Most Popular
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Blinken calls on China to press N. Korea to end its 'dangerous' behavior
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New celebrity-endorsed therapy for face contouring requires only a pair of rubber bands
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Tensions heighten ahead of first president-opposition chief meeting
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Seoul to provide housing subsidy to married couples with newborns
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Rapper jailed after public street fight with another rapper
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[Weekender] How DDP emerged as an icon of Seoul
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[KH Explains] No more 'Michael' at Kakao Games
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Woman gets suspended term for injuring boyfriend with knife
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Doctor group's incoming head renews call for govt. to scrap medical school quota hike for dialogue
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NewJeans pops out ‘Bubble Gum’ video amid troubles at agency
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Korean rice consumption falls to all-time low in 2018
Per capita rice consumption in South Korea dropped to a record low in 2018, data showed Monday, although the rate of decrease slowed compared with recent years on the back of the popularity of ready-to-eat meals.According to the data by Statistics Korea, the average annual consumption of rice per person came to 61 kilograms last year, down from 61.8 kg posted in 2017. (Yonhap)Rice is a key staple food for Koreans, but its consumption has been on a decline since 1980, when it reached 132.7 kg. T
Jan. 28, 2019
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Delivery services for daily necessities on rise
Home delivery services for essentials and easy-to-eat meals have risen amid an increase in the number of one-person households and dual-income families, industry sources said Monday.Kwangdong Pharmaceutial Co., a distributor of the bottled water Samdasu, said it has launched a mobile app that delivers its products conveniently to a buyer. Samdasu is the country's No. 1 water brand based on the southern resort island of Jeju. (Yonhap)Daily average transactions through the app have more than doub
Jan. 28, 2019
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Hyundai Merchant becomes co-owner of Busan terminal with PSA
South Korean shipping line Hyundai Merchant Marine Co. secured a 50 percent stake in a Busan terminal for a joint ownership with Singapore-based PSA International, the ocean ministry said Monday.The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries said Hyundai bought back the stake of the Hyundai Pusan New-Port Terminal, the operating firm of the terminal, which it sold off in its restructuring process in 2016. (Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries)Hyundai Merchant Marine will also have the right to name the CEO of
Jan. 28, 2019
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Major commercial banks to adopt shorter working hours this year
South Korea's leading lenders have wrapped up their labor deals for the new year that aim to help employees better strike a balance between work and their personal lives, industry watchers said Monday.Late last week, the labor and the management of KB Kookmin Bank reached a deal on wages and other working terms after monthslong wrangling that caused a strike for the first time in 19 years. (Yonhap)With the deal, Kookmin became the final entity among the country's five banks that include Shinhan
Jan. 28, 2019
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Korea's LNG imports hit new high in 2018
South Korea's imports of liquefied natural gas reached an all-time high in 2018 amid a spike in purchases from the United States, industry data showed Monday.The country's LNG imports totaled 44.04 million tons last year, up 17.3 percent from the prior year and a new record high, according to the data from industry sources and the Korea International Trade Association. (Yonhap)Qatar was South Korea's largest LNG import source, accounting for 32.4 percent of the total. Australia came next with 17
Jan. 28, 2019
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Facebook agrees to pay SK Broadband network fee: reports
Following a yearslong dispute with South Korea’s internet service providers over network maintenance fees, Facebook has reportedly agreed to pay SK Broadband for using its server to secure faster internet connection to the social networking service. According to the government and business sources here, Facebook and SK Broadband have reached an agreement that requires the global tech giant to offer a hefty sum of money for using the local telecom company’s cache server. While details of the de
Jan. 27, 2019
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How much will 5G service cost?
