Exports of strawberries up 25% in Jan.-May period

South Korea's exports of strawberries rose nearly 25 percent on-year in the first five months of this year on the back of robust output and rising demand amid the pandemic, data showed Tuesday. The country's exports of strawberries reached $49 million in the January-May period, up 24.7 percent from a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. The gain was mainly attributable to an increase in strawberry output and the use of chartered flights for outbound s

June 15, 2021

Samsung releases new multi-chip package for 5G smartphones

Samsung Electronics Co. on Tuesday released a new multi-chip package (MCP) memory product for use in 5G smartphones as the South Korean tech giant tries to better target the fast-growing handset market. The world's largest memory chip producer said it has begun mass-producing low-power double data rate 5 (LPDDR5) universal flash storage (UFS) MCP that integrates high-performance DRAM and NAND flash memory chips in a single compact package. The latest MCP comes with Samsung's LPDDR5 mobile DR

June 15, 2021

S. Korea to increase R&D investment in key future technologies

South Korea plans to expand investment in research and development (R&D) of key future technologies, such as system semiconductors, as part of the country's key digital policy projects, a senior government official said Tuesday. Without elaborating on the amount of the investment, First Vice Finance Minister Lee Eog-weon said the country will focus on sharpening its competitive edge in new industries, including artificial intelligence (AI) semiconductors and super high speed computers. Sou

June 15, 2021

LG Uplus launches AI call center biz

LG Uplus Corp., a major South Korean mobile carrier, said Tuesday it has joined hands with IT affiliate LG CNS Co. to develop call center services that use artificial intelligence (AI) technology. The service incorporates AI technology, such as speech recognition and synthesis as well as natural language processing, to respond to user questions and requests and can replace simple, repetitive tasks handled by call center agents. LG Uplus said it has accumulated the technology through its automa

June 15, 2021

LG researcher to head working group in Next G Alliance for 6G tech

LG Electronics Inc. said Tuesday one of its senior researchers will head a working group in a North American mobile technology alliance for 6G technology development. Lee Ki-dong, a principal researcher at LG, was elected the chair of the Applications working group in the Next G Alliance earlier this month, the company said. He has been given a two-year term to lead the working group that will address 6G-related application needs. The Next G Alliance was launched by the US-based Alliance for

June 15, 2021

BTS agency's market value tops W10tr on band's global popularity

Hybe Co., the K-pop powerhouse behind BTS, has seen its market capitalization exceed the 10 trillion-won ($8.95 billion) mark amid the boy band's global popularity, data showed Tuesday. Shares in Hybe closed at 282,000 won on Monday, up 2.36 percent from the prior session and marking a three-day winning streak. Monday's tally was well above the 258,000 won ($252) closing price recorded on Oct. 15 last year, or the day of its debut on South Korea's main stock market. The current price is nearl

June 15, 2021

Samsung likely to unveil new foldable smartphones in August

Samsung Electronics Co. is likely to unveil its new foldable smartphone in August, industry insiders said Tuesday, amid its push to popularize the foldable category. The South Korean tech giant is expected to hold its Galaxy Unpacked online event in early August to introduce the Galaxy Z Fold3 and the Galaxy Z Flip3 before officially launching those products later that month, according to the sources. Foreign tech reviewers have predicted that the event may take place on Aug. 3, but the sour

June 15, 2021

Seoul stocks open higher as investors await Fed meeting

South Korean stocks opened higher Tuesday ahead of the upcoming US Federal Reserve meeting this week. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 8.82 points, or 0.27 percent, to trade at 3,260.95 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. The KOSPI started off with mild gains as investors are awaiting clues about when the world's largest economy will start tapering its asset-buying policy. The Federal Open Market Committee rate decision comes on Wednesday (US time). Overnig

June 15, 2021

Samsung to supply 5G network solutions to Vodafone in Britain

Samsung Electronics said Monday it will supply its latest 5G network solutions to Vodafone, a London-based telecommunications giant, a move that will expand its presence in Europe. Under the deal, the South Korean tech giant will provide its commercial virtualized radio access network solutions and open radio network-compliant 5G radios to Vodafone UK. The value of the deal was not disclosed. It marks the first major deal whereby Samsung will supply its cloud native vRAN solutions to the Eur

June 14, 2021

DSME wins W1.1tr offshore facility order

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering, one of South Korea’s major shipbuilders, said Monday that it has won a trillion won unit order to build an offshore crude oil storage facility. The latest order marked the first offshore facility order for DSME in three years as well as the first trillion won unit order in seven years, officials said. The company obtained the order from Brazil’s largest energy firm, the state-owned Petrobras, to construct a floating production storage

