Mixed outlook for Chinese visa exemption

Beijing's visa exemption for South Korean tourists will take effect on Friday this week, but expectations are mixed about the impact, as it comes after years of waning popularity of China as a travel destination here. China announced Friday that it would allow passport holders of Korea and eight other countries to enter China without visas for up to 15 days for tourism, business, family visits, and transit purposes. Chinese nationals are still required to apply for a visa to enter Korea. Lo

Nov. 6, 2024

[Photo News] Hanwha-Saudi ties

Hanwha Group Vice Chairman Kim Dong-kwan (right) met with Prince Abdullah bin Bandar bin Abdulazia Al Saud, the defense minister of Saudi Arabia, in a hotel in Seoul on Monday to reaffirm their commitment to a defense partnership. During the meeting, Hanwha vowed to provide advanced defense systems, as part of the Saudi Arabian government’s Vision 2030 initiative that seeks to localize more than 50 percent of its military procurement by 2030. This is the second meeting for the Hanwha heir

Nov. 6, 2024

Kolmar Korea reduces development time for cosmetics

South Korea's leading cosmetics original design manufacturer, Kolmar Korea, announced Wednesday it will start a packaged product service to accelerate product launches by up to six months, aiming to strengthen its position in the global market. The packaged product service, or PPS, allows clients to obtain products simply by choosing from pre-developed formulations and containers. Typically, launching a new cosmetic product takes nine to 12 months. Kolmar anticipates the PPS system will sho

Nov. 6, 2024

SKT to open Nvidia GPU-based AI data center

South Korea's leading mobile carrier SK Telecom said Wednesday it will open an artificial intelligence data center based on US tech giant Nvidia’s graphics processing units next month in Seoul, along with an AI data center testbed in Pangyo, Gyeonggi Province, in the same month. The announcement came as the company unveiled its AI revenue model identifying three key areas for rapid monetization upon its earnings release for the July-September period: data centers, business-to-business

Nov. 6, 2024

SK Telecom Q3 net income down 9.1% on non-operating cost

SK Telecom Co., South Korea's leading mobile carrier, said Wednesday its third-quarter net profit decreased 9.1 percent from a year earlier due to an increase in non-operating costs. Net profit for the July-September period came to 280.2 billion won ($202.1 million), down 9.1 percent from a year ago, the company said in a regulatory filing. Its operating profit rose 7.1 percent on-year to 533.3 billion won, while sales increased 2.9 percent to 4.53 trillion won. The company said its net pro

Nov. 6, 2024

Tax fraud investigators search Netflix offices in Paris and Amsterdam, says source

Investigators searched the offices of US streaming giant Netflix in France and the Netherlands as part of a preliminary investigation into tax fraud laundering, a French judicial source said on Tuesday. French paper Marianne, which first reported the searches, said investigators specializing in financial crime and corruption raided the company's offices in central Paris on Tuesday morning. The French investigation, carried out by the PNF, a special financial crime prosecution unit notorious

Nov. 5, 2024

South Korea fines Meta for illegal collection of user data

US tech giant Meta illegally harvested sensitive data including on sexual orientation from nearly a million South Korean Facebook users and shared it with advertisers, Seoul's data watchdog said Tuesday. The firm, which also owns Instagram, violated South Korean laws prohibiting the use of information on political opinions, religious beliefs and people's sex life unless the individual provides explicit consent, Seoul's Personal Information Protection Commission said. The tech gian

Nov. 5, 2024

Hanwha chief touts bigger global footing of asset management unit

Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-youn on Tuesday visited Hanwha Asset Management to praise the asset management unit's recent progress in its ongoing efforts for global expansion. He was accompanied by Kim Dong-won, president and chief global officer at Hanwha Life Insurance, and Hanwha Asset Management CEO Kim Jong-ho. “Despite unfavorable market conditions, Hanwha Asset Management has overcome challenges and pushed innovations, and emerged as Korea’s leading asset management co

Nov. 5, 2024

Young Poong's environmental violations come to light

Young Poong, a Korean zinc smelter, has come under fire for environmental violations and an array of industrial accidents occurred at its Seokpo refinery. According to the company, its Seokpo refinery in North Gyeongsang Province was ordered by the Supreme Court to shut down for two months for violating a water conservation law. It is the world's sixth-largest zinc producer, which makes up around 2.4 percent of global production in 2023, according to global energy data provider Wood Mackenz

Nov. 5, 2024

Posco begins construction of high-purity noble gas plant

South Korean steelmaker Posco Group announced Tuesday that its joint venture, Posco Zhongtai Air Solution, has started construction of a high-purity rare gas plant in Gwangyang, South Jeolla Province. The joint venture was launched in August between Posco Holdings and China's Zhongtai Cryogenic Technology, which own 75.1 percent and 24.9 percent of the entity, respectively. Zhongtai, which specializes in gas-related facilities, is a Chinese cryogenic equipment company listed on the Shenzhen

