Articles by Shim Woo-hyun
Shim Woo-hyun
ws@heraldcorp.com-
Merck’s Keytruda tops drug sales in Korea
Merck’s immuno-oncology drug Keytruda, one of the best-selling drugs in the world, topped drug sales in Korea for the second consecutive year in 2023, according to market tracker IQVIA on Tuesday. Keytruda’s sales in Korea came to some 399 billion won ($300 million) in 2023, up 159 billion won from the previous year, while global sales of Keytruda hit $25 billion, making it the top-selling drug worldwide. “Keytruda’s success in the country came as the drug can be prescrib
Industry Feb. 27, 2024
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Hyundai E&C share jumps on potential Bulgarian deal
Hyundai Engineering & Construction shares jumped Monday as the company has been tapped as the preferred bidder for a $14 billion worth nuclear plant project in Bulgaria. The builder's shares ended at some 34,000 won ($25.5) on Monday, around 2 percent higher than last week. On Sunday, the company said that it has been selected as the preferred bidder for a nuclear plant project to build two nuclear reactors, with a combined capacity of 2,300 megawatts (MW), in Kozloduy, located around 2
Industry Feb. 26, 2024
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Firms seek to tackle low birth rate with hefty incentives
South Korean conglomerates are expanding birth incentive programs to help boost the country’s record-low fertility rate amid mixed expectations about their effectiveness. Underwear maker Ssangbangwool announced Thursday that the company will provide up to 100 million won ($75,000) to employees who are expecting babies. Under the company's birth incentive scheme, an employee can receive 30 million won for the first child, another 30 million won for the second and 40 million won for the
Industry Feb. 23, 2024
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Kolmar Korea finds anti-aging microorganism
Kolmar Korea, a cosmetics original design manufacturer, said Thursday it has found a microbiome that can slow down skin aging induced by sun exposure for the first time, which could be a breakthrough innovation in the anti-aging skincare industry. Photoaging refers to the characteristic changes to the skin caused by cumulative sun damage over a lifetime of exposure. Recent research has found that the skin microbiome could serve as a potential tool to prevent and treat skin photoaging. Kolmar Kor
Industry Feb. 22, 2024
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Korea faces antibiotics shortage as drugmakers halt production
South Korea is confronting a deepening shortage of cephalosporins, a commonly prescribed class of antibiotics used to treat a range of bacterial infections, as pharmaceutical firms discontinue product lines due to unprofitability and growing raw materials costs. “As the number of local and overseas pharmaceutical companies have recently halted or downsized cephalosporins production here, it has become increasingly difficult to get them,” an industry source from one of the largest pha
Industry Feb. 21, 2024
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8 in 10 builders struggle to pay back debt interest
Eight out of ten construction firms here said they are experiencing difficulties in paying debt interest, according to a local survey released on Monday. According to the Federation of Korean Industries' survey involving 102 construction companies among the top 500 construction firms, 76.4 percent of the respondents said they are experiencing difficulties paying debt interest with their operating profit. Only 17.7 percent said they can cover debt interest with their profits. “Not only
Industry Feb. 19, 2024
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Samsung Bioepis posts record-high biosimilar sales
Overseas biosimilar sales of Samsung Bioepis, a biosimilar developer under Samsung Group, reached an all-time high in 2023, according to its partner companies on Sunday. According to Samsung Bioepis’ US partners, Biogen and Organon, sales of Samsung Bioepis’ biosimilar products in overseas markets came to $1.36 billion, or some 1.8 trillion won in 2023. The figure was up 11 percent from $1.23 billion in 2022. Biosimilar sales through Biogen came to $770 million, up 3 percent on-year,
Industry Feb. 18, 2024
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LG Chem, CJ CheilJedang to partner on bio-based nylon
LG Chem announced Thursday that the company will work together with food giant CJ CheilJedang to produce bio-based nylon, an eco-friendly alternative to traditional synthetic polymers. LG Chem said the two companies signed a heads of agreement on Wednesday to establish a joint venture that will produce ingredients and bio-based nylon products. “It has not been determined yet, but the two companies are expected to establish the joint company as early as this year,” an official familia
Industry Feb. 15, 2024
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Celltrion seeks approval for Actemra biosimilar in Europe
Celltrion announced Tuesday that the company has submitted its application for marketing authorization to the European Medicines Agency for CT-P47, a biosimilar referencing Roche's Actemra. Roche's Actemra (tocilizumab) is approved for a wide range of uses, including rheumatoid arthritis, giant cell arteritis, systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis, polyarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis and cytokine release syndrome. Celltrion’s application has been based on the results from a glob
Industry Feb. 13, 2024
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Inexpensive whiskey brands target Korean budget sippers
South Korean whiskey providers are searching for new import markets like those in Taiwan, India, Spain and Australia, as consumers here crave new varieties at reasonable prices. “Local demands for affordable whiskey products are increasing with the surge of people consuming highball cocktails. Yet, whiskey products from major whiskey producers such as the UK, the US and Japan are expensive and less available to local consumers,” an industry source said. “Whiskey products from A
Consumer Feb. 11, 2024
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Untamed food prices eclipse Seollal
A better-than-expected inflation report for January bolstered hopes that price hikes is near its end -- but consumers are still wary as the cost for some food items for Lunar New Year ceremonies continues to soar. “I have visited two different discount stores and searched online shopping platforms to compare prices and buy cheaper fruits and other food items that I need for family gatherings during the Lunar New Year holiday,” Lee, 63, a woman living in Gyeonggi Province said. Among
Consumer Feb. 9, 2024
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Former Posco CEO named as group’s next chairman
Posco Holdings said Thursday it has named Chang In-hwa, former CEO of steelmaker Posco, to lead the nation's fifth-largest business group as its next chairman. The result was announced after seven members of the CEO Candidate Recommendation Committee of Posco Group interviewed six candidates in the final list on Wednesday and Thursday. If approved at the group’s annual general meeting of shareholders and board meeting on March 21, Chang will be appointed as chairman of the country&rsq
Industry Feb. 8, 2024
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Conglomerates hesitant to hire
South Korean conglomerates are becoming more reluctant to finalize their hiring plans this year or downsize the number of new employees as their business prospects are shrouded in uncertainty, a poll on job recruiters showed on Thursday. Some 67 percent of conglomerates with over 1,000 employees confirmed that they have recruitment plans this year, falling for the third year in a row from 72 percent and 73 percent in 2023 and 2022, respectively, according to a report by online job portal Incruit
Industry Feb. 8, 2024
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GNT Pharma partners with Pfizer for animal drug development
GNT Pharma said Monday that the company has signed an agreement with Pfizer's contract manufacturing arm for overseas production of the company’s veterinary medication GedaCure. Under the recent agreement, Pfizer CentreOne, which has production facilities in around 30 countries, will provide GNT Pharma with CDMO services in the countries, including the US and Europe, where GNT Pharma launches GedaCure. GedaCure is a chewable tablet of crisdesalazine and the world’s first multi-t
Industry Feb. 5, 2024
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Korean dietary supplements makers eye Chinese market
South Korean dietary supplements manufacturers are accelerating their entries into the growing Chinese market as the number of elderly people continues to increase in the country, according to industry sources on Sunday. On the back of an aging population, the Chinese dietary supplements market grew 3 percent on-year to reach around 73 trillion won ($54.5 billion) in 2022, according to a report released by the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency. Among Korean companies, Korea Ginseng Corp.,
Consumer Feb. 4, 2024
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