Latest News

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  South Korea to provide policy financing for display sector SEOUL -- The South Korean Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy plans to provide 900 billion won ($726.86 million) in policy financing for the display industry this year to improve its technological competitiveness and increase display exports. First Vice Trade Minister Jang Young-jin disclosed the plan on January 18 after holding a meeting with representatives of Samsung Display, LG Display, and other companies making related materials, parts and equipment at the Korea Chamber of 2023-01-18
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  SK on partners with KAIST to kick-start incubation program for battery researchers SEOUL -- SK on, the batter-making wing of South Korea's SK Group, has partnered with a prominent state research institute to kick-start an incubation program designed to nurture battery researchers. When postgraduates finish their battery specialist course at the institute, they will be hired by SK on to continue their research. Currently, it has become a trend among major South Korean battery makers such as SK on, Samsung SDI, and LG Chem to partner with prominent state techno 2023-01-18
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  BTS member Jimin appointed as global ambassador for luxury fashion brand Dior SEOUL -- Jimin, the lead vocalist of BTS, was selected as the global ambassador of Christian Dior, a France-based high-end luxury fashion brand known as Dior, to promote various fashion items and campaigns. The 27-year-old has aroused fans' curiosity regarding his enlistment as his agency earlier announced that all BTS members would fulfill their mandatory military service. After Dior's announcement on January 17, the artist expressed his excitement through his Instagram po 2023-01-18
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  S. Korea and Vietnam open technology research center in Hanoi SEOUL -- South Korea and Vietnam held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Vietnam-Korea Institute of Science and Technology (VKIST) in the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi on January 17. The VKIST is one of Vietnam’s largest research and development (R&D) centers which has been under construction with South Korea’s official development assistance (ODA) worth $70 million since 2014. The dedication ceremony was held at Hoa Lac Hi-tech Park in Hanoi with some 150 dignitar 2023-01-18
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  Super rookie girl band NewJeans debuts on Billboard's Hot100 chart with 'Ditto' SEOUL -- Just after about six months of the band's debut, K-pop super rookie NewJeans entered Billboard's top 100 popular song chart with "Ditto," a dance song released on December 19, 2022. The five-member band stepped into the spotlight as soon as it debuted on July 2022 and won various awards including the "Rookie Artist Award" and "Best Digital Song" at the "2023 Golden Disk Awards," an annual Asian music awards event hosted by So 2023-01-18
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  Medytox becomes first S. Korean biopharmaceutical firm to build botulinum toxin factory in UAE SEOUL -- Medytox, a Seoul-based botulinum toxin producer, will become the first South Korean company to build a manufacturing facility for botulinum toxin products in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The biopharmaceutical company aims to secure its foothold in the Middle Eastern market. The decision on the construction of the factory was made while company CEO Jung Hyun-ho was accompanying South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol who was on a four-day state visit from January 14 2023-01-17
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  S. Korea's homemade fighter jet KF-21 succeeds in supersonic flight for first time SEOUL -- The prototype of South Korea's homemade fighter jet KF-21 succeeded in its first supersonic flight. The maiden supersonic flight proved that the multirole fighter's mechanical structure is stable. The first jet fighter christened "KF-21 Boramae (Young Hawk)" made its 33-minute maiden flight on July 19, 2022, in a closed event on a military runway in the southern city of Sacheon, the home base of Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI), the sole aircraft maker in 2023-01-17
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  Seoul becomes world's first city to provide metaverse-based administrative services SEOUL -- Seoul became the world's first city to provide administrative services using metaverse, a virtually created world accessible using smart devices or PCs, in various sectors including economy, education and tax. Seoulites can communicate with their mayor regarding public policies by creating avatars in the virtual world. The municipal authorities unveiled its scheme in November 2021 to provide metaverse-based services in every administrative sector by 2026 through a 3. 2023-01-17
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  Marine ministry to promote migration of young people to fishing villages via support program SEOUL -- In an effort to encourage young city people to migrate to under-populated fishing villages, the marine ministry will roll out a promotion program that will include various government-funded supports such as a fishing boat rental service, house rental service, and the operation of incubation curriculums of fishermen. According to the state statistical information service, South Korea's fishermen population is decreasing rapidly. There were about 121,700 people working i 2023-01-17
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  Korean, UAE firms sign contracts, MOUs worth $6.1 billion SEOUL -- Domestic companies are vying to strike a deal with United Arab Emirates’ firms after the UAE promised to invest $30 billion (about 37 trillion won) in South Korea. On January 16, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy held a Korea-UAE business forum in Abu Dhabi to help South Korean corporations look for UAE partners as part of efforts to increase exports to the Middle Eastern country and explore business opportunities there. The business forum came after Pre 2023-01-17
