Articles by Kan Hyeong-woo
Kan Hyeong-woo
hwkan@heraldcorp.com-
SK Bioscience rolls out 1st batch of Novavax vaccine
SK Bioscience rolled out the first batch of Nuvaxovid, Novavax’s synthetic antigen-based COVID-19 vaccine, the company said Wednesday. On top of the 840,000 doses that were rolled out on Wednesday, SK Bioscience said it plans to supply a total of 2 million doses by the end of this month. The shipment follows the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety’s approval of the vaccine last month. In December, SK Bioscience signed a contract with the US bio firm to secure the manufacturing and s
Industry Feb. 9, 2022
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Virus surge raises self-test shortage fears
The recent surge in the number of COVID-19 cases has increased the demand for self-test kits, and is causing alarm as there are signs of another supply shortage reminiscent of the mask scarcity seen two years ago. Sales of self-test kits at convenience stores have soared since Jan. 26 when the country’s daily confirmed cases broke 10,000 for the first time. Some stores quickly ran out of stock as the supply could not keep up. A similar pattern has been seen at pharmacies. “Since
Social Affairs Feb. 8, 2022
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Samsung Biologics scoops up all 6 CMO Leadership Awards
Samsung Biologics has won the 2022 CMO Leadership Awards in all six performance categories of capabilities, compatibility, expertise, reliability, quality and service, the company said Tuesday. The awards, presented by Life Science Leader, Outsourced Pharma and Industry Standard Research, recognize the world’s top contract manufacturing organizations based on ratings and feedback from companies that utilize outsourcing services. The latest recognition marked the ninth consecutive year
Industry Feb. 8, 2022
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SK Bioscience logs record high sales
SK Bioscience saw record sales of 929 billion won ($774 million) and operating profits of 474 billion won from last year, on the back of strong businesses in its contract manufacturing of the AstraZeneca and Novavax COVID-19 vaccines, the company said Monday. Compared to 2020 yearly figures, SK Bioscience’s annual sales and operating profits went up by 311 percent and 1,158 percent, respectively. About half of the annual numbers came in the fourth quarter alone as the company logged 451
Industry Feb. 7, 2022
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Celltrion’s COVID-19 treatment gets safety nod in Australia
Celltrion has confirmed the safety of its inhalable antibody treatment for COVID-19 in a phase one clinical trial in Australia, the pharmaceutical company said Monday. Celltrion’s US partner Inhalon Biopharma completed the planned administering of the drugs for 24 volunteers after it acquired testing approval from the Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration in August. The results of the clinical trial proved the drug’s safety, as there were no serious adverse events from inha
Industry Feb. 7, 2022
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Game developers brace for new industry safety law
Korea’s major game developers are taking preemptive measures to cope with the new industrial safety law and prevent another “crunch mode” controversy. Under the Serious Accident Punishment Act, which took effect from Jan. 27, business owners can face a minimum prison term of one year or a fine of up to 1 billion won ($835,000) if a fatal accident at the workplace causes a death or more than one injured person. The punishment depends on whether the owners are found guilty of n
Industry Feb. 6, 2022
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Why aren't there Korean-made vaccines yet?
Although it has been over two years since the coronavirus began spreading in Korea, the country has not seen a homemade vaccine developed yet. SK Bioscience is the company closest to delivering the first Korean-developed vaccine as the biopharmaceutical firm’s GBP510 is in the third and final phase of clinical trials. The government and company officials have voiced hope for a successful result and swift authorization as well as commercialization of GBP510 in the first half of this year,
Industry Feb. 2, 2022
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Samsung Biologics to acquire Biogen’s stake in Samsung Bioepis for $2.3 billion
Samsung Biologics has reached an agreement with Biogen to buy out the US biotechnology firm’s stake in Samsung Bioepis for $2.3 billion (2.7 trillion won), the company said Friday. Biogen secured a 15 percent stake when Samsung Bioepis was established as a joint venture in 2012. The US company exercised its right in June 2018 to buy up to one share less of Samsung Bioepis’ 50 percent stock. The payment for the 10,341,852 shares will be carried out over the next two years and full
Industry Jan. 28, 2022
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Science ministry to set up Korean version of US DARPA
The government will introduce the Korean version of the US‘ Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency this year to accelerate future-oriented research on innovative technology, Science and ICT Minister Lim Hye-sook said Thursday. Adapting the US DARPA model -- creator of the computer mouse, drones, the Internet predecessor Arpanet, GPS, and voice recognition -- the Korean agency will have its own independent rights in operation and budget to lead challenging research and development of n
Technology Jan. 27, 2022
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[Newsmaker] Korea to invest W9tr to speed up digital transformation
South Korea will inject a record-high 9 trillion won ($7.5 billion) this year into its drive for digital transformation as part of the country’s Digital New Deal plan, the Ministry of Science and ICT said Wednesday. The biggest portion of the state fund, 5.9 trillion won, will be poured into strengthening the ecosystem of data, network and artificial intelligence. By the end of this year, it plans to set up 310 additional kinds of AI learning data and a comprehensive platform service t
Technology Jan. 26, 2022
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Korea’s virtual asset market to reach W1,000tr by 2026: report
Korea’s virtual asset market will reach 1,000 trillion won ($835 billion) by 2026, Boston Consulting Group Korea said Tuesday in its report Future of Asset 2022. According to the report, the country’s virtual asset market already surpassed 300 trillion won by the end of last year to take up 10 percent of the global market. With an average annual growth of 20 percent over the next five years, the virtual asset market will also create 40,000 jobs in the process, BCG Korea said. The
Market Jan. 25, 2022
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LG Onmipod to make debut at Kakao's tech conference in Feb.
LG’s future mobility concept car LG Omnipod will make its first offline debut here next month at a tech conference organized by Kakao Mobility, companies said Monday. Introduced in a video at the Consumer Electronics Show held in Las Vegas earlier this month, LG Omnipod is a concept model of future self-driving cars interpreted as vehicles as extensions of the home. Based on users’ needs, it can be an office or personal space where users can enjoy various activities such as wa
Technology Jan. 24, 2022
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[Newsmaker] Korea Exchange to decide fate of scandal-ridden Osstem Implant
The Korea Exchange on Monday will decide whether Osstem Implant should undergo an eligibility review to stay listed on the country’s second bourse Kosdaq, making it the third biotech firm facing a possible delisting this year. The dental implant manufacturer’s stock trading was suspended on Jan. 3 as the company announced that it had filed embezzlement charges against an employee for stealing 221 billion won ($185 million) in company funds. The stock market operator can postpone t
Market Jan. 23, 2022
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Korea aims to become 5th-largest metaverse market by 2026
South Korea will nurture 40,000 professionals and 220 companies specialized in metaverse technology to achieve its goal of becoming the fifth largest country in the global metaverse market by 2026, the government said Thursday. The Ministry of Science and ICT announced the country’s pan-governmental strategic blueprint to lead the new industry to respond to economic and social changes that will be brought by the metaverse and prepare for the future. In particular, authorities laid out
Technology Jan. 20, 2022
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[Herald Interview] Pernod Ricard Korea looks to infuse Korean culture into drinking
As the COVID-19 pandemic forced pubs and bars to close early and limited private gatherings, more people have been drinking at home. Frantz Hotton, CEO of global wine and spirits company Pernod Ricard Group’s Korean affiliate, saw a silver lining in the virus-driven trend. “Our sales and marketing teams have made great efforts to respond well to the growing needs of off-trade market and caught up rapidly to grab opportunities in line with new drinking patterns,” Hotton said i
Consumer Jan. 20, 2022
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