Retailers roll out paid vaccine leave as vaccine rollout speeds up

Retail giants such as Shinsegae Group and Lotte Group are rolling out paid vaccine leave for staff as the country’s vaccine rollout gathers speed. Shinsegae Group, the retail giant behind Shinsegae Department Store and Emart, said on Monday it would provide two days off work to those who get vaccinated. The group said one additional day off will be provided to those who have side effects from vaccination. “We are actively providing our employees with an environment where they can

May 31, 2021

FTC orders Ford to correct false marketing claim

Ford Sales and Service Korea received a correction order from the Fair Trade Commission for misrepresenting one of its vehicles as having a rear braking support system, the watchdog agency said Monday. According to the FTC, the importer and seller of the US-based Ford advertised in 2019 that its sport utility vehicle the Ford Explorer Limited was equipped with a reverse braking system, which was not true. In brochures and on its official website, the automaker had said the function helped t

May 31, 2021

South Korea’s ETF market likely to expand on eased regulations

The exchange traded fund market in South Korea is soon expected to expand in size along with the government’s move to ease regulations regarding actively managed ETFs, a report showed Monday. As the Korea Exchange has allowed the listing of active ETFs since August, eight new related products were launched on the nation’s main bourse Kospi on Tuesday. Previously, only bond ETFs could be listed on the local stock market, according to Korea Investment & Securities strategist Seo S

May 31, 2021

Rate hike inevitable in H2 under current pace of recovery: think tank

South Korea’s central bank should raise its benchmark interest rate in the second half of the year, given the faster-than-expected pace of the economic recovery, a think tank here said. “If the Bank of Korea decides to carry out a belated rate hike, then the economy could see a bigger shock stemming from a possible economic slowdown or a capital market crunch,” Park Sung-wook, a researcher at the Korea Institute of Finance, said in a report released Sunday. “Our econo

May 31, 2021

Gaps in funding, data, economic development hurdles for green economy: FSC chief

Private sectors across the globe should make a concerted effort to narrow the gaps in achieving the philanthropic goal of a green economy, said a top financial regulator of South Korea. “Even if a nation successfully puts an end to COVID-19, the pandemic will not be over until it’s over everywhere,” Financial Services Commission Chairman Eun Sung-soo said in an opening remark of Partnering for Green Growth and the Global Goals 2030‘s special session on Saturday. &ldquo

May 31, 2021

Korean Air wins 2nd approval for Asiana takeover from Thailand

Korean Air Lines Co., South Korea's biggest carrier, said Monday it has obtained its second overseas approval from Thailand for its planned acquisition of smaller local rival Asiana Airlines Inc. Korean Air said it recently received approval from the Thai regulator, following the first from Turkey in February. It still needs nods from seven other countries and the European Union to proceed with the 1.8 trillion won ($1.6 billion) deal to acquire the debt-ridden Asiana. The seven countries i

May 31, 2021

Nature Republic’s Myeongdong branch sits on priciest spot for 18 years

A 170-square-meter land in Myeong-dong, central Seoul, where South Korean beauty brand Nature Republic’s flagship store is located, has been named the most expensive real estate property in the country for the eighteenth consecutive year, data showed Monday.  The prime plot in the middle of the downtown shopping district was appraised at nearly 200 million won ($179,800) per square-meter, up 3.8 percent from 190 million won estimated a year earlier, according to data released by th

May 31, 2021

S. Korea to rev up space development after lifting of US missile

South Korea's science minister said Monday the country will expand investment and focus on the development of its space program after the United States lifted all restrictions on the country's missiles. During a bilateral summit on May 21, South Korea and the US agreed to scrap the restrictions on South Korean missiles, which was first put in place in 1979 and had limited Seoul's development of even non-military space projectiles. The guidelines, which have undergone revisions over the years,

May 31, 2021

Steelmakers, automakers agree to price hike of steel sheets

South Korean steelmakers have raised prices of automotive steel for the first time in four years, people familiar with the matter said Monday, a move that could boost their bottom lines. Posco, the country's largest steelmaker, reached a deal with Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Corp. to raise the price of a ton of automotive steel to 50,000 won ($45), they said. The move is meant to reflect the increased costs of iron ore, one of the main raw materials used in steel production. The price of iron o

May 31, 2021

Naver’s voice AI to call vaccine recipients in Jeonju to monitor health

Naver’s voice-powered AI will call up vaccine recipients in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province, to monitor their health status, the company said Monday. The pilot program, dubbed the COVID-19 AI CareCall Service, has already been deployed in Busan, Seongnam and Suwon. Starting from June 1, calls are expected to reach COVID-19 vaccine recipients aged 75 and above residing in select areas of the city four days after inoculation to check if they are experiencing any adverse effects. If a sy

