Most Popular
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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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[KH Explains] No more 'Michael' at Kakao Games
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Rapper jailed after public street fight with another rapper
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Woman gets suspended term for injuring boyfriend with knife
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Samsung chief bolsters ties with Germany’s Zeiss
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Nominee for chief of anti-corruption body pledges 'independence, effectiveness'
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NewJeans pops out ‘Bubble Gum’ video amid troubles at agency
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Med schools expect 1,500+ new admission slots next year
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KT launches new mobile plans for foreign residents
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S.Korea now has 15 unicorn companies
Fifteen local startups have officially reached unicorn status, according to the Ministry of SME and Startups on Tuesday. The ministry said that three startups -- Zigbang, Dunamu, and Market Kurly -- have joined a select group of firms with a valuation exceeding $1 billion. Not all companies with high valuations are given the unicorn status. Unicorn companies should neither be listed on the stock exchange nor merged with another company. Coupang, for instance, was excluded from the group of loc
July 24, 2021
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Seoul stocks likely to tread on thin line next week amid earnings hope, virus woes
South Korean stocks are likely to face volatility next week as the virus resurgence continues to sap demand for risky assets, while optimism for robust earnings provides some relief. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index closed at 3,254.42 points Friday, down 0.69 percent from a week ago. The key stock index retreated in the first three sessions of this week, as daily virus cases again spiked, hitting a fresh high of 1,842 Thursday, despite the toughest virus curbs in the greater Se
July 24, 2021
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[News Focus] Heatwave brings reality check for Korea’s power supply
South Korea has reactivated three nuclear reactors in the space of a week, as fears of a power supply shortage gripped the nation amid a smothering early-summer heat wave. At 1:10 a.m. on Friday, Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power restarted operations of the 700-megawatt Wolsong No.3 nuclear reactor, the third switched on since July 18. It followed Shin Wolsong No. 1 and Shin Kori No.4 which went back online earlier than scheduled amid tight power supplies. All three had been closed for mainte
July 23, 2021
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Korea Shipbuilding wins combined W1.56tr orders for 7 LNG carriers
Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co. (KSOE) said Friday it has signed orders worth a combined 1.56 trillion won ($ 1.4 billion) to build seven LNG carriers. A 678 billion-won deal with an Asian company calls for Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., a unit of KSOE, to construct three LNG carriers by the end of 2024, KSOE said in a regulatory filing. Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries Co., another unit of KSOE, has obtained a 462.7 billion-won deal with a European company to build two LNG carr
July 23, 2021
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Merck launches cost-effective, eco-friendly solvent for chip production
German material technology company Merck said Friday it has developed a new lineup of green solvents for use in photolithographic processes in semiconductor manufacturing. The new solvent lineup is called AZ 910 Remover, which according to the firm is N-methylpyrrolidone-free solvent designed for faster dissolution of photoresist patterns in a cost-effective and greener way with its outstanding resist-dissolution performance. Semiconductor production facilities traditionally use negative
July 23, 2021
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Seoul stocks up for 2nd day on earnings hopes, ECB comments
South Korean stocks advanced for the second consecutive session Friday, largely as optimism for strong earnings and dovish signals from the European Central Bank (ECB) offset concerns over the extended virus curbs in greater Seoul. The Korean won strengthened against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) rose 4.21 points, or 0.13 percent, to close at 3,254.42 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 761 million shares worth some 12.7 trillion won ($11 billi
July 23, 2021
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Hyundai E&C to continue coal power project in Vietnam despite criticism
Climate activists on Friday blasted South Korean builder Hyundai Engineering & Construction for its decision to continue its 1,200-megawatt Quang Trach 1 coal power project along with Mitsubishi and Vietnam’s Construction Corp. Seoul-based not-for-profit organization Solutions for Our Climate said the failure to scrap what was proclaimed to be Hyundai E&C’s final coal project “directly contradicts the company’s own ESG vision” and neutralizes the impact of
July 23, 2021
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Thrasio-like Korean startup raises seed funding
NextChapter, a South Korean startup designed to acquire small online native brands active on ecommerce platforms including Coupang, has raised a seed round equity funding to scale up its business largely inspired by a success of US unicorn Thrasio. Joining the round were domestic venture capital houses Klim Ventures and Fast Ventures, as well as foreign VCs BlueRun Ventures and Goodwater Capital. The amount of equity funding remains to be undisclosed. NextChapter said the company will use the
July 23, 2021
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Tongyang Life sells entire stake in Woori Financial
Tongyang Life Insurance sold its entire stake in Woori Financial Group on Friday to secure more capital, in preparation for a stricter rule on local insurers’ fiscal soundness. According to a regulatory filing, the company had decided to sell all of its 3.74 percent stake (27.04 million shares) in the banking giant to some 60 domestic and foreign institutions, during its shareholders meeting held Thursday. The sale price was 301.5 billion won ($262 million), which accounts 9.7 percent
July 23, 2021
