The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport on Monday unveiled a slew of long-term plans to establish smart logistics infrastructure across the country, which will enable one-hour delivery services using drones and artificial intelligence. The government said it first plans on commercializing robot deliveries by 2026 and drone deliveries by 2027. "We will support the development of technologies to commercialize unmanned deliveries, and create a test bed made exclusively for the pract

Consumer Feb. 20, 2023

South Korean food companies reported robust sales last year, but high raw material prices weighed down their profit growth. In 2022, Korean food companies Lotte Confectionery, SPC Samlip, Ottogi and Nongshim newly joined the short list of Korean food companies who posted annual sales of 3 trillion won ($2.3 billion) or more -- a feat achieved by only four Korean food companies so far. The top four food companies leading the country in terms of sales, which include CJ CheilJedang, Dongwon F&B

Consumer Feb. 19, 2023

Posco International's pharmaceutical joint venture in Sudan reported a profit in 2022, logging sales of 30.1 billion won ($23 million), up 36 percent increase from the year earlier, the firm said Thursday. In its earnings report, the company said General Medicines Co., the Sudanese joint venture it established with Shinpoong Pharmaceutical recorded an operating profit of 10.3 billion won, a 42 percent increase on-year. According to Posco International, its sales were buoyed by GMC's sa

Industry Feb. 16, 2023

The Korean retail industry is busy preparing measures to erase actor Yoo Ah-in from their brands' promotions, after the actor tested positive for marijuana use and became embroiled in an open drug test investigation for the illegal use of propofol. Musinsa, the largest online fashion platform in Korea by sales, told The Korea Herald that the company is currently reviewing the termination of its brand model contracts with the actor. "With the investigation currently underway, we first d

Consumer Feb. 15, 2023

Hyundai Mobis, a car parts maker under Hyundai Motor Group, unveiled its investment strategies and shareholder return policies for 2023 on Tuesday. According to Hyundai Mobis, the company is to invest a total of 10 trillion won ($7.9 billion) over the next three years, mainly investing 5 trillion to 6 trillion won of cash to secure competitiveness in the electrification of automobiles and acquisition of key components used to make cars. In addition, it will be investing 3 trillion to 4 trillion

Mobility Feb. 14, 2023

Posco Holdings said Tuesday it is pushing for a project in the United States to extract lithium, a key battery material, from lithium clay deposits. Posco Holdings recently signed a memorandum of understanding with Jindalee Resources to have the Australia-based mineral exploration company provide Posco with lithium clay, while Posco jointly develops lithium extraction process technology with Pohang Institute Industrial Science. Jindalee Resources currently owns a 100 percent stake in the McDermi

Industry Feb. 14, 2023

By Song Sang-keun Football, Pho noodles, and Ao Dai first come to Korean minds when it comes to Vietnam, but the country is less well-known for its natural environment that favors fisheries development. The northern part of Vietnam is home to expansive mangrove forests and mudflats, which has enabled the growth of shellfish aquaculture that has supported local economies since the mid-1990s. In recent years, however, Vietnam has suffered a drastic decrease in shellfish production due to overfishi

Industry Feb. 13, 2023

South Korea’s largest cigarette and ginseng maker KT&G said Thursday its 2022 sales hit a record high of 5.85 trillion won ($4.65 billion), a 12 percent jump from a year prior, largely driven by its hot-selling heat-not-burn tobacco products. During the same period, the company reported 1 trillion won in net income, up 3 percent on-year. The company was especially buoyed by upbeat sales of HNB products abroad that also stood at a record of 1.42 trillion won, a 13.8 percent growth year-

Industry Feb. 10, 2023

The South Korean unit of international tobacco company Philip Morris Korea said on Wednesday it will release Iqos Iluma One in Korea this month, amid the tobacco companies' heated competition for market share in Korea. "The newly released Iqos Iluma One, which is the latest addition to our flagship heat-not-burn electronic cigarette brand Iqos, is most characterized by its all-in-one design," said PMK managing director Paik Young-jay during a press conference. According to Paik, u

Consumer Feb. 8, 2023

Korean food giant Pulmuone is in talks with US food-tech company Yokai Express to sign a deal before July for the launch of vending machines that can cook instant meals, the firm said Tuesday. "Pulmuone is in due process of securing exclusive rights to distributing and installing Yokai Expresss' vending machines that will sell Pulmuone's products in Korea," a Pulmuone official told The Korea Herald. "We aim for the contract to be signed during the first half of this year

Consumer Feb. 7, 2023

DAEGU -- Unmanned robots glide about a fulfillment center, depositing goods into boxes. The boxes are each plastered with stickers bearing names of South Korean regions, such as "Daegu 1" and "Jeju Island." Once the boxes are full, delivery trucks come to ship them to their appropriate destinations. The robots sort and move products by delivery destination in just a few seconds with several human employees overseeing the entire station. The robots, which are named “Sort

Consumer Feb. 7, 2023

KT&G, South Korea's dominant tobacco company, is making aggressive inroads into overseas markets in a bid to increase its sales and market share abroad, according to the company on Sunday. Aiming to foray into foreign markets, the company recently signed its first long-term sales and purchase agreement with global tobacco maker Philip Morris International. Under the 15-year agreement that lasts until January 2038, KT&G will be providing PMI with its heat-not-burn "lil" bra

Consumer Feb. 5, 2023

Four out of six South Korean companies picked the European Union’s upcoming due diligence act as the No. 1 concern for their ongoing environmental, social and governance efforts this year, saying heightened regulations could pose a direct threat to export-driven companies that are not yet fully ready. A survey of 300 companies affiliated with the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the nation’s biggest lobby, showed Sunday that 40.3 percent of the responding companies selected th

Industry Feb. 5, 2023

McDonald's was found to have received hygiene warnings from the nation's food safety authorities more frequently than its smaller rivals here, according to a parliamentary report on Wednesday. Citing data submitted by the Ministry of Food and Safety, Rep. Ko Young-in of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea said in the report that the US hamburger chain with some 400 outlets nationwide received a total of 91 penalties in the 2018-2022 period. The data showed that McDonald'

Consumer Feb. 1, 2023

In a bid to expedite its foray into the global market and ramp up its sales, South Korean tobacco company KT&G on Monday clinched its first-ever long-term contract with Philip Morris International to supply the global tobacco giant with its products. Under the 15-year sales and purchase agreement, KT&G said it will be supplying PMI with its heat-not-burn cigarette brand "lil" products, along with future e-cigarette products that will be developed in the future. Meanwhile, under

Industry Jan. 30, 2023