Most Popular
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Do Korean doctors make too much money?
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Korean industries gauge impact of Biden's steep tariffs on China
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Court refuses injunction on medical school expansion
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Why Korean crime stories typically feature nameless, faceless perpetrators
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Is FTC's conglomerate listing a boon or bane for Hybe?
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NewJeans to headline palace show
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Coupang's Kim Bom escapes chaebol chief designation again
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Debate on 'no-seniors zones' heats up
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S. Korea, Cambodia forge strategic partnership
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Rare mid-May heavy snow warning issued over mountainous areas of Gangwon
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Ministry to investigate imported drinks for carcinogenic chemicals
The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said Friday it will look into some 20 imported drinks for glyphosate residue.The US Public Interest Research Group Education Fund revealed in a report in February that glyphosate had been found in 19 out of 20 brands of 15 popular beers and five wines tested there. Glyphosate is an active chemical ingredient found in Roundup, the herbicide produced by Monsanto. Under the classification from the International Agency for Research on Cancer, glyphosate is classi
April 26, 2019
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Dedicated cat owners behind Korean pet market’s W1.8tr output: report
Dedicated cat owners are behind the boom in South Korea’s pet care market, market research firm Euromonitor International announced Friday.The size of Korea’s pet care market is estimated to surpass 1.8 trillion won ($1.5 billion) in 2019, twice what it was eight years ago. For that, Euromonitor credited cat owners’ careful attention to their feline friends.Spearheaded by squeezable packages of semi-liquid snack food, the cat snack market in Korea has seen explosive growth since 2017, the Euromo
April 26, 2019
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Bringing Asia closer: ANN redefines vision, mission on 20th anniversary
The Asia News Network, an alliance of 24 media companies in 20 Asian nations, charted a new course for its future on the final day of its 20th anniversary board meeting Friday, at Lotte Hotel in Seoul.When ANN was founded in 1999, its founding members’ vision was to deliver news about Asia through Asian eyes. As the network marked 20 years of successful pan-Asian journalistic collaboration, its board gathered in Seoul to redefine ANN’s future vision and mission. ANN’s new tagline, “Bringing Asia
April 26, 2019
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[Weekender] Branded pop-ups liven up retail scene
Branded pop-up stores play an increasingly important role in South Korea’s retail scene as a source of creativity, innovation and a brand new consumer experience. Many customers associate pop-ups with an experience different from what they expect from conventional brick-and-mortar stores. (Louis Vuitton)“If this were a regular shop, I wouldn’t have stepped inside,” said Nam Yong-il, who visited LG Uplus’ fifth-generation-themed pop-up in Gangnam, Seoul, earlier this week. “But since it’s a pop-
April 26, 2019
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LG Electronics to stop smartphone production in Korea
LG Electronics confirmed Thursday that it would stop producing smartphones in South Korea and move manufacturing plants to Vietnam in an effort to improve profitability amid a slump in global smartphone demand. The smartphone maker has decided to transfer its phone manufacturing plants in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, to Haipong in Vietnam. Those working at its Pyeongtaek factories will be posted to Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province. With the transfer expected to be completed by the end o
April 25, 2019
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Asia News Network discusses past 20 years, future ahead
The Asia News Network, an alliance of 24 media companies across 20 Asian countries, had its board members gather Thursday at Lotte Hotel in Seoul to celebrate the group’s 20th anniversary and discuss its future direction at a time of closer regional cooperation on political, business and cultural fronts.ANN was founded in 1999 with the founding members’ vision to deliver news about Asia through Asian eyes. “We know Asia better” has been the ANN’s longstanding motto.Chon Shi-yong, chief editorial
April 25, 2019
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SK Innovation returns to profit in Q1 driven by chemicals
South Korean oil refiner SK Innovation returned to profit in the first quarter of this year, driven by its chemical business and non-oil refining areas, such as batteries and materials. SK Innovation posted 12.4 trillion won ($10.6 billion) in sales and 331.1 billion won in operating profit in the January-March period, according to its regulatory filing Thursday. Sales dropped 11.1 percent on-year but rose 1.9 percent from the previous quarter. Operating profit dropped 53.5 percent on-year but
April 25, 2019
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OB celebrates Earth Day by making eco-friendly products
Executives of Oriental Brewery, South Korea’s largest beer manufacturer, celebrated Earth Day this week by making products containing effective microorganisms and donating them to a volunteer center in Gangnam, the company said Thursday.On April 17, five days before Earth Day, some 20 OB executives gathered at a volunteer center to discuss “green survival,” which refers to the need for people to take action in order to pass down a healthy and green Earth to future generations. OB CEO Bruno Cose
April 25, 2019
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Hugel submits new drug application in China
Botulinum toxin producer Hugel has submitted a new drug application in China for its product, the company announced Wednesday.Hugel is to become the first Korean company to enter the greater China region, which includes mainland China and Taiwan. Hugel and its Chinese partner, Sihuan Pharm, completed phase 3 clinical trials in 2018 and submitted the application Wednesday after finalizing the paperwork. Hugel expects to receive marketing approval within the first quarter of 2020, as the standard
