S. Korea's 5G users near 11m in November: data

South Korea racked up nearly 11 million users on fifth-generation (5G) wireless networks as of end-November, data showed Thursday.  The country had 10.9 million 5G users last month, accounting for 15.5 percent of the total 70.5 million mobile subscriptions, according to data compiled by the Ministry of Science and ICT.  Subscriptions to the high-speed networks jumped by nearly 1 million from the previous month amid launches of new 5G phones, such as Apple Inc.'s iPhone 12 series, th

Dec. 31, 2020

Asiana Airlines appoints new CEO in executive reshuffle

Asiana Airlines named Jung Sung-kwon as the new CEO in a major executive reshuffle on Thursday. Jung, who previously served as the head of the airline’s China operations, will replace current CEO Han Chang-soo to lead the country‘s second-largest carrier. Born in 1963, Jung joined Asiana in 1988 and had taken on multiple roles including finance and human resources. In the shakeup, Ahn Byung-suk, Asiana Airline‘s management director, has been tapped to head Air Busan, its s

Dec. 31, 2020

Top 8 purchases of 2020

We are what we buy. Our purchases reflect our needs and desires, formed by the circumstances and trends of the time. If before, people spent money on goods that would enhance their exteriors, such as garments and cosmetics, in pandemic-ridden 2020, confined to homes for the most part and always hidden behind masks when outdoors, many opted to buy items that would enrich their lives at home instead. In this listicle, we decided to pay tribute to the buys that made this weary year more bearable.

Dec. 31, 2020

Lingering COVID-19 risks cloud S. Korea’s anticipated recovery in 2021

Despite heightened hopes that vaccinations would put an end to the still ongoing pandemic in the new year, the South Korean economy is expected to face another series of challenges, uncertainties and risks. The COVID-19 pandemic was the biggest threat to Asia’s fourth-largest economy last year, dragging down its GDP in the second quarter to minus 3.3 percent, the lowest since the 1997-98 Asian Financial Crisis when the country went through massive restructuring nationwide. Reflecting c

Dec. 31, 2020

Bio sector output up 16.2% at over W12tr in 2019: data

Output in South Korea's bio industry increased 16.2 percent in 2019 from the previous year on the back of robust growth of outsourced business, industry data showed Thursday. The value of output in the local bio industry was estimated at 12.32 trillion won ($11.36 billion) last year, compared with 10.48 trillion won a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Biotechnology Industry Organization. Noticeably, the value of outsourced services that include contract manufacturing organizat

Dec. 31, 2020

Businesses’ 2021 wish: Clear line between politics and economy

Deregulation is what South Korean business entities want badly for the new year, with many of them raising concerns about a slew of legislation that they say will constrain business activities. According to New Year’s messages from heads of the country’s major business lobby organizations, Korean companies are calling on the government to cut them some slack in operating their businesses in the harsh environment that is expected to unfold amid the COVID-19 pandemic throughout 202

Dec. 31, 2020

Consumer prices grew 0.5 % in 2020

South Korea‘s consumer price inflation hovered below 1 percent this year for the second consecutive year, data showed Thursday. According to data by Statistics Korea, the consumer price index stood at 105.42 in 2020, up 0.5 percent from a year earlier. In 2019, the index rose 0.4 percent. Core inflation, which excludes volatile food and oil prices, grew 0.4 percent in 2020, the lowest since a 0.2 percent fall in 1999. It marks the first time annual inflation has stayed below 1 percent

Dec. 31, 2020

Yuhan-Kimberly appoints Chin Jae-seung as new CEO

Yuhan-Kimberly will get a new chief executive on Friday -- Chin Jae-seung, the company’s vice president of marketing and innovation. He will replace Choe Kyoo-bok as CEO. The appointment of Chin was decided at a board meeting in December. 　 According to Yuhan-Kimberly, Chin, 56, has served in several management roles since joining the company in 1989. After years in product research and development, the executive has since 2010 led business segments including baby and child care, fe

Dec. 31, 2020

BOK chief to pay more attention to jobs in 2021 monetary policy

South Korea's central bank will pay more attention to jobs in its monetary policy next year, Bank of Korea (BOK) Gov. Lee Ju-yeol said Thursday, as the coronavirus pandemic has ravaged the labor market. The BOK will "take into consideration the employment situation as an important factor of decisions in guiding monetary policy," Lee said in his New Year's address. Lee's remarks came amid growing calls for the BOK to have legal responsibility for the job market's stability in an econo

Dec. 31, 2020

Insurers' financial health improves in Q3

South Korean insurance companies saw their financial health improve in the third quarter as more profits and share price gains bolstered capital, data showed Thursday. The risk-based capital (RBC) ratio of local insurance firms stood at 283.9 percent at end-September, up 7.5 percentage points from three months earlier, according to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). Their RBC ratio rose for the second consecutive quarter in the July-September period on the back of greater e

