Economy

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  Tuna maker Dongwon F&B releases plant-based dumpling and canned tuna SEOUL -- South Korea's largest canned tuna maker Dongwon F&B rolled out plant-based cholesterol-free canned tuna to meet growing demands of some 2 million vegans in South Korea. South Korea's vegan meat market has been rapidly growing to meet demands of some 2 million vegans. Data released by the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation showed that the country's vegan meat market which stood at 22.7 billion won ($17.4 million) in 2020 will reach 29.4 billio 2023-03-07
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  Samsung SDS introduces one-stop smart logistics platform in Viet Nam targeting global market SEOUL -- Samsung SDS, the digital solution wing of Samsung conglomerate, showcased the company's one-stop smart logistics solution called "Cello Square" which small and large-sized traders can use to simplify the import and export process. Cello Square was first introduced in the domestic market in 2021 to simplify the head-aching process of exporting and importing goods. The smart solution helps individual business operators and small and medium-sized enterprises ( 2023-03-07
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  ​SK Chemicals acquires Chinese recycled material maker targeting global eco-friendly material market SEOUL -- SK Chemicals, the chemical unit of South Korea's SK Group, has acquired a Chinese raw materials company specializing in recycled materials in a bid to expand its presence in the global recycled materials market. The global market for recycled plastics is predicted to grow at an average annual growth rate of 9.3 percent to reach $43.5 billion by 2026, according to global market research firm Markets and Markets. Plastics can be recycled in many forms. They can be cleane 2023-03-07
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  Samsung promotes new 8K TV at London's iconic square 'Piccadilly Circus' SEOUL -- Samsung Electronics has promoted its new Neo QLED 8K, a TV model with a powerful picture processor, through an outdoor billboard at Piccadilly Circus, a famous square in London with various cinemas, theaters, restaurants, and pubs. Samsung's existing Neo QLED models can make dark areas darker and bright areas brighter by increasing the luminance scale. The Neo QLED 8K TV models are known for supporting larger bandwidth loads, processing faster multi-gigabit data, enabl 2023-03-06
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  Pulmuone opens second vegan restaurant to expand vegan business SEOUL -- Targeting South Korea's steadily growing vegan population, Pulmuone Food & Culture, the cafeteria service management wing of Seoul-based food company Pulmuone, will beef up its vegan food business through the second vegan restaurant called "Plantude." Customers can enjoy various plant-based food at the restaurant such as salad and a tofu dish that contains black olives and cherry tomatoes. Thanks to increased awareness of health and well-being, the numbe 2023-03-06
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  ​SK Innovation's petrochemical wing makes equity investment into pyrolysis startup SEOUL -- SK Incheon Petrochem, a petrochemical wing of South Korean conglomerate SK Group's intermediate holding company SK Innovation, made an equity investment into LD Carbon, a domestic startup specializing in pyrolysis that uses discarded car tires to extract oil. The pyrolysis technique uses extreme heat and pressure to break down plastics or polymers such as rubber to extract oil, carbon black, and combustible gases. Carbon black is a solid carbon material that can be use 2023-03-06
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  Major S. Korean construction companies focus on overseas projects due to slowed domestic market SEOUL -- Major Korean construction companies are seeking opportunities to expand into overseas markets. With concerns rising about the sluggishness of the domestic housing market due to market deterioration, the impact of high-interest rates, and rising raw material prices, the companies are turning their attention to overseas markets as the domestic market is expected to slow down. According to the International Contractors Association of Korea on March 2, the cumulative amount of 2023-03-03
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  Hyundai auto group's vehicles garner explosive popularity in U.S. SEOUL -- Vehicles made by South Korea's Hyundai auto group are gaining explosive popularity in the United States. Monthly sales of Hyundai vehicles in February 2023 soared 16 percent compared to the same period a year ago in the U.S. market, selling a total of 122,111 units. According to data released by Hyundai Motor America, Hyundai Motors sold 57,044 units only in February, up nine percent from a year ago. Hyundai's American office said most sold vehicles include Elantr 2023-03-02
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  ​South Korea to cut heavy reliance on China for key minerals to secure stable supply SEOUL -- ​South Korea plans to cut its heavy reliance on China for key minerals, including lithium, nickel and graphite, from the current 80 percent to 50 percent by 2030 by creating stable mineral supply chains with 30 major resource-rich countries. On February 27, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced the plan after holding a meeting with representatives of automakers and secondary battery producers, including Hyundai Motor Co., Samsung SDI, LG Energy Solution, and 2023-02-28
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  Non-consumption expenditure accounts for 26.5% of total household spending in 2022 SEOUL -- Non-consumption household expenditure including tax and interest payments accounted for more than a quarter of entire household spending last year, the Korean Statistical Information Service (KOSIS) said February 27. The average non-consumption household expenditure was estimated at 951,000 won ($719) in 2022, up 8 percent from a year before, according to the KOSIS affiliated with Statistics Korea. The sum represented 26.5 percent of total average household spending of 3.5 2023-02-27
