Amid the generally sluggish business results of the Korean beauty industry during the first quarter, market analysts provided contrasting second quarter expectations for leading beauty giants LG Household & Health Care and Amorepacific. While the former's prospects appear dim, the latter is expected to rebound with the company's aggressive expansion of sales of its flagship brand Sulwhasoo, said stock market observers Monday. According to financial market tracker FN Guide, LG H&

Industry May 8, 2023

May is traditionally a month for a slew of family-oriented celebrations that involve gift-giving and outdoor dining. Regarding the holidays that are concentrated in early May, more than 80 percent of Koreans in their 20s said they feel pressured about having to spend money on holidays in "family month," according to a recent survey. The survey, conducted by job seeking site AlbaChunkuk on 615 Koreans in their 20s, showed that 85 percent of the respondents had replied they felt "st

Economy May 5, 2023

A South Korean climate tech company LowCarbon said Friday it struck up a partnership with the state of Florida in a bid to ramp up its efforts to construct research hubs for clean hydrogen technology in the United States and expand its presence in the US hydrogen market. Via a memorandum of agreement signed at a hotel in Seoul on April 26, LowCarbon said it is expected to participate in the $8 billion clean hydrogen hub project sought by the US Department of Energy and the Floridian government.

Industry May 5, 2023

The century-old Italian-South Korean sportswear brand Fila is vying for long-term growth by establishing global consistency in its businesses, chiefly by incorporating ESG values into its operations across the world, according to the firm's chairman. Gene Yoon, chairman of Fila Holdings & Acushnet Holdings, said during an online interview Thursday that Fila will be putting in all efforts to prepare a solid foundation for the company's long-term growth by undertaking more concrete E

Industry May 4, 2023

Korean people love burgers, but potential buyers hesitate to snap up deals tied to global burger franchises like McDonald's due to rigorous headquarter policies that often spark conflict and hinder growth. McDonald's Korea has been struggling to find a buyer since it has been put up for sale in June last year despite double-digit growth of Korea's hamburger market in recent years. According to market research firm Euromonitor, the hamburger market here was valued at 4 trillion won ($2.9 billion)

Industry May 3, 2023

May, also known as "family month," is when Korean consumers dine out in celebration of a string of family-oriented holidays such as Children's Day, Parent's Day and Teacher's Day. However, with the country seeing an exponential growth in consumer prices lately -- mainly those of agricultural products and livestock -- concerns are rising that dining out is increasingly becoming less affordable for most Koreans. Kim, a white-collar worker in his 20s, told The Korea Herald

Consumer May 1, 2023

Kim Min-young, a white-collar office worker in her 30s, said that in light of the start of golf season -- which customarily runs from April to September -- she recently spent some 700,000 won ($523) on clothes from the newly released spring and summer collection launched by her favorite golf wear brand. "When my friends and I go to golf courses for a game, there's definitely that tension of scanning who is using what and who is wearing what -- and what brands the products are from,&q

Industry April 29, 2023

Posco Group's general trading arm Posco International said Thursday the company has seen a significant improvement in terms of performance, according to its first quarterly earnings report released since merging with Posco Energy on January. In a regulatory filing, Posco International said it recorded 8.3 trillion won ($6.1 billion) in sales from January to March, a 16 percent decrease from the same period from a year earlier. However, the company added that it generally saw a jump in its p

Industry April 27, 2023

South Korean steel giant Posco said Tuesday it had signed its first ever long-term agreement with Samsung Electronics in a bid to expand technical cooperation between the two industrial giants and to jointly seek new business opportunities. According to Posco, its Vice Chairman Kim Hak-dong and Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Han Jong-hee visited Samsung's headquarters in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, to iterate the specifics of the three-year agreement the two companies signed in March. &quo

Industry April 25, 2023

Delivery workers of e-commerce giant Coupang's subcontractors have set up a labor union, calling for better working conditions amid the company’s rapid growth in recent years. According to the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, one of the major umbrella confederations of unions here, the new labor union held a launching ceremony at the company’s logistics center in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, on Monday. This labor union primarily includes delivery workers at subcontracted comp

Consumer April 24, 2023

More than 200 times the amount of pesticides permitted on avocados had been detected in those shipped from Colombia to South Korea, according to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. In 22,080 kilograms of Colombian avocados imported by a Korean agricultural product trade platform operator Tridge, 2.03 milligrams per kilogram of thiabendazole had been detected. This is much higher than the standard of 0.01 milligram per kilogram set by the Korean regulator. Thiabendazole, a fungicide and pestici

Consumer April 21, 2023

This article is the seventh installment in a series of interviews with global business chiefs of South Korean food companies that are expanding aggressively in overseas markets. -- Ed. Amid the rising demand for healthy foods, South Korea has increasingly exported its traditional superfood samgyetang, or ginseng chicken soup, to overseas markets in recent years. According to the Korea Agro-Fisheries and Food Trade Corp., exports of samgyetang have jumped by 64 percent from $11 million in 2017 to

Consumer April 20, 2023

A delegation from Vietnam held a conference in Seoul on Wednesday to promote the Vietnamese province of Thai Binh's potential to rise as an industrial zone, calling for investments from South Korean companies. The event, co-organized by Thai Binh Provincial People's Committee, the Embassy of the Vietnam and The Korea Herald, sought to introduce the province's transition from agriculture-oriented industry to a smart industrial complex. "As of first quarter of 2023, Thai Binh&#

Industry April 19, 2023

Fashion and materials conglomerate Kolon Group is eyeing the aerospace business as its driver of future growth, following its belief that the group’s know-how in producing various composite materials will prove competitive in the space sector. Kolon set in motion its vision to foray into the space business in 2019, starting with its venture capital unit Kolon Investment’s 1 billion won ($757,679) investment in Innospace, a South Korean startup specializing in developing hybrid space

Industry April 18, 2023

South Korean's annual expenditure per capita on pets, along with the nation's pet-related businesses, is growing steadily, data released Monday showed. Purchase records from 2019 to 2022 compiled by the big data center at major Korean card firm Shinhan Card showed that the average annual spending per person at a slew of pet-related services or products -- such as animal hospitals, dog hotels, dog cafes, and dog salons -- recorded 353,000 won ($268) last year, the highest in four years.

Industry April 17, 2023