With South Koreas’ mobile carriers gearing up to nationwide their fifth-generation networks for regular consumers as early as March, they face a dilemma over whether to charge more for the faster new service. The country’s three telecom giants -- SK Telecom, KT and LG Uplus -- began operating 5G networks for a select group of businesses last month. But the big three have remained mute about how much they would charge when the first 5G smart phones roll out in the first quarter of this year. Wh
Jan. 27, 2019
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Posco becomes first in steel industry to obtain EPD certification
Posco has become the first company in the domestic steel industry to obtain Environmental Product Declaration certification from the Ministry of Environment, the firm said Sunday.Five products from Posco -- plates, wire rods, plated steel sheets (HGI), giga steel (980DP), and high corrosion-resistant steel plates -- have all gained certification for seven environmental indicators, including carbon footprint, resource footprint, ozone layer influence, acid rain, eutrophication, photochemical smog
Jan. 27, 2019
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Top 10 chaebol groups’ stock assets rise by W2tr in January
The owners of South Korea’s top 10 chaebol groups saw their stock value rise by about 2 trillion won ($1.7 billion) this month to reach 30.17 trillion won, industry data showed Sunday. According to Chaebul.com, which tracks conglomerates here, the figure was up 8.3 percent from 27.8 trillion won at the end of last year. Individually, the value of stocks held by Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Kun-hee rose to 15.1 trillion won, up 11.5 percent from 13.6 trillion won at the end of last year. Lee,
Jan. 27, 2019
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Duty-free sales from Japanese visitors up despite military tension
South Korean duty-free stores saw their sales from Japanese consumers rise sharply on-year in January despite the on-going military tension between the two countries, apparently on the back of the strong Japanese yen, industry sources said Sunday.Sales from Japanese consumers at a Lotte Duty Free shop in Seoul's central shopping district of Myeongdong shot up 31 percent on-year in the first 20 days of January, the sources said. Overall, combined growth increased 15 percent posted over the cited
Jan. 27, 2019
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SK chief stresses businesses’ role of generating social value at Davos forum
SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won stressed the role of businesses in creating a sustainable economy in a discussion session on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, the company said Friday.At a session jointly hosted by Boston Consulting Group, the head of South Korea’s second-largest conglomerate shared his experience of pursuing ways to promote the sharing economy nationwide by facilitating tangible and intangible assets held by his companies.Taking an example of SK Inn
Jan. 25, 2019
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KGCCI holds forum on economic prospect of Korea
The Korean-German Chamber of Commerce and Industry hosted a forum Thursday to discuss the prospects for the nation’s economic growth.The speakers at the forum shared the view that the economic partnership between the two nations should move forward to adopt the “fourth industrial revolution.” During the forum, Stephan Auer, German Ambassador to Korea, said, “The most important growth engine in our bilateral business cooperation could soon become the fourth industrial revolution with its various
Jan. 25, 2019
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[Weekender] For you, anything: Children put on pedestals
Baby care products have usually taken up only a small section at department stores in South Korea, with a handful of baby care stores filling about half a floor.But brands for babies and toddlers have recently expanded their territories at many of the major department stores here, which have traditionally targeted affluent women in their 40s as their main customers.(AP)Buoyed by demand from parents looking further upmarket in selecting goods for their children, Lotte Department Store, has filled
Jan. 24, 2019
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Netflix has no plan to raise prices for Korea
Netflix said Thursday it has not considered raising its prices in South Korea, amid concerns over whether the streaming service giant would extend its biggest-ever price hike in the US to the Korean market. “Do we have any plans for price increase? Simple answer is no,” said Jessica Lee, vice president of Netflix Asia Pacific Communications, during a press conference in Seoul, where the streaming service had celebrated the launch of its first Korean-produced online series, “Kingdom.” Last we
Jan. 24, 2019
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[Weekender] When 1-year-olds learn coding
South Korean parents’ enthusiasm for child education goes back as far as the moment they are born. It is common for parents to wonder whether they are doing enough for their children, and whether they are giving them as many opportunities possible to ignite their hidden genius. Such is the sentiment that propels the infants and toddlers’ educative playthings markets in Korea, which now has toys for 1-year-olds to play with to learn how to code. The difference in the niche yet lucrative market fo
Jan. 24, 2019
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[News Focus] Debate brews over dual-class stock system
A debate is brewing in South Korea over the idea of introducing a dual-class stock structure, with proponents supporting it for the sake of startups and innovative businesses, while critics worry that such a system would invite abuse by conglomerates.In a dual-class stock structure, a single company can issue different classes of shares -- for instance, class A shares could be reserved for founders and executives and carry more voting power while class B shareholders could have limited voting ri
Jan. 24, 2019
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CheongKwanJang opens cooking classes for foreigners
Korean Ginseng Corporation, known for producing Korean red ginseng under the brand CheongKwanJang, has opened cooking classes for foreigners as a way of promoting Korean red ginseng.The classes comprise of well-known Korean cuisine specialists teaching how to make authentic Korean dishes such as samgyetang or tteok galbi. To match the theme of the class, all the dishes add red ginseng as a twist.Participants in CheongKwanJang cooking classes learn how to make dishes with red ginseng. (KGC)The cl
Jan. 24, 2019
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Homeplus joins European Marketing Distribution alliance
South Korean discount chain operator Homeplus has joined Europe’s largest retail alliance, the firm said Thursday, in a first for an Asian retailer. As a member of the European Marketing Distribution, Homeplus aims to deliver goods imported from the EU to Korean consumers at affordable prices while aiding Korean manufacturers in entering the European market, the company said in a statement. Homeplus CEO Im Il-soon (left) and European Marketing Distribution Managing Director Philippe Gruyters (r
Jan. 24, 2019
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New public-private alliance formed for ASEAN market
Leaders from Korea’s major business associations and the Presidential Committee on New Southern Policy gathered Thursday to form an alliance to help Korean entrepreneurs seek better opportunities in the emerging ASEAN market. The business alliance for ASEAN comprises 21 key business associations, including the Korea International Trade Association, the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency, the Korea Federation of Banks and the International Contract
Jan. 24, 2019
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SK hynix Q4 net up 6% in Q4, posts record profit in 2018
SK hynix Inc. said Thursday its fourth-quarter net rose 6 percent from a year earlier, which fell below the market expectation in the wake of slowing demand for memory chips and falling global sales prices. The net profit for the world's No. 2 memory chip producer came to 3.4 trillion won ($3 billion) in the October-December period, compared with 3.2 trillion won posted a year, the company said in a regulatory filing. (SK hynix)Its sales gained 10 percent on-year to 9.9 trillion won, while opera
Jan. 24, 2019