Most Popular
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'Keep IU off the grass': Soccer fans oppose K-pop concerts at World Cup Stadium
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BTS, NewJeans fandoms clash over Hybe-Min Hee-jin conflict
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N. Korea launches missiles in latest show of military, nuclear strength
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North Korea sends top envoy to Russia as it girds for friction with Seoul
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Seoul-bound traffic clogged on 4th day of Chuseok holiday
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Kia makes breakthrough in China sales
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High temperatures may worsen mental health conditions: study
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[Special] Ansan aims to become South Korea's multicultural hub, heart of immigration policy
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Samsung chief travels to France to encourage young talents
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N. Korea fires multiple short-range ballistic missiles: JCS
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MBK Partners says no plan to sell Korea Zinc to China
Private equity firm MBK Partners said Wednesday it has no plans to sell Korea Zinc Inc. to China after acquiring a stake in the world's largest zinc smelter. MBK Partners announced last week that it will acquire shares in Korea Zinc through a tender offer, aiming to secure a 15 percent stake in the company with a budget of 2 trillion won ($1.5 billion). The equity firm said the share purchase was agreed upon with Young Poong, the largest shareholder of Korea Zinc, which holds a 33 percent s
Sept. 18, 2024
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W624b spent on corporate cards for 'lavish entertainment' in S.Korea
South Korea’s high-end entertainment industry marked 624 billion won ($469 million) in sales with corporate credit cards last year, with over half spent in hostess clubs. The sales, supposedly generated for entertainment in business dealings, increased by 61 billion won from the previous year’s 563 billion won and accounted for 0.4 percent of total corporate credit card expenditure, according to the South Korean National Tax Service data submitted to Rep. Park Seong-hoon of the rulin
Sept. 18, 2024
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Fintech rivals K bank, Toss gear up for IPOs
South Korea’s online banking firm K bank is gearing up for what could be one of the biggest market debuts this year, while its crosstown rival Toss seeks to follow suit in 2025. The country's first internet-only lender K bank is taking the final steps for its listing on the benchmark Kospi at the end of October. K bank said on Sept. 13 it filed a securities registration statement with the Financial Services Commission for review. It plans to offer 82 million new shares, with a target
Sept. 18, 2024
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Samsung chief travels to France to encourage young talents
Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong traveled to France to attend the closing ceremony of WorldSkills Lyon 2024, the world’s largest skill championship, in a bid to show support to young talents, the company said Wednesday. Presenting the medals and meeting with Korean competitors at the closing ceremony on Sunday, Lee reiterated the company's commitment to helping youth in their vocational training. "The sweat of the young talents is the foundation of South Korea, a technol
Sept. 18, 2024
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Woori injects W100b to support restructuring of high-risk PF projects
Woori Financial Group, one of South Korea’s top five financial conglomerates, announced on Wednesday it created a 100 billion won ($75 million) fund to provide liquidity to the struggling real estate project financing (PF) sector. The fund was raised through contributions from the group’s subsidiaries, with flagship Woori Bank contributing the bulk at 90 billion won. Woori Asset Management, Woori Financial Capital and Woori Investment & Securities each contributed 5 billion won,
Sept. 18, 2024
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Sales in convenience stores rank 2nd in H1 after department stores
Sales in South Korean convenience store chains ranked second among offline shopping outlets after department stores in the first half, the trade ministry said Tuesday. The ratio of sales in convenience stores came to 16 percent in the January-June period following department stores' 16.8 percent, showed data from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Convenience stores exceeded large discount stores in terms of annual sales ratio for the first time in 2021 and have since maintained th
Sept. 17, 2024
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Over half of Koreans plan to spend same on Chuseok gifts as last year: KCCI survey
Most South Koreans showed positive sentiments about spending more on Chuseok gifts this year, despite the ongoing inflation and economic challenges, a recent survey found. According to the survey conducted by the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the nation’s largest business lobby, more than half of respondents, or 56.2 percent, planned to spend a similar amount on Chuseok gifts as they did last year, while 29.1 percent said they would increase their spending. The survey polled 1,00
Sept. 14, 2024
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Daewoong unveils new Indonesian stem cell facility with GMP certification
South Korean drug maker Daewoong Pharmaceutical has announced the launch of a new stem cell plant in Indonesia, marking the 20th anniversary of its entry into the Indonesian market. The facility is set to drive large-scale research and development projects in collaboration with local pharmaceutical and biotech industries, according to the firm. The stem cell plant, established by Daewoong Biologics Indonesia -- a subsidiary of Daewoong Pharmaceutical -- will begin full-scale operations following
Sept. 13, 2024
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Food conglomerates to refine strategies during Chuseok
During the five-day Chuseok holiday, leaders of food and distribution conglomerates are anticipated to refine their management strategies for the second half of the year, focusing on enhancing profitability in a challenging business environment. With the industry grappling with a downturn intensified by high prices and interest rates, the primary aim will be to devise measures to bolster profitability and navigate the performance crisis in the months ahead. According to industry sources on Frida