June 14, 2021

KDB chief says SsangYong Motor's ‘cost-saving’ scheme not enough

South Korea’s financially ailing carmaker SsangYong Motor’s decision last week to send its employees on rotating unpaid leave for up to two years may not be sufficient enough to catch the eyes of new buyers, the chief of the Korea Development Bank said Monday. “I would like to thank SsangYong Motor’s leadership and its union on their agreement on the company’s latest self-rescue action focused on sending its employees on rotating unpaid leave –- it’s a

June 14, 2021

Celltrion proves efficacy of COVID-19 antibody treatment in phase 3 trial

South Korean pharmaceutical firm Celltrion announced Monday that its COVID-19 antibody treatment has significantly shortened the recovery time and rate of progression for severe symptoms. The firm disclosed top-line results from a global phase 3 clinical study of Regkirona, or CT-P59, which was conducted with 1,315 patients from 13 countries around the globe between January and April. Celltrion found Regkirona reduces the risk of cases progressing to severe COVID-19 by 70 percent. Among high

June 14, 2021

SKT buys into ViveStudios to enhance metaverse service

In an effort to lead the emerging era of the metaverse, SK Telecom has made a strategic equity investment in ViveStudios, a producer of virtual content, it announced Monday. The two sides did not disclose details of the deal, including the size of stake to be purchased or the agreed price. ViveStudios, based in Seoul, is recognized for its international award-winning virtual reality movie “Volt.” The producer is well known for superb 3D computer-generated images and visual ef

June 14, 2021

KB Asset Management launches first metaverse fund

KB Asset Management announced Monday that it has launched the industry’s first metaverse fund. KB Asset Management said it will invest in 30 to 50 stocks after considering 200 to 300 stocks in South Korea, the US, China and Japan that meet the investment conditions. The US stocks will account for 70 percent, the highest proportion of any country, while hardware and platforms will make up 30 percent each. The fund will be investing in Facebook, Apple, Microsoft, Autodesk, NVDIA, Unity So

June 14, 2021

No. of passengers on ‘flights to nowhere’ close to 16,000-mark

Nearly 16,000 people have enjoyed international “flights to nowhere” offered by South Korean airlines to boost revenue during the prolonged pandemic last year, the customs office said Monday. A total of 15,983 passengers boarded 152 international sightseeing flights between December last year and May this year, according to data compiled by the Korea Customs Service. The planes, which took off from Korea, entered airspace above other countries without stopping at any overseas destin

June 14, 2021

South Korea’s financial system at risk over fast-growing household debt

South Korea’s household debt is inviting concerns about the country’s economic resilience as its accumulated debt has grown more, relative to income, than that of any other economy. Asia’s fourth-largest economy continues to see a rapid rise in household debt, largely due to increased borrowing to make ends meet in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and to fund real estate purchases and stock investments amid record-low interest rates. As of the end of March, outstandin

June 14, 2021

[Herald Interview] Eve: making inclusive condoms for everyone

It is not so often that companies in South Korea go out of their way to cater to the LGBTQ community. Eve, however, is not afraid to embrace everyone. With its gender-neutral models and simple product packaging, the sexual health brand is a far cry from the heteronormative narrative that has dominated the condom industry for years. “While everyone who is sexually active is our potential target, it is true that the condom industry has heavily relied on sex appeal and focused on heterosexu

June 14, 2021

Seoul stocks hit all-time high amid expectation of dovish stance from US Fed

South Korean stocks closed at an all-time high Monday as investors expect the US Federal Reserve to reiterate its support for accommodative policies in this week's monetary policy meeting. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kopsi) rose 2.81 points, or 0.09 percent, to close at 3,252.13 points, marking the highest closing ever. Trading volume was moderate at about 1.6 billion shares worth some 15 trillion won ($13.4 billion), with losers

June 14, 2021

Hanwha Systems to develop underwater drone swarms for search and rescue missions

Hanwha Systems said Monday that it will develop autonomous underwater drone swarms for search and rescue missions by 2025. According to the defense business unit of Hanwha Group, it has formed a consortium with partners including the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology for the 25 billion-won project ($22.4 million) commissioned by the Korea Institute of Marine Science and Technology Promotion. “In bad weather conditions, human divers can’t be deployed due to poor

June 14, 2021

SK Inc.’s French bio arm sets to facility expansion

SK Inc.’s French bio subsidiary Yposkesi is set to build a second commercial bioproduction site in an effort to expand its footprint in the global biopharmaceutical market, officials said Monday. The French company has announced the launch of project SKY, a plan to inject some 58 million euros ($70 million) in the construction of its new manufacturing plant. Slated for completion by 2023, the forthcoming facility will be one of the largest advanced therapy medicinal product, or ATMP, fac

June 14, 2021