[From the scene] KGC's ginseng harvest season in full swing

ICHEON, Gyeonggi Province/WONJU, Gangwon Province – On an autumn morning in October, a bustling ginseng harvest was underway in the ginseng fields of Icheon, Gyeonggi Province. Workers were busy sorting ginseng unearthed by tractors, as roots that had been buried for years finally surfaced, ready for the season’s harvest, which is between September and November. Kim Il-bong, 65, whose family has managed these ginseng fields for three generations, said he has been exclusively partnere

Oct. 27, 2024

[Photo News] Poland reaffirms ties with Hanwha

Oct. 25, 2024

[From the Scene] How robotics reflect shift in S. Korea's food industry

Upon receiving an affogato order, the three-jointed arm of barista robot Porty readies the portafilter and locks it into the coffee grinder. After extracting a fresh shot from the espresso machine, Porty pours it over a cup of ice cream, prepared by fellow robot, Mixie. When there are no visitors, the duo reportedly spend their time dancing to the cafe's background music. Mixie and Porty are the only servers at Better Than Yours, a fully automated cafe in Seongsu, eastern Seoul. Together,

Oct. 25, 2024

Woori Financial’s cumulative Q3 earnings increases by 9.1% on-year

Woori Financial Group announced Friday its cumulative net profit stood at 2.65 trillion won ($1.9 billion), marking a 9.1 percent surge from the same period last year. The figure surpasses last year’s yearly earnings of 2.5 trillion won. The financial service provider posted 903 billion won net income in the third quarter, marking a 0.6 percent increase year-on-year. The figure is slightly higher than the market estimate of around 890 billion won. Cumulatively, the year-to-date net profit

Oct. 25, 2024

Shinhan Financial net profit up nearly 4% in Q3

Shinhan Financial Group, one of the country's top financial providers, posted lower-than-expected earnings for the July-September quarter, hit by the derivative fiasco from its brokerage arm. The financial group announced Friday that its net profit for the third quarter recorded 1.23 trillion won ($885 million), marking a 3.9 percent increase year-on-year. The figure, however, is slightly lower than the market forecast of around 1.3 trillion won. It also lost 186.9 billion won or 13.1 perce

Oct. 25, 2024

Hanwha Ocean strengthens partnership with US Navy

Hanwha Group is seeking further cooperation with the US Navy, to build on ongoing projects. The group said on Friday that Hanwha Group Vice-president Kim Dong-kwan and US Pacific Fleet Cmdr. Admiral Stephen Koehler met at Hanwha Ocean’s Geoje site on the previous day and discussed ways for further cooperation. Kim and Koehler toured the Wally Schirra, a US Navy logistics support ship currently under maintenance, and discussed further cooperation on maintenance, repair and operations projec

Oct. 25, 2024

Soccer legends impress fans at 2024 Nexon Icons Match

More than 4 million fans gathered to watch a match featuring legendary soccer players hosted by Nexon, the game developer that published the FIFA Online series, the firm said Friday. For the Nexon Icons Match event, held at Seoul World Cup Stadium from Oct. 19-20, players were split into two teams -- former forwards played for FC Spear while defenders joined Shield UTD. A total of 64,210 fans attended the event, many of whom wore the players’ classic uniforms. The event drew an online view

Oct. 25, 2024

NCSoft adopts multistudio system in development push

South Korean gaming giant NCSoft said Friday it has decided to separate three of its intellectual properties and establish an independent game development studio system. This move is part of its efforts to strengthen its global competitiveness by adopting a multistudio system. In a bold move to accelerate change, NCSoft separated its in-house IP -- new game series -- into independent studios: TL, LLL and Tactan. The new system will allow each studio to maximize creativity and innovation in game

Oct. 25, 2024

Korea to regulate cross-border trading of crypto

The Korean government is to tighten the monitoring of cross-border trading of virtual assets, including cryptocurrency, through a revised law set for enactment by the latter half of 2025. "The government will push for the revision of the Foreign Exchange Transactions Act related to virtual assets through discussions with relevant departments and legislation, with the aim to implement the changed measures within the latter half of next year,” Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok said at a pr