Dec. 31, 2020

Cash-strapped Doosan Heavy improves financial health via self-rescue plan

Cash-strapped Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Co. has improved its financial health this year by selling new shares and assets and receiving financial help from its holding company Doosan Corp. and key shareholders, a local rating appraiser said Thursday. "Doosan Heavy has been improving its financial status and reducing its debts on the back of Doosan Group's self-rescue plan," NICE Investors Service said in its report. The rating agency retained Doosan Heavy's long-term

Dec. 31, 2020

LG Energy Solution ranks second in EV battery market in Jan.-Nov. period

South Korean battery maker LG Energy Solution Ltd. was the second-biggest supplier of electric vehicle (EV) batteries in the first 11 months of the year following China's CATL, a market research firm said Thursday. LG Energy Solution, which spun off from LG Chem Ltd. earlier this month, shipped 26.4 gigawatt-hour (GWh) equivalents of EV batteries in the January-November period, accounting for 22.6 percent of the global market, according to the data by SNE Research. China's CATL supplied 24.4 G

Dec. 31, 2020

S. Korea's consumer prices grow less than 1% for 3rd month in Dec.

South Korea's consumer prices grew less than 1 percent for the third straight month in December, data showed Thursday, indicating low inflationary pressure in Asia's fourth-largest economy amid the new coronavirus outbreak. For the whole year, the annual inflation rose by less than 1 percent for the second consecutive year for the first time due largely to the fallout of the pandemic. The consumer price index rose 0.5 percent on-year in December, slowing from a 0.6 percent on-year gain the pre

Dec. 31, 2020

Iraq signs $2.625b Faw port contract with Daewoo E&C

  Iraq agreed a $2.625 billion deal with South Korea's Daewoo Engineering & Construction on Wednesday to build the first phase at its planned Faw commodities port in the south of the country. Under the contract, signed in Baghdad by representatives of Iraq's transportation ministry and the South Korean company, Daewoo E&C will handle construction work including building fiveberths to unload ships and a yard for containers. (Reuters)

Dec. 30, 2020

South Korea will e-connect for New Year celebrations

New Year’s events are no exception to social distancing rules against COVID-19. People in South Korea will have to “e-connect” for the upcoming New Year’s celebrations, as the government maintains strict antivirus measures that include a ban on large gatherings. The annual bell-ringing ceremony on New Year‘s eve at the Bosingak Pavilion in Jongno in central Seoul will go virtual, as the Seoul Metropolitan Government officially canceled the in-person event for t

Dec. 30, 2020

Cloud of uncertainty over Samsung as chief Lee faces possible jail time

The country’s largest conglomerate Samsung has been left unsure of what its future holds as its de facto chief faces possible jail time for corruption. Whether or not Lee Jae-yong will be put behind bars again in the finale of a three-year court saga, leaving a void at the top of the world’s No. 1 chipmaker, will be decided by a Seoul court in January. Samsung Electronics on Wednesday appeared calm, at least on the surface, after local prosecutors demanded nine years in prison fo

Dec. 30, 2020

[News Focus] COVID-19 vaccines: What’s coming and when?

South Korea’s COVID-19 vaccine plans are slowly taking shape. Once shrouded in secrecy, the government is no longer holding back in sharing the outcomes of negotiations with individual vaccine firms in securing the doses necessary for the country. As of Wednesday, Korea has signed deals with AstraZeneca, Janssen and Pfizer-BioNTech, and is in close talks with Moderna, on top of the vaccines it is to receive through the global nonprofit COVAX facility. According to what is known through

Dec. 30, 2020

Kospi hits another fresh high on final trading session of 2020

South Korea’s stock market ended its final trading session of the year on Wednesday, hitting another fresh high on market expectations for the chip industry. After a roller-coaster ride this year, the Kospi closed at 2,873.47, up 52.96 points or 1.88 percent from the previous session’s close. It began trading slightly lower at 2,820.36, but the index began moving in afternoon trading. Both foreign and institutional investors became buyers, scooping up a net 249 billion won ($229.

Dec. 30, 2020

[Best Brand] Lotte leads digital transformation of duty-free stores

The COVID-19 pandemic has decimated international travel, and duty-free stores have bore a large portion of the brunt. Lotte Duty Free, the No. 1 player in the local market, looked beyond present troubles and embraced contactless and smart shopping as the new normal for the duty-free industry. In an industry first, the company introduced a “smart store” that incorporates digital technologies and minimizes face-to-face contacts between shoppers and clerks.  Located on the fi

Dec. 30, 2020

[Best Brand] GeniRobot’s coding education robot goes global

South Korean education technology company GeniRobot is targeting the global education robot market with its all-in-one coding robot Genibot. Despite growing demand for coding education, the global education robot market -- estimated at $60 billion with a projected annual growth of 24 percent -- lacks suitable products.  In just six months after its launch, GeniRobot’s Genibot recorded sales of more than 20,000 units at home and abroad. “GeniRobot is planning an expansion t

Dec. 30, 2020