Articles by Suk Gee-hyun
Suk Gee-hyun
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Korea steps up cigarette smuggling crackdown
The Korea Customs Service is to reinforce the monitoring of tobacco smuggling on concerns about the burgeoning trade of duty-free cigarettes in the domestic market following an announced price hike. In the run-up to a tobacco price hike on Jan. 1, the agency said it would closely monitor tourists purchasing more duty-free cigarettes than the government-imposed 10 pack limit. An official from the Korea Customs Service crouches amid duty-free cigarettes seized from smugglers at the Seoul customs
Industry Dec. 9, 2014
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Daewoong Pharm signs investment deal with Osong BioValley
Daewoong Pharmaceutical signed a 210 billion won ($188.3 million) worth investment deal with North Chungcheong Province to build a factory. The new facility will be designed to comply with current good manufacturing practices, better known as cGMPs, U.S. standards for design, monitoring, and control of pharmaceutical manufacturing. Under the deal, signed during the 4th Herald Creative Economy Forum on Friday in Seoul, the Korean drugmaker said the company would construct the facility by 2016 wit
Industry Dec. 7, 2014
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KB Financial chief vows to win back trust
KB Financial Group chairman Yoon Jong-kyoo is a man with a mission. As the chief was selected after a months-long crisis involving internal feuding, data leaks and loan fraud, Yoon has a lot on his plate, and he knows it. This is why the new chairman has made it clear that he will make winning back consumer trust and boosting employee morale his top priorities. On Nov. 21, Yoon said at his inauguration ceremony that KB would “continue to enforce stringent internal control systems and reinforce c
Dec. 4, 2014
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Woori vice president expected to become CEO
Woori Bank vice president Lee Kwang-goo was expected to become president of the bank following an abrupt decision by the incumbent head to step down.Lee was among the three candidates that the bank’s presidential nomination committee revealed, but industry watchers believe he has the biggest shot at the presidency, citing his connection to the government and high-ranking officials in the financial sector from his alma mater ― Sogang University. Rumors have been mushrooming that Sogang graduates
Dec. 2, 2014
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[Weekender] Bargain hunting overseas changes local retail landscape
Forget city traffic and the shortage of parking spaces in shopping areas. More South Koreans are shopping on overseas e-commerce sites, with products ranging from simple fashion items to appliances.The so-called “jikgu-jok” — a tribe of shoppers buying goods directly on foreign websites — is growing rapidly here, as more people seek to dodge local retailers’ high markups on imported goods and have a wider range of choice.Jikgu-jok calls themselves “smart consumers.” They claim they pay less for
Industry Nov. 28, 2014
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[Weekender] Korean retailers offer bargains to compete with Amazon on Black Friday
South Korean retailers are offering Black Friday bargains to lure local consumers who are buying Samsung TVs and foreign goods overseas with just the click of a mouse.Local department stores and e-commerce sites have launched sales ― with up to 60 percent off ― ahead of U.S. retail sales on Friday, challenged by the increasing popularity of direct-buying at foreign e-commerce sites. “Many retailers are afraid of losing young consumers, who go to U.S. websites to buy Samsung and LG’s electronic d
Industry Nov. 28, 2014
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Citibank Korea’s new chief to seek slimmer bank
Citibank Korea’s newly named president Park Jin-hei on Friday said the bank would become more efficient and security conscious in order to achieve future growth. The 57-year-old banker stressed that the company needed to focus on its core businesses -- corporate banking for local companies in pursuit of overseas expansion, wealth management and credit card business. “I understand that ‘downsizing’ (an organization) has a negative connotation. That’s partly because Korea has long been a growth-ce
Nov. 28, 2014
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[Design Forum] Food for thought, thoughts on design
