Toff Mobility to debut Asia's first electric plane service

South Korean air mobility start-up Toff Mobility said Tuesday that it plans to launch Asia’s first airline dedicated to battery-powered electric planes, in a move to reduce carbon emissions in the industry. Under the plan, Toff Mobility will introduce electric planes certified by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency to start tourism and logistics businesses next year. By 2026, it aims to expand the service to the regional airports and the nation's two islands of Ulleung and Jej

Aug. 22, 2023

S. Korean shipbuilders' new orders up 11.9 percent in H1

New orders won by South Korean shipbuilders jumped 11.9 percent in the first half of 2023 on the back of rising demand for high-priced vessels, the industry ministry said Tuesday. The country's shipbuilders secured orders worth $9.29 billion in the January-June period, compared with $8.24 billion a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. South Korea accounted for 29 percent of the orders placed worldwide in the first half, taking up the world's second spo

Aug. 22, 2023

Seoul shares driven higher by tech surge

South Korean stocks opened sharply higher Tuesday on tech gains. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 17.3 points, or 0.69 percent, to 2,526.1 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, Wall Street closed mixed, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rallying 1.56 percent and the S&P 500 rising 0.69 percent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.11 percent. US chipmaker Nvidia, which has spurred the artificial intelligence boom this year, sharply rose 8.3 percent ahe

Aug. 22, 2023

Big 4 chaebol groups seek to rebuild FKI

South Korea’s top four chaebol groups -- Samsung, SK, Hyundai Motor and LG -- are likely to rejoin the Federation of Korean Industries, the disgraced business lobby group that has remained practically defunct for years following the revelation of its role in a massive influence-peddling scandal in 2016. According to industry sources on Monday, key affiliates of the nation’s top conglomerates recently held board meetings to approve them rejoining the FKI. The latest decision comes a

Aug. 21, 2023

Seoul stocks snap 6-day losing streak, won hits 9-month low

South Korean shares broke six consecutive days of losses Monday, as China's interest rate cut helped ease market jitters over the country's financial sector and its overall economy. The local currency fell to the lowest level against the US dollar in almost nine months. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 4.3 points, or 0.17 percent, to finish at 2,508.8. Trading volume was slim at 393.37 million shares worth 8.39 trillion won ($6.24 billion), with gainers slightly o

Aug. 21, 2023

SK Ecoplant’s US partner Bloom forays into Germany

SK Ecoplant, the construction and energy arm of SK Group, said Monday that its US partner Bloom Energy has signed a supply deal for solid-oxide fuel cells, or SOFCs, with energy conglomerate EnBW, its first customer in Germany, with an aim to expand its presence in the European market. Under the agreement, Bloom Energy will provide 300 kilowatts of SOFCs to the geothermal plant of Geothermie-Gesellschaft Bruchsal, the affiliate of EnBW in Bruchsal, southern Germany. Since 2018, SK Ecoplant has b

Aug. 21, 2023

Yeouido to go English-friendly to attract investment

The Seoul Metropolitan Government said Monday that it has begun turning Yeouido, home to finance and investment banking businesses in Seoul, into a more English-friendly area in a bid to transform it into a global financial hub. “In the long term, we are considering the possibility of making English the official language of Yeouido to attract foreign investment,” Seoul Metropolitan Government official Kim Guk-jin said. “However, this cannot be accomplished in the short term, so

Aug. 21, 2023

[Photo News] Kia heritage

Kia unveiled the restored models of the automaker's two signature heritage vehicles -- the T-600 (left) and Brisa -- at its brand experience center, Kia360, in Seoul on Thursday. T-600, a three-wheeled car developed in 1969, became the 400th nationally registered cultural heritage in 2008 as it was recognized for its historical value in the history of the Korean auto industry. Kia said it had restored the vehicles to look back at its 79-year history as a mobility firm, adding that it will c

Aug. 21, 2023

Hyundai Department Store, Nestle team up in health push

South Korean retail conglomerate Hyundai Department Store Group said Monday it signed an agreement with global health care giant Nestle Health Science in a bid to expand its health-functional food business, one of its key growth drivers. During a signing ceremony held at Nestle's headquarters in Vevey, Switzerland, the two companies agreed to establish a partnership for Hyundai's exclusive distribution rights of Nestle’s health functional food products in Korea. "The bio-hea

Aug. 21, 2023

SK hynix unveils HBM3E, supplies sample to Nvidia

South Korean chipmaker SK hynix announced Monday it has successfully developed HBM3E, the next generation top performing DRAM chip for artificial intelligence applications. The chipmaker also said its customer is evaluating the sample of the new product. High Bandwidth Memory is a high-value, high-performance memory that vertically interconnects multiple DRAM chips, enabling a dramatic increase in data processing speed in comparison to earlier DRAM products. HBM3E is the extended version of the

