[Newsmaker] Twitter turmoil, staff exodus aggravate security concerns

WASHINGTON -- Twitter's owner Elon Musk has pledged the platform will not become a "hellscape," but experts fear a staff exodus following mass layoffs may have devastated its ability to combat misinformation, impersonation and data theft. Twitter devolved into what campaigners described as a cesspit of falsehoods and hate speech after recent layoffs cut half the company's 7,500 staff and fake accounts proliferated following its botched rollout of a paid verification system. Further thr

Nov. 20, 2022

[Graphic News] Qatar Airways named world’s best airline

　Qatar Airways was named the world’s best airline at the Skytrax World Airline Awards 2022, while Singapore Airlines and Emirates landed in the second and third spots respectively. 　In a strong showing for Asia-Pacific carriers, Japan’s All Nippon Airways and Australia’s Qantas Airways rounded out the top five. Korean Air, South Korea’s largest air carrier, was named the world’s ninth best air carrier. 　The World Airline Awards were determined by an online custom

Nov. 11, 2022

[Graphic News] SK Telecom’s 5G download speed ranks No. 1 among global telecos

　SK Telecom, South Korea’s largest wireless carrier, ranks No. 1 in terms of download speed of 5G networks, an industry report showed. 　According to global mobile industry tracker Opensignal, the average download speed using SK Telecom’s 5G network was recorded at 469.6 megabits per second (Mbps), 2.55 times faster than the 184.2 Mbps average among global mobile carriers. 　LG Uplus, the country's third-largest mobile carrier, ranked second, with 429.6 Mbps, followed by Bulgaria&rs

Oct. 7, 2022

[Graphic News] Samsung, SK hynix lead global NAND flash sales in Q2: report

　South Korean chipmakers Samsung Electronics and SK hynix were the biggest NAND flash sellers in the world in the second quarter, an industry report showed. 　According to Taiwan-based market analyst firm TrendForce, Samsung's NAND flash sales during the April-June period reached $5.98 billion, with its global market share at 33 percent, down 2.3 percentage points from the previous quarter. 　NAND flash is a type of non-volatile storage technology that does not require power to retain data. (Yo

Sept. 26, 2022

[Graphic News] S. Korea ranks 9th among nations with trade surpluses with US in H1: data

　South Korea was ranked ninth among countries with trade surpluses with the United States in the first half of the year, as Asia‘s fourth-largest economy recorded strong on-year growth in shipments to the US during the period, US government data showed. 　According to the Department of Commerce, South Korea’s trade surplus with the US during the January-June period amounted to $21.67 billion, up 86.9 percent from a year ago. 　The trade surplus grew as South Korean shipments to the

Sept. 14, 2022

[Graphic News] Global TV sales slip more than 6% on-year in H1

　Global TV sales fell more than 6 percent from a year prior in the first half of this year on slow demand and macroeconomic woes, research showed, as Samsung Electronics remained the top player in the TV segment. 　Across the globe, 92.6 million TVs were sold, down 6.6 percent from a year earlier. By value, the decrease was sharper at 12.5 percent, according to industry tracker Omdia. 　Consumer electronics companies have been struggling to combat lackluster demand after two years of a pandemic

Sept. 7, 2022

[Graphic News] Foldable smartphone market to grow 73% this year

　Foldable smartphone shipments are expected to hit 16 million units this year, growing 73 percent from 9 million units last year, according to industry tracker Counterpoint Research. 　South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics continued to lead the foldable category it created with the first Galaxy Fold device. China’s Huawei and Oppo came in a distant second and third. 　Samsung’s share of the foldable market was 62 percent in the first half of this year which is expected to jump

Sept. 1, 2022

[Graphic News] Hyundai ranks 3rd in H1 global vehicle sales

　South Korea’s Hyundai Motor Group said it ranked third in first-half global vehicle sales on the strength of high-end model sales, despite difficulties in the global supply of automotive chips. 　Hyundai Motor, its independent Genesis brand and Hyundai’s smaller affiliate Kia sold a combined 3.299 million vehicles in global markets in the January-June period, trailing only Toyota Motor’s 5.138 million units and Volkswagen’s 4.006 million units, according to their sales

Aug. 31, 2022

[Graphic News] S. Korean battery makers’ H1 market share falls amid Chinese advance

　The global market share of major South Korean battery makers fell in the first half of this year from a year earlier amid strong growth of Chinese rivals, a report showed.  　LG Energy Solution, SK On and Samsung SDI together accounted for a combined 25.8 percent share for the January-June period in terms of the total amount of battery energy registered, according to the report by market tracker SNE Research.  　That marks a 9.1 percentage point decline from the previous year’s

Aug. 18, 2022

Uber courts drivers by letting them pick rides

SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) -- Uber on Friday said it will let drivers in the United States see trip details before deciding whether to accept them -- a new feature long sought by drivers. A common lament by drivers at the app-summoned ride platform has been that they have to accept a request before learning where trips will take them, or how profitable they will be. "Our new trip request screen makes it easier for drivers to decide if a trip is worth their time and effort by providing all the de