The Herald Design Market on Thursday welcomed visitors with an array of snazzy snacks, one-bite sweets and beverages that bring greater aesthetic inspiration. Peter Callahan, renowned caterer and food stylist, shared his genre of food that brought a whole miniature food boom in the U.S., during a “Food Talk” session. “We try to make every ingredient a decoration,” Callahan said. “It’s all about the details that make the difference.” Callahan, who has served food for many famous personalities suc
Food Nov. 27, 2014
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[Design Forum] ‘Sustainable design for the next generation’
How can designers design products or services that not only look beautiful, but deliver added value that can change the world?British product designer Matthew Cockerill finds the answer in designing products “with the end in mind.”“Designers make a product and sell the product but it’s usually somebody else’s job to recycle that. That causes the problem,” Cockerill said on Wednesday at a Herald Design Forum session on responsible design for sustainability.Cockerill, associate design director at
Industry Nov. 26, 2014
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[Design Forum] Herald Design Market embraces healthy lifestyles
The Herald Design Market will kick off its five-day run at Seoul’s Dongdaemun Design Plaza on Wednesday to promote healthier lifestyles by connecting the fields of architecture, fashion and food. Under this year’s theme of “Design Your Life NOW,” a total of 63 up-and-coming artists and food companies will showcase their works, said Herald Corp., the organizer of the event. NOW stands for Natural, Organic and Well-being ― the key ingredients for a healthy yet fun life, they said.“At a glance, foo
Industry Nov. 25, 2014
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[SUPER RICH] Kohler eyes affluent Koreans
BUSAN ― Kohler, a U.S. supplier of high-end plumbing products, is hoping to see a 300 percent sales growth in the South Korean market next year, said Kohler Novita executive Choi Jae-kwan. “Designers of townhouses and luxury hotels are visiting our Busan showroom to use the premium Kohler products for their interiors,” Choi said during an event celebrating the launch of the company’s new toilet brand Veil. Kohler Novita executive Choi Jae-kwan (Kohler)The Wisconsin-based company, which describes
Industry Nov. 24, 2014
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Tax agency launches probe into medicine rebates
Major South Korean pharmaceutical companies may soon face a heavy penalty, with the Seoul Regional Tax Office investigating into charges of their tax evasion using illegal sales practices, according to industry sources. Seoul’s tax probe came after the National Tax Service found out irregular activities by some drug manufacturers during their regular tax audit that began last year. Jeil Pharmaceutical, Green Cross, Ahngook Pharm, Daewoong Pharmaceutical, Ildong Pharmaceutical and Dong-A ST are a
Nov. 23, 2014
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IKEA sorry for East Sea blunder
Swedish furniture giant IKEA on Wednesday apologized over what it said was a poor choice of words in naming the eastern body of water of the Korean Peninsula. “We apologize for the naming of the East Sea on the world map (sold at IKEA stores),” IKEA Korea retail manager Andre Schmidtgall said during a press conference at the Seoul outlet in Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi Province.“We’re in close contact with our product development team at the headquarters in Sweden to make modifications,” he said.In the
Industry Nov. 19, 2014
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Number of jeonse leases with deposits over W1b rises fivefold
Seoul apartments that cost more than 1 billion won ($910,000) in jeonse deposits, or lump-sum rentals, jumped fivefold in the past five years, a South Korean realtor said Tuesday. Rent deposits of about 11,432 apartments among 1.2 million jeonse leases in Seoul surpassed 1 billion won, an increase of 479 percent from 2,385 apartments in 2009, according to data released by Real Estate Serve.Apartments in Seoul’s posh Gangnam district accounted for most of them at 54 percent, followed by Seocho di
Nov. 18, 2014
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SPC to open 30 Paris Baguettes in Malaysia
SPC Group, best known for its Paris Baguette bakery franchise, is planning to launch the artisan bakery in Malaysia starting with an initial opening in the first half of next year, SPC officials said Friday.The country’s leading confectionary brand, in partnership with Naza Corporation Holdings ― one of the largest privately owned conglomerates in Malaysia ― is planning to open up to 30 outlets in the country by 2019. “We are confident that Malaysians will be receptive to new food and beverage c
Industry Nov. 14, 2014
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