), the United States ($10.1 billion) and China ($10 billion), data from a report showed Thursday. Of the world’s top 10 EV exporters, six countries were from Europe. Japan ranked eighth with $4.6 billion EV exports. According to data by Korea International Trade Association, the country's EV exports jumped 112.2 percent in the last

MobilitySept. 8, 2022

S. Korea to spend W74t on supporting vulnerable people next year

South Korea said Thursday it plans to spend 74 trillion won ($53.4 billion) on supporting low-income families, senior citizens and other vulnerable people next year in a bid to ease the burden of rising living costs. The government plans to increase its budget spending by 8.7 trillion won in 2023 on-year to prevent vulnerable people from being left in a blind spot, according to the finance ministry. The money will be spent to support low-income households, people with disabilities, young people

EconomySept. 8, 2022

[Breaking] Posco to resume blast furnace at Pohang plant from Saturday

  South Korea’s steel giant Posco said Thursday it would resume the operation of its blast furnaces in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province, in two days, which had been stalled due to heavy rain Tuesday caused by Typhoon Hinnamnor. The company said in a statement that it has been accelerating repair work at its steel manufacturing plant in the southeastern industrial city. Its key facilities at the plant, including all three blast furnaces, had been halted Wednesday over a flood-induced

IndustrySept. 8, 2022

Hyundai Motor Group, KT exchange W750b in shares for future mobility cooperation

Hyundai Motor Group and KT have decided to exchange shares worth about 750 billion won ($541 million) to strengthen their partnership in the future mobility sector, officials said Wednesday. According to the two companies, Hyundai Motor Group will acquire 7.7 percent of KT’s treasury stock while KT will acquire 1.04 percent of Hyundai Motor Group’s treasury stock and 1.46 percent of Hyundai Mobis’ shares. The two companies decided to join hands in upgrading future mobility te

IndustrySept. 7, 2022

Won slips to fresh 13-year low despite hint at intervention

The South Korean won tumbled to 1,384.2 won per US dollar on Wednesday in the onshore platform, the lowest closing figure since March 2009 during the global financial crisis, despite a warning from authorities that intervention could take place to steady the currency market. The US dollar’s rally – led by investors pricing in higher US interest rates to come by year-end – has been weakening not only the local currency, but six other major currencies, including the Japanese yen.

MarketSept. 7, 2022

[From the scene] Samsung's new Pyeongtaek fab ready to embrace chip design ambitions

PYEONGTAEK, Gyeonggi Province -- South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics is ready to meet the needs of the world's most ambitious chip designers technology-wise in the world's largest single chip fabrication plant. The multi-story factory, which went operational in July, used enough steel bars to build 29 Eiffel Towers to complete the construction on a plot of land about 25 times the size of a soccer field. The gargantuan facility, dubbed P3, is the first chip fab to have introduce

TechnologySept. 7, 2022

[Newsmaker] Apple Pay in final-stage talks to enter Korean market

Apple Pay is in the final stage of talks with local credit card issuer Hyundai Card to start its Korean services by the end of this year, according to news reports on Wednesday. Apple’s digital payments service, launched in 2014, has since expanded its Asian reach, including China, Japan, Singapore and Hong Kong. But it has struggled to enter Korea mainly due to a lack of technological infrastructure here. Most local retailers use the magnetic secure transmission technology, in which devic

MarketSept. 7, 2022

Korea submits bid to host Busan Expo 2030

SEJONG -- South Korea on Wednesday turned in a formal bid to host the World Expo 2030 in its second-largest city of Busan to the Bureau International des Expositions. A Korean delegation, led by First Vice Minister of Industry Jang Young-jin, stressed the distinctive merits of Korea and Busan, as well as the government’s strong will, during a meeting with BIE Secretary-General Dimitri Kerkentzes at the organization’s headquarters in Paris. The bid details that Busan had successfull

IndustrySept. 7, 2022

Airlines prepare for Chuseok spike in demand

The aviation industry is gearing up to cater an increase in travel demand ahead of Chuseok, the Korean thanksgiving holiday that kicks off Friday. South Korea’s flag carrier Korean Air is operating two more flights from Gimpo to Jeju starting Wednesday until Sept. 13. These flights are operated using larger aircraft to accommodate 11,000 more passengers, which is a 10 percent increase in the airlines number of seats along that route for the Chuseok holiday. Asiana Airlines, the country&rsq

