Yoon Dong-han, president of cosmetics and health care goods manufacturer Kolmar Korea, apologized and resigned Sunday after showing a controversial video praising Japan to employees last week.During a press conference at Kolmar Korea’s headquarters in Seoul, Yoon said he deeply regretted his behavior and would take responsibility by resigning from the top post.“I apologize to our clients for causing harm due to my wrong behavior, and also to customers who trusted Kolmar Korea product

Industry Aug. 11, 2019

Hyundai Motor Group’s hydrogen-powered fuel cell vehicle Nexo has earned the Top Safety Pick+ award from US’ Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, the carmaker said Sunday.It was the first time for IIHS to evaluate a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle and also to give an award.According to IIHS, Nexo has earned top ratings in moderate overlap front, driver-side small overlap front, passenger-side small overlap front, side, roof strength and head restraint tests. It also received &ldqu

Mobility Aug. 11, 2019

The South Korean government said Thursday that Japan has allowed high-tech materials to be exported to South Korea in the first approval since the Shinzo Abe administration imposed export curbs in July on three materials crucial for Korea’s chip and display production. Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon said Thursday that Japan had granted its first approval for exporting extreme ultraviolet photoresists to Korea a day earlier. EUV photoresists are one of the three materials that Japan restri

Industry Aug. 8, 2019

South Korea’s aviation industry is on the edge with the aviation talks this week between South Korea and the United Arab Emirates, over the latter’s demand to double the route allocation.During the summit being held on Wednesday-Thursday in Abu Dhabi attended by Korea’s Transport Ministry officials, their UAE counterparts are likely to request increasing the Incheon-Dubai and Incheon-Abu Dhabi routes up to 14 times a week, according to industry sources.Their previous talks in J

Industry Aug. 7, 2019

SsangYong Motors, the South Korean unit of India’s Mahindra & Mahindra, is seeking measures to revive its business amid dwindling sales and liquidity woes, according to the company Tuesday.According to a letter sent to employees, SsangYong Motor CEO Yea Byung-tae said the company would conduct an organizational reshuffle in September to normalize business. The company will also reduce 10 to 20 percent of its senior executive workforce in the annual reshuffle slated for February, as wel

Mobility Aug. 6, 2019

YONGIN, Gyeonggi Province -- For many, driving is fun and a way to relieve stress. But that’s only the case when you are not on the jam-packed downtown roads.Although automakers boast about acceleration and maximum torque, drivers don’t get a chance to fully experience the car’s capacity, not to mention drifting through curves and feeling the full potential of the engine. At Mercedes-Benz’s AMG Driving Academy, however, all are possible.  One can hop on a range

Mobility Aug. 5, 2019

Arizona-based aloe vera manufacturer Forever Living aims to appeal to Korean customers with high-quality products and marketing of its aloe vera-based health and diet supplements.Forever Living -- the largest aloe vera retailer in the world with 4 trillion won ($3 billion) in annual sales -- entered Korea in 1988.The company has a presence in dozens of countries, with its aloe vera products ranging from cosmetics to health and diet supplements.  It also runs Forever Nutraceutical, a researc

Industry Aug. 4, 2019

Following Japan’s decision on Friday to delist South Korea from its whitelist of trusted trade partners, domestic companies importing 857 items including hi-tech materials will come under tighter rules for export approval. The items categorized as “nonsensitive” in the list of Japan’s strategic materials include precision machine tools and fine chemical products, such as functional films and adhesives, as well as carbon fiber which is used to produce aircrafts and au

Industry Aug. 2, 2019

Amid the escalating trade dispute between Seoul and Toyko, Japanese fashion brand Uniqlo has seen its sales dwindle by 40 percent in South Korea as a result of an ongoing boycott of Japanese goods by Korean consumers, industry sources said Friday.  According to the industry, Uniqlo’s sales nose-dived after July 11, when Uniqlo Chief Financial Officer Takeshi Okazaki said during an earnings press call that the impact of the boycott would be short-lived. Fast Retailing Co., which o

Industry Aug. 2, 2019

South Korean retail conglomerates Lotte Group and Shinsegae Group ranked among the top 10 retailers in Asia, a list dominated by e-commerce companies, market data showed Thursday. According to market researcher Euromonitor International, which compiled a list of the top 100 retailers in Asia based on sales last year, Lotte ranked eighth and Shinsegae came in at No. 10, having respectively recorded $27.4 billion and $25.3 billion in sales. Chinese online marketplace Alibaba topped the l

Industry Aug. 1, 2019

The number of passengers flying from South Korea to Japan significantly decreased this month amid ongoing trade tensions between the two countries, data showed Wednesday. The Transport Ministry data showed that from July 16 to 31, a total of 467,249 passengers departed for Japan from Incheon International Airport, down about 13.4 percent or 72,411 passengers compared with June 16 to 30.  Amid an intensifying nationwide boycott targeting Japanese goods and travel to Japan, Korea’s

Industry July 31, 2019

When Kia Motors said its latest compact sport utility vehicle Seltos would be a game-changer in the local SUV market, the company was met with doubts, as the automaker already has three other small SUVs -- the Stoniq, Soul and Niro. But upon the official launch of Seltos this month, and with a single test-drive of Seltos, feelings of doubt immediately changed to pleasant surprise. Driving Seltos on a 65-kilometer route from Wonju, Gangwon Province, to Yeoju, Gyeonggi Province, it was c

Mobility July 30, 2019

Amid the expanding market size of budget airlines following the South Korean government’s approval of three additional low-cost carriers earlier this year, they have become the most-preferred travel option for Koreans due to their low costs and widespread connectivity. Competition among LCCs is growing intense, with more air carriers stretching their services by introducing larger, long-haul aircrafts as well as premium seats such as Jeju Air’s “New Class.”But accord

Industry July 29, 2019

South Korea’s Oriental Brewery on Monday denied news reports that its parent Belgian company AB InBev is seeking to sell its majority stake. According to local media reports, AB InBev -- which acquired OB for $5.8 billion in 2014 -- has been contacting local retail conglomerates such as Lotte and Shinsegae, as well as private equity funds via foreign securities companies to sell its stake. The deal could be worth some 9 trillion won ($7.65 billion). But OB has flatly denied such

Industry July 29, 2019

Hyundai Motor Group’s logistics arm Hyundai Glovis is widening its overseas presence by opening its first Southeast Asian office in Vietnam.Hyundai Glovis Vietnam, which was launched Thursday, will serve as a bridgehead for the company to expand its business in the region, the firm said.The company will focus on transporting automotive and nonautomotive products such as food, cold chain products, textile and clothing. It will also supply auto parts to a local factory which has an annual ou

Industry July 28, 2019