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  ​Korean-built No. 3 reactor starts commercial operation in UAE's Barakah nuclear plant SEOUL -- The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has launched the commercial operation of the third reactor of the Barakah nuclear power plant built by South Korea, the Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) said February 26. The operation started February 24, eight months after the UAE issued an operating license and completed the process of inserting fuel rods into the reactor in June 2022, according to the state-run unitality company. The Barakah plant, located 270 kilometers west of Abu 2023-02-27
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  ​South Korea faces vicious cycle of snowballing trade deficit, falling won, high inflation SEOUL -- The South Korea economy is likely to slip into a vicious cycle of a snowballing trade deficit, a weakening Korean won against the U.S. dollar, and soaring inflation. According to the Korea Customs Service, the country suffered a trade deficit of $18.63 billion (24.56 trillion won) so far this year until February 20. The sum was 2.7 times the $6.98 billion shortfall the country posted a year before. In the first 20 days of February, the deficit was estimated at $5.98 bi 2023-02-27
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  Kakao's AI development wing to kick-start $7.6 mln fund to commercialize hyperscale AI SEOUL -- Kakao Brain, the artificial intelligence development wing will kick-start a fund worth up to 10 billion won ($7.6 million) during the first half of 2023 to commercialize the company's AI-based image generation application. Hyperscale AI refers to AI technologies and techniques at a massive scale to solve complex problems and process an enormous amount of data. Hyperscale AI is often used in natural language processing and AI-based image generation. AI image generat 2023-02-27
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  ​[Weekly Stock Market] Overall foreign buying trend is likely to continue SEOUL -- The benchmark Korea Stock Price Index (KOSPI) ended at 2,423.61 last week, down 1.13 percent from a week before, as the index was predominantly pressured by foreign selling. For the first time this year, on a weekly basi 2023-02-26
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  KEPCO suffers record operating loss of $25 billion in 2022 due to soaring fuel prices SEOUL -- The state-run Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) said February 24 that it suffered a record operating loss of 32.63 trillion won ($25.02 billion) last year, prompted by soaring fuel prices and a slow pace of electricity rate hikes. The loss was more than five times the company's 2021 operating loss of 5.84 trillion won. In the last three months of last year alone, KEPCO incurred a 10.76 trillion won loss, hitting an all-time high quarterly figure. KEPCO said that i 2023-02-24
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  ​Two bar associations fined $7.7 million each for membership ban on legal service platform SEOUL -- South Korea's two bar associations were slapped with a fine of 10 billion won ($7.7 million) each for banning their members from joining LawTalk, an online platform that connects users and lawyers. On February 23, the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) decided to impose the fine on the Korean Bar Association (KBA) and the Seoul Bar Association (SBA), stating that their ban has hindered "free and fair" competition in the legal market. The antitrust regulat 2023-02-24
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  ​Real household income drops 1.1% in fourth quarter of last year amid soaring inflation SEOUL -- South Korea's real household income fell 1.1 percent year-on-year in the fourth quarter of last year, affected by runaway inflation, according to Statistics Korea on February 23. The statistical office said that average nominal household income increased 4.1 percent to 4.83 million won in the last three months of 2022 from a year before. However, inflation-adjusted real household income dropped 1.1 percent, following a 2.8 percent fall in the third quarter of last year 2023-02-23
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  ​BOK freezes key rate at 3.5% amid deteriorating economic outlook SEOUL -- The Bank of Korea has decided to freeze its key interest rate at 3.5 percent, halting 17 months of continued rate hikes amid the deteriorating economic outlook. The central made the decision on February 23 after holding a Monetary Policy Board meeting. The rate freeze came as the South Korean economy continues to slow down after it began to contract in the fourth quarter of last year amid sluggish exports and sagging domestic demand. Leaving the rate unchanged at the c 2023-02-23
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  ​Producer prices rose 0.4% in January, driven by soaring electricity charges SEOUL -- Producer prices rose 0.4 percent last month from December, driven by soaring electricity charges, according to data released by the Bank of Korea (BOK) on February 23. The produce price index increased to 120.29 in January, up 0.4 percent from a month before. The rise came after the index fell 0.3 percent in November and 0.4 percent in December. Compared with the January 2021 figure, the price index jumped by 5.1 percent. "The producer price increase was attribute 2023-02-23
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  LG Uplus to release metaverse platform for young children SEOUL -- South Korea's mobile carrier LG Uplus will roll out a metaverse-based platform that enables young children to interact with each other and learn about animals and dinosaurs using avatars. The virtual platform incorporated functions capable of filtering profanity while chatting and reporting those who behave inappropriately. LG Uplus (LGU+) said in a statement that the company will release the open beta version of KidsTopia, a metaverse platform for children aged up to 2023-02-22