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  CMG Pharmaceutical acquires animal nutritional supplement developer targeting pet healthcare market SEOUL -- CMG Pharmaceutical, a unit of South Korea's CHA biomedical group, will make a foray into the pet nutrition supplement market by acquiring ING Medix, a domestic animal nutritional supplement provider. The pharmaceutical company's distribution network will be used to sell various types of products such as softly chewable supplements. The number of South Koreans who own pets have consistently increased. When the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic swept across the 2023-01-17
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  Elderly lone diners more prone to accelerated frailty and aging: study SEOUL -- Old people who eat alone are more likely to show a higher frailty scale than those who eat with others, a joint study by South Korean doctors showed. Doctors said the feeling of social isolation felt during meal times affected the aging process by causing depression and malnutrition. The term frailty normally refers to an aging stage that could develop into elderly diseases. The clinical frailty scale is decided by measuring the functional status of the body and mind of 2023-01-17
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  K-pop album exports hit record high in 2022 SEOUL -- Exports of South Korean K-pop albums in 2022 reached $233 million, up 5.6 percent on-year, state data showed. For the first time, more than 80 million copies were sold. Data released by the state-run tax organization Korea Customs Service showed that Japan was the largest importer of K-pop albums with $85.74 million, followed by China with 51.33 million and the United States with $38.88 million. Other top 10 importers include Taiwan, Thailand, Germany and France. In 2 2023-01-17
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  ​Convenience store GS25 targets "home-aloners" with Lunar New Year festival gourmet menu SEOUL -- South Korean convenience store franchise GS25 has released a premium lunchbox menu for "home-aloners," single-person households who chose to stay at their homes rather than to visit their families in their hometown. The premium meal box consists of traditional Korean menus including Tteokguk, a rice cake soup consumed during the Korean Lunar New Year holidays called "Seol." Seol, a three-day festival that celebrates the Lunar New Year, is the largest tr 2023-01-16
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  [SUMMARY] Daily News Selection by Aju Business Daily on January 15, 2023 The following stories are the daily summary of news in South Korea on January 15, 2023. SEOUL -- President Yoon meets with S. Korean troops of Akh unit in UAE President Yoon Su-yeol met with South Korean military personnel stationed in the United Arab Emirates. Since its creation in 2011, the Akh unit has been working in Abu Dhabi on a variety of projects, such as teaching UAE soldiers and providing emergency protection for Korean citizens there. In Arabic, Akh means brother. 2023-01-16
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  Children's hospital in Seoul adopts rehabilitation robot for upper limbs SEOUL -- A children's hospital in southern Seoul has adopted a robot that helps the rehabilitation of patients who injured their upper limbs including arms and shoulders. Using ergonomic devices that provide arm weight support, children with severe muscle diseases can restore their arm strength by continuously swinging their arms. According to a statement released by Seoul City on January 16, the solution created by a global rehab robot maker will be used at Seoul Child H 2023-01-16
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  ​Seoul to launch metaverse-based counseling services for students struggling in school SEOUL -- A metaverse-based counseling platform will be adopted in Seoul to help young students maintain their composure while facing various types of struggles such as academic concerns and friendship problems. Without revealing their faces, students can communicate with teachers using avatars capable of recognizing different emotions. Amid the coronavirus pandemic, the number of young people feeling positive emotions has significantly decreased. In a 2021 survey of 862 people aged 2023-01-16
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  Jeju Island to establish intelligent transport system to ease traffic congestions SEOUL -- The southern resort island of Jeju will adopt an intelligent transport system in an effort to ease traffic jams. The island with a population of about 635,000 is visited by more than 10 million visitors from South Korea and abroad every year. It is very common to witness traffic congestion at tourist hot spots and major towns on the island. An intelligent transport system (ITS) is a smart traffic control tower that can monitor roads in real-time and control traffic lights 2023-01-16
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  Foreign investors become net buyers this month, leading Korean stock market SEOUL -- Foreign investors have become net buyers on the main Seoul stock exchange this month, ramping up share prices. According to the Korea Exchange (KRX), foreigners’ net purchase was estimated at 2.88 trillion won ($2.33 billion) between January 2 and 13. The net buying trend was in contrast to their net selling of 1.69 trillion won last month, boosting the benchmark KOSPI by 6.7 percent from 2,236.40 on December 29 to 2,386.09 on January 13. Foreign portfolio in 2023-01-16
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  UAE decides to invest $30 billion in South Korea SEOUL -- The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has decided to invest $30 billion (about 37 trillion won) in South Korea’s nuclear power, energy and defense sectors, the presidential office said on January 15. The decision came during a summit between President Yoon Suk-yeol and his UAE counterpart Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi. The office quoted the UAE president as telling Yoon that the Middle Eastern country has made the investment decision with confidence in the 2023-01-16