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Hyundai’s honorary chairman inducted into Automotive Hall of Fame
Hyundai Motor Group’s Honorary Chairman Chung Mong-Koo became the first Korean to be officially inducted into the international Automotive Hall of Fame, the automotive giant said Friday. His son, Chung Euisun, who is the incumbent chairman of the group, received the trophy and delivered a speech on behalf of his father at the ceremony for 2020 and 2021 inductees, held at the ICON Convention Center in Detroit, the United States on Thursday, the company said. “Honorary Chairman Ch
July 23, 2021
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Samsung sees sales of air conditioners double amid heatwave
Samsung Electronics said Friday its sales of air conditioners have more than doubled so far this month, compared to a year ago, due to the sweltering heat. From July 1 to 22, the company saw its sales of air conditioners spike more than twice from the same period in 2020, the company said. Sales of Bespoke Wind-free Gallery, the company’s highest-end air conditioner, have jumped more than 95 percent in July compared to a year earlier. To further drive sales, Samsung is offering up to
July 23, 2021
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[Newsmaker] August critical month for Samsung and its leader
Expectations are high that Samsung Electronics, which for months deliberated on a new, $17 billion US investment plan, may finally be ready to make an official announcement in August. According to industry sources on Friday, Samsung is accelerating the internal process for concluding its plan to construct a new chip fabrication line for foundry in the US. Some news reports said Thursday that the City of Austin in Texas, where the South Korean firm already has a chip plant up and running, is
July 23, 2021
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LIG Nex1 launches ESG committee
South Korean aerospace and defense firm LIG Nex1 said Friday it had established a committee dedicated to overseeing the company’s operations and initiatives in environmental, social and governance fields. The committee will designate one of the outside directors as the chairman and hold regular semi-annual meetings and occasional meetings to set strategies and policies for the firm’s long-term ESG goals. Since 2009, LIG Nex1 has had a corporate social responsibility task force.
July 23, 2021
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Summer appliance sales soaring amid scorching heat
Sales of summer appliances, including air conditioners and fans, are soaring in South Korea, industry sources said Friday, as the sweltering heat continues to scorch the country. With the daily temperature reaching as high as 38 C in some regions, demand for air conditioners and other cooling appliances is also going up with the stay-at-home trend remaining solid amid the fourth wave of the pandemic here, people in the electronics industry said. Samsung Electronics Co. said its domestic air co
July 23, 2021
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Samsung offering special trade-in program in US for new foldable smartphones
Samsung Electronics Co., the world's largest smartphone maker, is running a special trade-in program in the United States for its upcoming new foldable smartphones, industry insiders said Friday, amid its push to expand its customer base of foldable handsets. Samsung's US unit recently opened a reservation page that allows people to exchange up to two of their old devices for a new foldable smartphone to be launched next month. The South Korean tech giant earlier this week confirmed that its n
July 23, 2021
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Samsung introduces upgraded network solutions
Samsung Electronics Co. said Friday it has released upgraded software-defined networking (SDN) solutions to help mobile operators and enterprises better manage their 5G networks. The South Korean tech giant said its new SDN solutions will support enterprises in various sectors, including education, retail and energy, introducing new 5G application, services and infrastructure. SDN is a network architecture approach that enables the network to be easily controlled via software solutions. It all
July 23, 2021
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S. Korea to launch pilot operation of mobile driver's license in Jan.
South Korea plans to begin a pilot operation of a mobile driver's license in January next year in a bid to help people verify their identities more conveniently, a senior government official said Friday. First Vice Finance Minister Lee Eog-weon said if introduced, mobile driver's licenses will be easily used at offline and online settings. To ease concerns about a possible infringement on privacy, the government plans to use blockchain technology to strengthen the protection of personal inform
July 23, 2021
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S. Korea maintaining stable power supply amid scorching summer heat
South Korea's state energy bourse said Friday the country is expected to maintain a stable supply of electricity despite the sweltering summer heat, although growing demand from the industry sector may lead to lower power reserves. "On Friday, South Korea's peak energy demand is expected to reach around 90.3 gigawatts (GW)," the Korea Power Exchange said in a statement. "The power reserve ratio is expected to stand at 10.1 percent, maintaining the stable supply of energy."
July 23, 2021
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Seoul stocks open flat amid COVID-19 resurgence
South Korean stocks opened flat Friday as the country extended the toughest curbs for the greater Seoul area amid the resurgence of COVID-19. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) lost 0.1 point to 3,250.11 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks retreated as the fourth wave of the new coronavirus weakened investor sentiment, while strong earnings provided some relief. Earlier in the morning, the South Korean government extended the toughest virus restrictions in t
July 23, 2021
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GS E&C invests W500b in renewable energy projects
GS Engineering & Construction is partnering with the city of Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province, to invest in green energy, the company announced Wednesday. The construction company said it signed a memorandum of understanding with the Pohang city government to build solar energy and hydrogen fuel cell energy production plants set to run in the Yeongilman 4th General Industrial Complex. The partnership is in line with Pohang’s commitment to turn the area into a carbon-neutral zone b
July 23, 2021