May 31, 2021

Seoul city opens bike lanes along Cheonggye Stream

The Seoul metropolitan government opened elevated bicycle lanes Monday along a stream that flows through the heart of the city as part of efforts to encourage the use of the eco-friendly means of transportation among citizens and tourists. The bike lanes were built on a 5.94-kilometer-long section of the existing two-way roads that run along Cheonggye Stream, connecting Cheonggye Plaza near Gwanghwamun to Gosanja Bridge in the eastern ward of Dongdaemun. Raised to the same height as the sidew

May 31, 2021

April sees 2.1% on-year growth in number of employees

The number of employees at local businesses grew on-year by 2.1 percent in April on the back of an economic recovery, the labor ministry said Monday. As of the last business day of April, there were 18.6 million people employed by companies, up 379,000 from the same month last year, the Ministry of Employment and Labor said in a monthly report. The increase is the largest in 21 months, after 396,000 in July 2019. The coronavirus pandemic caused negative growth in employee numbers starting in

May 31, 2021

S. Korea to spend W3.6tr for convergence of industries

South Korea plans to invest 3.6 trillion won ($3.2 billion) this year to promote the convergence of different industries and foster new growth engines, the industry ministry said Monday. The budget, which marks a 3.7 percent rise from 3.46 trillion won allocated in 2020, will be spent on 163 projects, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The projects will center on helping the country's vision to go carbon neutral by 2050 and speed up the development of contact-free econom

May 31, 2021

S. Korea likely to collect larger tax revenue this year amid economic recovery

South Korea is likely to collect larger-than-expected tax revenue this year, potentially securing ammunition to finance another extra budget that could be under review to help underpin an economic recovery. The country may be able to collect more than 300 trillion won ($269 billion) in tax revenue this year, up around 17 trillion won from the government's earlier forecast of 282.7 trillion won, according to government and parliamentary officials. This, if realized, would also mark an increase

May 31, 2021

Hyundai Oilbank to establish 100,000-ton blue hydrogen ecosystem

Hyundai Oilbank said Monday it will establish a blue hydrogen ecosystem with an annual production capacity of 100,000 metric tons by 2025 and convert carbon generated from the production process into commercial products such as dry ice. According to the South Korean energy company, the ecosystem will extract hydrogen from natural gas and refinery by-products and remove carbon to make the hydrogen “blue.” The hydrogen will be then transported, delivered and supplied to customers to

May 31, 2021

Samsung Heavy bags W417b order for 2 LNG carriers

Samsung Heavy Industries Co. said Monday that it has signed a 417 billion won ($374 million) deal to build two liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers. Under the deal with an Oceanian company, Samsung Heavy will deliver the vessels by July 2024, the company said in a regulatory filing. The vessels will be equipped with devices to boost fuel efficiency, the shipbuilder said. With the latest deal, Samsung Heavy has bagged orders worth $5.4 billion for 44 ships so far this year, achieving 59 perc

May 31, 2021

Hyundai, Kia's eco-friendly car exports up 47% in Jan.-April

Hyundai Motor Group's eco-friendly vehicle exports jumped 46.6 percent in the first four months of this year compared with a year earlier, led by robust demand for its electric vehicle (EVs) and hybrid models, industry data showed Monday. The combined exports of eco-friendly models by the Korean automotive group's two affiliates -- Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Corp. -- stood at 118,321 units in the January-April period, up from 80,689 units a year ago, according to the data by the Korean Automobi

May 31, 2021

LG to release new 32-inch gaming monitor in S. Korea

LG Electronics Inc. said Monday its new gaming monitor will be available in South Korea this week as the tech giant aims to expand its sales amid the pandemic-driven stay-at-home trend. LG's latest 32-inch UltraGear monitor, 32GP850, will hit local shelves Tuesday with a price tag of 799,000 won (US$720). The addition of the 32GP850 expands LG's gaming monitor portfolio to 19 models, with their display sizes ranging from 24 inches to 38 inches. The new monitor comes with Nano IPS display s

May 31, 2021

Samsung ups presence in Europe, Middle East and Africa in Q1: report

Samsung Electronics Co. expanded its presence in the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) smartphone market in the first quarter of the year, a report showed Monday The South Korean tech giant shipped 30.6 million smartphones in the EMEA market in the January-March period for a 32.8 percent market share, according to the latest report from industry researcher International Data Corp. (IDC). The figures were up from a year earlier when the company shipped 22.7 million smartphones for a 29.5 p

May 31, 2021

[Graphic News] Local craft beers gain popularity in S. Korea

　South Korea’s homegrown craft beer has gained popularity in recent years, industry data showed, as local brewers offer a wider range of flavors at competitive prices. 　The local craft beer market was valued at 118 billion won ($105.6 million) as of 2020, sharply up from 43.3 billion won in 2017, according to data from the Korea Craft Brewers’ Association. 　Local craft brewers have expanded their presence in the market as craft beers have become more widely available at conv

May 31, 2021