MobilitySept. 7, 2022

Seoul shares tumble, local currency at over 13-yr low amid recession woes

Seoul shares tumbled on Wednesday as foreigners and institutions dumped holdings amid worries over the US Federal Reserve's continued aggressive rate hikes and their impact on the global economy. The Korean won also slid to the lowest point in more than 13 years. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 1.39 percent, or 33.56 points, to 2,376.46. Trading volume was moderate at 370.02 million shares worth 7.29 trillion won (US$5.3 billion), with decliners outpacing gainers 768 to 1

MarketSept. 7, 2022

Hyundai Motor Group opens Korea’s largest driving experience center

  Hyundai Motor Group said Wednesday that it has opened the country’s largest driving experience center in Taean, South Chungcheong Province, in an aim to lead the country’s automotive culture. The HMG Driving Experience Center is located on 1.26 million square meters of land that was formerly used as Hankook Tire’s automotive proving ground Technoring. It is the largest proving ground in Asia. The center also includes a second-story building to accommodate 15,000 visitor

MobilitySept. 7, 2022

Typhoon-hit Posco plant comes to complete halt for first time

  South Korean steel giant Posco said Wednesday it has suspended operations of its steel manufacturing plant in the southeastern city of Pohang, Gyeongsang Province, due to flooding caused by Typhoon Hinnamnor that passed by the peninsula Tuesday. It is the first time that operations at the Pohang plant has come to a complete standstill since its establishment in 1973. The suspension comes after storms and heavy rains swept the region, causing power outage at key facilities at the plant, in

IndustrySept. 7, 2022

GS Group shares new biz plans

GS Group’s executives in charge of tapping new businesses gathered on Wednesday to share where they stand in mergers and acquisitions, business partnerships and venture investments under the conglomerate’s new biz strategy -- “eco-friendly, digital future growth.” The executives shared details such as the technology and business models of the companies they have invested in, and opportunities for collaboration between the firms and GS in areas including biotech, circular

IndustrySept. 7, 2022

SK Broadband invests $4m in collaboration platform developer Swit

SK Broadband has decided to invest $4 million (5.5 billion won) in US collaboration platform developer Swit as the company seeks to boost its competitiveness in the business-to-business sector, the South Korean internet service provider said Wednesday. On top of the investment, SK Broadband said the company will become the sole distributor of Swit in the domestic market while pushing for collaboration businesses including new products that will integrate its message and fax services with Swit&r

MarketSept. 7, 2022

Eximbank to offer $100m financing to Chilean lithium producer

The Export-Import Bank of Korea said Wednesday it is offering a $100 million funding, consisting of a $55 million loan and a $45 million loan guarantee, to a Chilean mineral producer in efforts to help local companies secure a stable supply of lithium, a key material for batteries. SQM or Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile is the second-largest lithium-producing company in the world that operates lithium mines in Chile and Australia. The company’s production capacity makes up almost 19 pe

IndustrySept. 7, 2022

MBK chairman to donate $10m to New York’s Met Museum

Seoul-based private equity house MBK Partners Founder and Chairman Michael Byung-ju Kim will donate $10 million to help the renovation work of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, both the firm and the museum said Wednesday. “The Metropolitan Museum of Art announced today that Michael ByungJu Kim has pledged $10 million to support the renovation of the Museum’s Oscar L. and H.M. Agnes Hsu-Tang Wing for modern and contemporary art," the Met said in an official press relea

MarketSept. 7, 2022

Mercedes-Benz hosts school-zone traffic safety campaign

Bettina Fetzer, vice president of communications and marketing at Mercedes-Benz AG, participated in a campaign on Wednesday promoting school-zone traffic safety in front of an elementary school located in Songpa-gu, southeastern Seoul. The campaign, co-hosted by the Mercedes-Benz Corporate Social Responsibility Committee and the Kids & Future Foundation, was conducted as part of a business agreement signed in April with the Green Mother’s Society, a local advocacy group for children’

MobilitySept. 7, 2022