April 24, 2019
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Cho Won-tae appointed as Hanjin Group chairman
Hanjin Group’s holding company Hanjin Kal said Wednesday its board of directors had decided to appoint Korean Air President Cho Won-tae as the group’s new chairman. The appointment of Cho is aimed at minimizing the leadership vacuum in the group and maintaining stable business operations, Hanjin Kal said in a statement, adding there will be no separate inauguration ceremony for Cho. Hanjin Group Chairman Cho Won-tae (Hanjin Group)This comes about two weeks after Cho’s father, former Hanjin Group
April 24, 2019
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SK denies $1b investment in Vietnam’s Vingroup
SK has denied local reports that the conglomerate is gearing up for a $1 billion investment in Vietnam’s largest private company Vingroup.“We have been reviewing a number of investment cases, but there is no such case confirmed yet,” the company’s spokesman said. (Yonhap)News reports said the nation’s third-largest conglomerate will soon invest $1 billion to acquire shares of Vingroup through its overseas investment arm SK South East Asia Investment. Based in Singapore, SK’s investment unit was
April 24, 2019
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CJ to shut down Bibigo in China by August
CJ is shutting down its loss-making Korean restaurant chain Bibigo in China, with a plan to dissolve the unit by August this year, according to an industry source. The move is part of restructuring of its food and beverage business due to poor profitability. It follows the closure of VIPS, the group’s family restaurant chain that ended operations in March, the source told The Investor on Tuesday on the condition of anonymity. Bibigo restaurants in China took up half of the total n
April 24, 2019
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‘IP-intensive industries have tangible impact on economy’
Intellectual property is perceived as an essential tool for knowledge-based innovation, especially in the context of the “fourth industrial revolution,” but when it comes to actual legislation, the lack of quantitative information has often acted as an obstacle for policymakers and market players. In light of this limitation, a think tank of South Korea’s IP office has compiled an extensive study on the impact that IP-intensive industries have on the economy, measuring the tangible benefits of I
April 24, 2019
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[Herald Interview] Korea aims to go global with IP system
South Korea recently signed a memorandum of understanding worth $3.2 million with Saudi Arabia to help establish an ecosystem for intellectual property. It was an outcome of efforts by Asia’s fourth-largest economy in expanding global partnership to share its intellectual property system, according to the chief of the nation’s top IP office. “The deals with the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia will work as a prime opportunity to promote our IP administration service to the world,” Korean In
April 24, 2019
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Kepco CEO pledges to accept civil liability for wildfire damage
Korea Electric Power Corporation CEO Kim Jong-kap on Wednesday apologized to residents of Gangwon Province who lost their homes in the recent wildfires and said the firm would accept civil liability for the damage. “We truly apologize to the victims as the fire started from facilities managed by Kepco,” Kim told local residents at a town office in Goseong, Gangwon Province. CEO Kim Jong-kap bows to local residents in a show of remorse for the recent wildfires that destroyed many of their homes.
April 24, 2019
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Nexon Developers Conference 2019 kicks off
The three-day Nexon Developers Conference kicked off Wednesday at Nexon Korea’s headquarters in Pangyo Techno Valley, Gyeonggi Province. The NDC began in 2007 as an opportunity for Nexon Korea employees to share knowledge internally. It has since become Korea’s biggest conference for sharing knowledge on game development. (Lim Jeong-yeo/The Korea Herald)
April 24, 2019
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Creditors to inject 1.6 tln won into Asiana Airlines
Creditors of Asiana Airlines Inc. will funnel 1.6 trillion won (US$1.4 billion) into the cash-strapped airline to help it overcome a liquidity crisis, its main creditor said Tuesday.The Korea Development Bank-led creditors will buy 500 billion won worth of perpetual bonds to be sold by Asiana Airlines, open a 800 billion-won credit line to the airline and extend 300 billion won in the form of a standby letter of credit, a bank guarantee of payment on behalf of clients, the state lender said in a
April 23, 2019
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GM Korea' R&D workers vote for strike, no output losses expected
Workers at GM Korea Co.‘s R&D firm voted to go on strike against the carmaker’s move to apply unfavorable wages and working conditions for the spin-off entity, GM Korea‘s union said Tuesday. In a vote held Monday and Tuesday, 83 percent of 2,067 employees at the GM Technical Center Korea (GMTCK) agreed on industrial action to prevent the company from applying a “discriminative” collective agreement to them, a spokesman for the union said. “The union will hold talks with the company (on behalf o
April 23, 2019
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Iran sanctions alarm Korean petrochemical sector
As the US is set to end sanction exemptions for countries buying oil from Iran, South Korean petrochemical companies are anticipated to struggle in having to reduce their Iranian oil supplies. From May 2, eight nations, including Korea, Japan, China and India, will be banned from buying oil from Iran as the US government’s 180-day waiver ends. Iran is the fifth-largest exporter of crude oil to Korea, following Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the US and Iraq. Imports of crude oil from Iran to Korea account
April 23, 2019
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Posco pursues eco-friendly business with steel byproducts
Steelmaking itself is not environment-friendly, but its byproducts can be, South Korean steel giant Posco said Monday, citing its application of slag and gases to the company’s conservation projects and businesses. On average, in the process of making 1 metric ton of steel around 600-700 kilograms of byproduct is produced, mostly slag. Posco’s Triton is installed for marine life conservation. (Posco)Slag, if the lime is separated, can be used as a fertilizer to improve the production of rice ar
April 22, 2019