Samsung Electronics is expected to enjoy price increases of solid-state drives in the forthcoming months, due to robust demand from data center providers, market data showed Friday. According to the latest report from Taiwan-based market researcher TrendForce, contract prices of enterprise SSDs for the third quarter this year are expected to jump 10-15 percent on-quarter. The report attributed the price hike to the cloud service providers in the North American region that have recently been

Technology June 4, 2021

Germany’s leading multi-level marketing and direct sales firm LR Health & Beauty is building its business presence here, in hopes of expanding beyond Korea into the Asia region, its chief executive said. “It is great to see how LR has developed over the last few years. We have reached decisive milestones,” Andreas Friesch, who has led the company since 2018, said in an interview with The Korea Herald. “The expansion to South Korea is one of them,” he added.

Industry June 3, 2021

South Korean pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies are taking the initiative in the messenger RNA vaccine sector in hopes of developing new COVID-19 vaccines and building their capabilities to counter the next pandemic. Samsung Biologics, a major contract manufacturer of drugs, plans to add an mRNA vaccine production line at its facility in Songdo, Incheon, to potentially manufacture ingredients for new mRNA vaccines. ST Pharm, GeneOne Life Science and Hanmi Science are bent on developing

Technology June 2, 2021

Google has brought a wide range of changes to its service terms starting from Tuesday, which industry sources say would help give a significant boost to its company revenue. Google now allows YouTube to place ads on videos made by all creators -- be they big or small. Previously small content creators who don’t qualify for the company’s partner program couldn’t put ads on their videos. The latest policy change would boost the YouTube Premium membership, which gives ad-free

Technology June 1, 2021

ONE store, South Korea’s homegrown app market backed by all three mobile carriers, announced Tuesday that it has secured 17 billion won ($15 million) of funding from Microsoft and Deutsche Telekom’s venture capital unit. Of the total, 11.3 billion won will come from Microsoft, while Deutsche Telekom Capital Partners Management GmbH will invest 5.5 billion won to acquire shares in ONE store, which is affiliated with SK Telecom. ONE store will issue 414,900 convertible preferred

Technology June 1, 2021

The number of medical devices produced by local companies has surpassed those imported from other countries for the first time since 2011, according to a report released by the government, Monday. The number of local companies’ medical devices reported to the government last year reached 4,222, accounting for 51.6 percent in the market, according to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. The total number of reported medical devices here, including imports, reached 8,183, slightly down fr

Technology May 31, 2021

LG Electronics is on path to take the crown of the world’s No. 1 home appliance maker by sales, as it continues a stellar performance this year, local analysts predicted. According to market reports from securities companies here, the home appliance and air solution unit of LG Electronics is expected to post record high sales of around nearly 7 trillion won ($6.3 billion) in the second quarter, claiming the world’s top spot in terms of quarterly sales for a second consecutive quar

Technology May 31, 2021

Kumho Tire is looking to bolster its share of the local tire market with its latest all-season model SOLUS TA51, launched in April. SOLUS TA51 is the tire maker’s first new product in three years, and comes in 34 different sizes, ranging from 16 inches to 19 inches. The tire product will be compatible with most car models in the local market, the company explained. It is a Korean market-only model. It is specially designed to be suitable for use in different weather conditions across

Mobility May 30, 2021

Hyundai Engineering & Construction will begin presales of flats for a new high-rise apartment complex in Iksan, North Jeolla Province this month, the company said Sunday. The apartment complex, dubbed Hillstate Iksan, will comprise six buildings with 454 housing units, which measure from 59 to 126 square meters. The complex is at a prime location right next to Seonhwa-ro which cuts through the center of the city, the builder said. On top of that, it is also close to Iksan Station that i

Industry May 30, 2021

Celltrion Healthcare, which is in charge of Celltrion‘s overseas business, is expected to launch sales of its adalimumab biosimilar Yuflyma in the European market in June, according to industry sources, Sunday. It will initially be launched in around six European countries, including Spain, the officials said. A Celltrion Healthcare’s official said the company would try to release Yuflyma in Spain by next month, but the schedule can be adjusted. Yuflyma is the world’s firs

Technology May 30, 2021

The Fair Trade Commission of South Korea is expected to survey the local digital advertising market to uncover any unfair practices on the part of major platform operators such as Google and Facebook. According to government officials Tuesday, the antitrust watchdog has commissioned research on potential antitrust issues in the local advertising market. It will include in-depth interviews with advertisers, ad agencies and consumers. The US-based internet giants Google and Facebook are among

Technology May 25, 2021

South Korea ranks fourth in terms of the number of patents registered in the artificial intelligence sector, but an index showing the impact of the patents shows that the quality of patents from South Korea fell relatively short, according to a report, Tuesday. The report from Clarivate Analytics and KAIST Center for Innovation Strategy and Policy says that the number of patents that South Korea registered in the AI field has reached 6,317 between 2010 and 2019, the fourth highest among the 10

Technology May 25, 2021

A South Korean government official said Monday that the country aims to secure messenger RNA vaccine technology to strengthen its vaccine production capacity and take a step up as a global vaccine production hub. “Our goal is not to become a contract manufacturing partner in the production of ingredients for the mRNA COVID-19 vaccines. We aim to develop the mRNA vaccines by next year, with technologies acquired through possible technology transfers and co-development deals,” said

Technology May 24, 2021

The South Korean government plans to plant 3 billion new trees over the next 30 years, joining the World Economic Forum’s One Trillion Trees Initiative, an ambitious global agenda suggested in 2020 to grow one trillion trees worldwide by 2030. Earlier this year, the Korea Forest Service announced the new planting plan as a part of the country’s larger scheme to reach carbon neutrality by 2050. With estimated cost of around 6 trillion won ($5.3 billion), the project aims to restor

Social Affairs May 23, 2021

Seo Min-jeong, the eldest daughter of Amorepacific Chairman Seo Kyung-bae, and Hong Jeong-hwan, the eldest son of Bokwang Investment Chairman Hong Seok-joon, have agreed to divorce after eight months of marriage, industry sources said Friday. The news followed Amorepacific’s regulatory filing on Friday, in which the company made a change to Hong’s holdings in the firm. Previously, Suh Kyung-bae, chairman of Amorepacific Group, gifted 100,000 shares in South Korea’s major b

People May 21, 2021