Aug. 21, 2023

SKT buys stake in AI developer Persona.AI

South Korea's largest telecommunications carrier SK Telecom said Monday that it has become the third-largest shareholder of Persona.AI, a Seoul-based artificial intelligence contact center, or AICC. The company did not disclose other details, including the deal size and the amount of the stakes it secured. An AICC offers 24-hour customer consultations via AI chatbots and callbots. Persona.AI, using its own natural language processing engine, offers related solutions and subscription-based s

Aug. 21, 2023

Hanwha Life posts first accumulated profits in Vietnam

The Vietnamese arm of Hanwha Life Insurance posted its first accumulated profits since its launch 15 years ago. Marking the local unit’s 15th anniversary, the insurer held a ceremony in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam on Friday, where it unveiled its financial achievements. Since posting a net profit for the first time in 2016, the Vietnamese subsidiary has recorded profits for nearly five consecutive years between 2019 and 2023. As of the first half of this year, its accumulated profits reached

Aug. 21, 2023

SK Bioscience inks W67b vaccine deal with Thailand's GPO

South Korean drugmaker SK Bioscience said via a regulatory filing Monday that it had clinched a 67.9 billion won ($50.6 million) deal with a Thai state-run company Government Pharmaceutical Organization to provide undiluted solutions of its flu vaccine for 10 years. According to DART, the Financial Supervisory Service's electronic disclosure board, SK Bioscience will be providing undiluted solutions of its SKYCellflu products to GPO's vaccine manufacturing plant in Thailand until Aug.

Aug. 21, 2023

Innocean wins 10 Red Dot Design awards

Innocean Worldwide, the advertising subsidiary of Hyundai Motor Group, said Monday that it has won a total of 10 Red Dot Design Awards, one of the world’s top design competitions. The prestigious German award, held annually, recognizes innovative works and products from various categories, including product design, brand and communication design, and concept design. This year, Innocean garnered a number of recognitions in the advertising category. Most notably, it secured the Best of the B

Aug. 21, 2023

Samsung’s WindFree AC is peak of luxury design: top interior designer

Top interior designer Kwon Soon-book has praised Samsung Electronics’ latest WindFree air conditioner under the company's premium Bespoke Infinite line as a stylish home appliance to compliment any luxury interior in a recent interview. “(The) design might appear very simple at first. But it is precisely this simplicity that allows it to coexist with all elements, enhancing its spatial value,” said Kwon, CEO at Magenta Studio. According to Kwon, the key to a timeless aesth

Aug. 21, 2023

Seoul shares open higher amid rate hike, China concerns

South Korean stocks opened higher Monday amid fears of a US rate hike and China's economic concerns. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 9.6 points, or 0.38 percent, to 2,514.1 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Investor sentiment has been weighed down after China's heavily indebted property developer Evergrande Group filed for bankruptcy protection in the United States last week. Concerns are also lingering over a possible rate hike push by the US Federal Reserve, w

Aug. 21, 2023

Exports down 16.5% during first 20 days of August

South Korea's exports fell 16.5 percent on-year in the first 20 days of August due to sluggish shipments of chips and petroleum products, data showed Monday. The country's outbound shipments reached $27.9 billion in the Aug. 1-20 period, compared with $33.3 billion tallied a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. Imports fell 27.9 percent on-year to $31.4 billion during the period, resulting in a trade deficit of $3.6 billion. South Korea's exports fel

Aug. 21, 2023

Coway water purifier plant runs at 'full throttle' amid upbeat sales

South Korean home appliance maker Coway announced Friday that its ice-making water purifiers posted a 20 percent increase in sales in July compared to last year, amid unprecedented scorching weather. The sales of ice water purifiers during this summer peak season, from May to July, soared almost 50 percent from the previous year, according to the company. “To meet the increasing demand, our production line in Gongju, South Chungcheong Province, has been operated at full throttle since May,

Aug. 20, 2023

Samyang releases new spicy ramen brand Meptaeng

South Korean food manufacturer Samyang Foods said Sunday it launched a new spicy ramen brand called Meptaeng to mimic the global success of its bestseller Buldak Spicy Chicken Ramen, the popular spicy ramen product. Targeting consumers' distinctive craving for spicy noodles, the company said it has focused on introducing a diverse range of spiciness for its new noodle products. The three flavors include black pepper beef, garlic clam and chili pepper green onion. In order to help consumers

Aug. 20, 2023

Korea’s economic recovery falters as China's deflation looms

The South Korean economy faces fresh risks from China, with no immediate breakthrough in sight to recover its faltering exports. Recent figures show worsened woes in Beijing, indicating the country’s economy could be on a path of decline. China has slipped into deflation, reporting a 0.3 percent drop in consumer prices in July on-year. It was the first time in 29 months for the figure to nosedive to a minus range. Further data showed its retail sales, industrial output and investment all

Aug. 20, 2023