Nov. 5, 2024

Global scholars discuss AI’s future at Samsung forum

Global scholars and artificial intelligence experts discussed the future of AI, semiconductors, and the use of the technology in everyday life at this year's Samsung AI Forum that kicked off Monday. During the two-day event, renowned academics including Turing Award winners Yoshua Bengio and Yann LeCun, and AMD Chief Technology Officer Joseph Macri, shared their research advancements in AI and computer engineering. “AI is changing our lives at a surprising speed, and as it gets strong

Nov. 5, 2024

Q3 sees mixed fortunes for Korean tire makers amid higher shipping costs

South Korea’s top three tire manufacturers -- Hankook Tire, Kumho Tire and Nexen Tire -- showed mixed financial performances in the third quarter as they grappled with rising costs and softer demand in the automotive market. While Hankook and Kumho managed to post strong profits, Nexen struggled amid rising shipping expenses and weaker demand in North America. Hankook Tire led the pack, hitting a new record for quarterly sales at 2.44 trillion won ($1.77 billion), up 4.1 percent from last

Nov. 5, 2024

SK chief vows to tackle AI bottleneck along with Nvidia, TSMC

SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won renewed his commitment to building a robust artificial intelligence ecosystem and vowed to overcome bottlenecks in the process with AI pioneers and key partners Nvidia and TSMC. Speaking at SK AI Summit 2024, held in Seoul on Monday, Chey listed a number of difficulties the burgeoning AI industry faces and reaffirmed his ties with tech leaders, including Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, TSMC CEO C.C. Wei and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. In prerecorded videos, the CEOs deli

Nov. 4, 2024

‘Free delivery’ promotions under antitrust scrutiny

South Korea’s antitrust regulator has opened an investigation into “free delivery” promotions widely used by food ordering and delivery platforms here, according to industry sources on Monday. The Fair Trade Commission will look into whether delivery services have been offered actually free of charge without the costs being shouldered by restaurant owners or consumers. Earlier in the day, Rep. Yoon Hang-hong of the ruling People Power Party revealed documents that Baedal Minjok

Nov. 4, 2024

SK Eternix secures W461b funding for fuel cell projects

South Korean energy company SK Eternix announced Monday that it has partnered with Charmvit Group and KDB Infrastructure Asset Management to fund high-efficiency solid oxide fuel cell power plant projects. Late last month, SK Eternix signed an agreement with multiple financial investors to secure 461 billion won ($336.1 million), marking the largest investment to date in Korea's fuel cell sector. The company anticipates this partnership will cover 85 percent of the total investment cost of

Nov. 4, 2024

Celltrion expands European reach with anti-imflammatory drug

Celltrion has launched Steqeyma, a biosimilar of Stelara (ustekinumab) for autoimmune disease treatment, across Europe, broadening its product portfolio to further strengthen its position in the European biopharmaceutical market. On Friday, Celltrion introduced Steqeyma in Germany, one of Europe’s top five pharmaceutical markets, and in the Netherlands. To expedite the product launch, Celltrion’s German subsidiary completed essential preliminary steps, including drug price listing an

Nov. 4, 2024

ShinWon launches R&D center in New York

South Korean fashion company ShinWon announced Sunday that it has launched an R&D Design Center in New York, to strengthen its presence in global markets. Currently, ShinWon operates seven manufacturing subsidiaries in Guatemala, Nicaragua, Vietnam and Indonesia, all known for their expertise in knit and sweater production. With these production capabilities, the company has maintained long-term collaborations with top global brands like Patagonia, Columbia, GAP, Target and Walmart. &ldquo

Nov. 3, 2024

[From the Scene] Gumi, home to Nongshim’s largest factory, rebrands itself as ‘city of ramyeon'

GUMI, North Gyeongsang Province -- In front of the modest Gumi Station building on Friday, the streets bustled with crowds enjoying ramyeon, despite the rainy weather. Claiming to be "the longest ramyeon restaurant in the world," the 475-meter long strip occupied by the event zone featured 24 booths offering an array of ramyeon-based dishes prepared by chefs from local establishments, including snack bars, bistros, and food trucks. In a seating area accommodating up to 960 people, visi

Nov. 3, 2024

Korean battery makers brace for impact of US election

With the US presidential election just around the corner, Korean battery companies are bracing for change as the result could have significant effects on the industry, particularly if Republican candidate Donald Trump wins. Korea’s leading battery producers -- LG Energy Solution, Samsung SDI and SK On -- have depended on the Advanced Manufacturing Production Credit under the Biden administration’s Inflation Reduction Act for operating profits. According to the quarterly earnings repo

Nov. 3, 2024

Hana opens 100th child care center

Hana Financial Group said Sunday that it has launched the 100th child care center in Bonghwa-gun, North Gyeongsang Province, as part of its 150 billion won ($108.6 billion) project aiming at addressing the nation’s chronically low birth rate. The Korean financial giant launched the project in 2018, with the aim of establishing a total of 100 child care centers nationwide in collaboration with provincial governments. "I am very pleased with this achievement after six years of efforts t

Nov. 3, 2024