July 30, 2022

[Newsmaker] Elon Musk fires back at Twitter in court battle

AFP -- Elon Musk on Friday filed claims against Twitter as he fights back against the tech firm's lawsuit demanding he be held to his $44 billion buyout deal. Musk's counter-suit was submitted along with a legal defense against Twitter's claim that the billionaire is contractually bound to complete the deal he inked in April to buy Twitter, the Chancery Court in the state of Delaware said in a notice. The 164-page filing was submitted as being "confidential," meaning the documents we

July 30, 2022

[Graphic News] Korea’s top 3 EV battery makers show sluggish sales growth

　Korea’s Electric Vehicle Battery industry showed slow sales growth as its global market share in the first five months dropped by 9.5 percentage points from last year, according to the battery industry tracker SNE Research’s June report. 　LG Energy Solution, the country’s top battery maker, took 14.4 percent of the market. The figure shrank by 9.2 percentage points from last year’s 23.6. Samsung SDI’s share also went down by 1.5 percentage points from 5.9 percent

July 19, 2022

[Graphic News] Seoul ranked 10th best city for startup ecosystem in 2022

　Seoul was selected as the 10th best city for startups in an annual report released by research firm Startup Genome, city officials said. 　The Global Startup Ecosystem Report 2022 by the firm, dedicated to improving the startup ecosystem of each city, surveyed 280 cities across some 100 nations for the latest results announced in London, the officials said. 　The report ranked Seoul as 10th strongest in the startup ecosystem category, up from 16th last year and 20th in 2020. 　The report put t

July 15, 2022

[Newsmaker] Musk ditches Twitter deal, triggering defiant response

SAN FRANCISCO -- Elon Musk on Friday pulled the plug on his $44 billion deal to buy Twitter, accusing the social media giant of "misleading" statements about the number of fake accounts, a regulatory filing showed. Musk's effort to terminate the deal that he inked in April sets the stage for an epic court battle over a billion-dollar breakup fee and more. "Mr. Musk hereby exercises (the) right to terminate the Merger Agreement and abandon the transaction," his lawyers said

July 9, 2022

[Interactive] Hong Kong most expensive city to live in for expats

　Hong Kong is the world’s most expensive city to live in as an expat for the second year in a row, according to a new study. New York and Geneva took second and third place in the rankings. 　Higher prices and a stronger currency over the past year kept the Asian city at the top of the tree, according to ECA International, which carried out its research in March this year. London and Tokyo round out the top five. 　Seoul, capital city of South Korea, stays 10th most expensive location in

July 2, 2022

[Graphic News] Apple named world’s most valuable brand

　Apple reclaimed its title as the world’s most valuable brand, according to a survey from Kantar BrandZ, knocking rival Amazon off the top spot for the first time in three years. 　The iPhone maker’s brand value reached $947 billion this year, while Amazon slipped to third, according to Kantar’s survey published June 15. Apple was last ranked the most valuable brand in 2015. 　Louis Vuitton became the first luxury brand to reach the top 10 after experiencing 64 percent growth

June 29, 2022

[Graphic News] S. Korea ranks No. 1 in household debt-to-GDP ratio in Q1

　South Korea had the highest household debt-to-gross domestic product ratio among 36 major economies in the first quarter, a global finance report said. 　The country’s household debt-to-GDP ratio came to 104.3 percent in the January-March period, followed by Lebanon with 97.8 percent, Hong Kong with 95.3 percent, Thailand with 89.7 percent and Britain with 83.9 percent, according to data from the Institute of International Finance.  　South Korea was the only country whose household

June 24, 2022

[Graphic News] Samsung Electronics world No. 22 by market cap

　Samsung Electronics, South Korea’s leading tech firm, was the world‘s 22nd-largest company in terms of market capitalization, down seven notches from a year earlier, data showed. 　According to the list of the global top 100 companies released by London-based accounting company PwC, the tech giant was the only South Korean company on the list with the market value of $342 billion as of March. 　The share price of the chip giant has fallen amid global uncertainties, including moneta

June 23, 2022

[Graphic News] S. Korea maintains 5th spot in global vehicle output: report

　South Korea ranked fifth in terms of global vehicle production last year, retaining the spot for the second consecutive year, amid efforts to minimize the fallout from the pandemic-caused global chip shortage, a report showed.  　The combined vehicle output by South Korean carmakers, including Hyundai Motor and Kia, reached 3.46 million units as of end-2021, down 1.3 percent from the previous year, according to the report from the Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association.  　China

March 16, 2022

China considers buying stakes in Russian energy, commodity firms

China is considering buying or increasing stakes in Russian energy and commodities companies, such as gas giant Gazprom PJSC and aluminum producer United Co. Rusal International PJSC, according to people familiar with the matter. Beijing is in talks with its state-owned firms, including China National Petroleum Corp., China Petrochemical Corp., Aluminum Corp. of China and China Minmetals Corp., on any opportunities for potential investments in Russian companies or assets, the people said. Any d

March 8, 2022