Sept. 13, 2024
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MBK spices up yearslong feud over Korea Zinc
MBK Partners, a big-name private equity house based in South Korea, has stepped into the ongoing management dispute involving the country’s leading zinc smelter Korea Zinc, siding with its rival Youngpoong Group. Youngpoong Group’s owning family, the Chang clan, which holds a combined 33.1 percent shares in Korea Zinc, teamed up with MBK Partners by signing a shareholder agreement Thursday, in an agreement to jointly exercise voting rights on the shares. The two also agreed on a ca
Sept. 13, 2024
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SK Bioscience celebrates topping-out of global research center in Songdo
South Korean biotech firm SK Bioscience said Friday it hosted a topping-out ceremony at the construction site of its Global Research and Process Development Center in Songdo, Incheon, Monday. In 2021, SK Bioscience signed a land contract with the Incheon Free Economic Zone authority to acquire part of the Incheon Technopark Expansion Complex. The company has invested 325.7 billion won ($244 million) in building the Global R&PD Center. With the project, SK plans to relocate its headquarters a
Sept. 13, 2024
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Telecom firms compete head-on for AI assistant service
Competition is heating up among major South Korean telecommunication companies to take the lead in the market for artificial intelligence assistants. LG Uplus, the country's smallest telecom company by market share, is set to launch a call-recording service, dubbed, “ixi O,” next month, according to industry sources on Friday. It is expected to offer services such as call recording, summary function and spam call and voice phishing filtering. Currently, AI assistants are evolv
Sept. 13, 2024
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Naver to develop Arabic-based LLM, expand AI cooperation with Saudi Arabia
Naver Corp., the operator of South Korea's largest internet platform, has signed an initial agreement with Saudi Arabia's artificial intelligence (AI) agency to jointly develop an Arabic language-based large language model (LLM), company officials said Friday. During the Global AI Summit hosted by the Saudi Data & AI Authority (SDAIA) in Saudi Arabia's capital of Riyadh earlier this week, Naver and the SDAIA signed the memorandum of understanding (MOU) to cooperate in various
Sept. 13, 2024
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OB acquires Jeju Soju, eyes bigger presence abroad
Korea’s largest beer maker Oriental Brewery is seeking to expand its presence in the global soju market amid the rising popularity of the nation’s traditional rice liquor around the world. According to the company, OB, owned by Belgian brewing giant Anheuser-Busch InBev, has decided to acquire Jeju Soju from Shinsegae Group’s liquor unit Shinsegae L&B. OB will take over the production site, equipment and underground water usage rights associated with Jeju Soju. Details, inc
Sept. 12, 2024
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[Photo News] Making Songpyeon for Chuseok
S-Oil CEO Al-Hejazi (right) poses for a photo with a child while making Songpyeon, a traditional Korean halfmoon-shaped stuffed rice cake, in collaboration with the Loveaid Foundation at the company’s headquarters in Mapo-gu, Seoul, on Thursday. With the help of international students from Saudi Arabia and children from the company child care facility, the CEO and 150 company officials prepared Songpyeon and gift bundles worth 60 million won ($44,800) for low-income households. Since 2007,
Sept. 12, 2024
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Samsung’s yearly dilemma looms: Exynos vs. Snapdragon
A seasonal dilemma looms over Samsung Electronics’ flagship Galaxy S phones: using more its own Exynos processors or sticking to rival Qualcomm’s Snapdragon chips. Samsung has poured considerable resources for years into equipping its most important smartphone lineup with its own chipset so that it could expand its presence not just in chip production but also in chip design, while reducing production costs. But industry sources say that the upcoming Galaxy S phones, tentatively call
Sept. 12, 2024
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Nvidia CEO hints at possibility using Samsung to make GPUs
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang raised the possibility of fabricating its cutting-edge graphic processing units at foundries other than Taiwan-based TSMC, making Samsung Electronics a likely alternative. At Goldman Sachs Communacopia and Technology Conference in San Francisco, California on Wednesday, Huang said he is willing to consider other companies to produce Nvidia's chips "if necessary," acknowledging the brewing geopolitical tension between Taiwan and China. "We use them (TSM
Sept. 12, 2024
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HD Hyundai, Hanwha push zero-emissions agenda at Gastech 2024
Shipbuilding rivals HD Hyundai and Hanwha Group are gearing up for Gastech 2024, the world’s largest energy sector exhibition, held from Tuesday to Sept. 20 in Houston. Attracting over 50,000 attendees and more than 800 companies, the event will spotlight the companies' eco-friendly shipbuilding and energy technologies. HD Hyundai will be represented by Vice Chairman Chung Ki-sun, along with a team from sales, R&D and engineering, to meet with business partners and corporate clien
Sept. 12, 2024
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KB bolsters ties with Cambodia
KB Financial Group Chairman Yang Jong-hee met with Hun Sen, president of the Cambodian Senate, on Wednesday to discuss potential collaborations aimed at advancing financial development in Southeast Asia and enhancing KB’s presence in the region. The meeting was held at the Inspire Entertainment Resort in Incheon during Hun Sen’s visit to Korea for the 25th World Knowledge Forum, where he was a speaker. During their discussion, Yang and Hun Sen agreed to strengthen cooperation to impr
Sept. 11, 2024
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US ups pressure on Korea to join China chip curbs
The US is ramping up pressure on South Korea to align with its export control measures against China, urging advanced chips like High Bandwidth Memory be provided only to allies. As additional trade restrictions are expected, experts here say it is important for the Korean government and chipmakers to keep up negotiations to protect Korea's interests. In his latest remark on Tuesday, US Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security Alan Estevez called on Korean chipmakers to supply
Sept. 11, 2024