Oct. 25, 2024

Lulumedic explores digital health collaboration with Russia

Lulumedic, a leading South Korean health care IT company, met with Alexey Sapetko, the Russian Trade Representative in Korea, to discuss promising opportunities for collaboration in digital health, the company said Thursday. The discussion focused on the growing interest among Russian patients in seeking high-quality medical care in South Korea, especially for health checkups, according to the company. Sapetko highlighted that many Russians now prioritize regular checkups, recognizing the import

Oct. 25, 2024

[Contribution] Future-oriented partnership between Korea, Singapore

By Lee Seong-woo, Vice president of Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry Living up to its reputation as a “small but mighty” country, Singapore has been an economic hub of Asia and is home to the Asian headquarters of many global companies. Its business-friendly investment environment, talented workforce and strategic location have made it a center of the Asian economy. The government of Singapore offers nondiscriminatory investment incentives to both local and foreign companies,

Oct. 24, 2024

SK Innovation replaces heads of key subsidiaries

SK Innovation said Thursday that three of its key subsidiaries -- SK Energy, SK Geocentric and SK IE Technology -- have appointed new company heads with technological expertise to tackle business uncertainties and strengthen core competitiveness. The announcement comes eight days before the mega-merger of SK Innovation and SK E&S, two major energy affiliates of SK Group, which will create Korea’s largest energy giant with combined assets of 100 trillion won ($723.6 billion). The newly

Oct. 24, 2024

Samsung mobile chief upbeat on Galaxy S24 sales

Samsung Electronics's mobile business chief Roh Tae-moon has pinned high hopes on the latest flagship Galaxy S24 series to drive up the company's smartphone business this year overall. Speaking to the employees in a regular town hall meeting on Wednesday, Roh reiterated the company's goal of creating an "ecosystem of Galaxy AI" to introduce the artificial intelligence model to all of its mobile devices, according to industry sources. "Galaxy has led the way into the

Oct. 24, 2024

Hyundai Glovis adopts fire control system for safer EV shipping

Hyundai Glovis, Hyundai Motor Group's logistics and distribution subsidiary, said Thursday that it has equipped its automobile carriers with a fire suppression system to prevent potential incidents while delivering electric vehicles. The EV-Drill Lance system is designed to quench electric vehicle fires. High-pressure water flowing from a fire hydrant spins turbines, enabling the drill to pierce to the bottom of a car. Water can then flow into the battery pack and fully extinguish the fire

Oct. 24, 2024

Why ex-Elliott activist fund is building stake in SK

London-based hedge fund Palliser Capital was recently found to have held a stake of more than 1 percent in SK Square, the investment arm of SK Group, for years, triggering speculation about another round of activist campaigns against the nation’s second-largest conglomerate. According to industry sources on Thursday, the fund -- founded by Chief Investment Officer James Smith, who previously worked at Elliott Investment Management -- held several meetings with SK Square executives recently

Oct. 24, 2024

Doosan Enerbility to support Kazakhstan's energy modernization

Doosan Enerbility has signed an agreement with Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Energy to help modernize the country’s power infrastructure, the Korean nuclear power plant builder announced Thursday. The memorandum of understanding was formalized during a Wednesday visit by Kazakhstan’s Energy Minister Almassadam Satkaliyev to Doosan’s headquarters in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province. Accompanying the minister were senior officials, including the heads of Kazakhstan’s nu

Oct. 24, 2024

Hyundai Rotem to develop world's 1st hydrogen fuel-based tank: sources

Hyundai Rotem Co., a South Korean defense solutions company, has been working on developing the world's first hydrogen fuel-based tank for the military, industry sources said Wednesday. In collaboration with the Agency for Defense Development and other defense technology research institutes, Hyundai Rotem is designing a next-generation tank model as part of its plans to upgrade the K2 main battle tank, according to the sources. This new tank, which is planned for production after 2040, wi

Oct. 23, 2024

Debt-ridden Kepco raises electric bills for businesses

The state-run Korea Electric Power Corporation decided Wednesday to raise industrial electricity rates by an average of 9.7 percent from Thursday, prompting immediate complaints among local businesses already reeling from rising costs and unfavorable foreign exchange rates. "The government and Kepco had no choice but to comprehensively consider the ongoing difficulties faced by the public and small business owners, as well as an economic situation in which consumer sentiment has not yet rec

Oct. 23, 2024

SK’s flu vaccine spreading across Asia

South Korean pharmaceutical company SK Bioscience said Wednesday that its SKYCellflu has become the first influenza vaccine from Korea approved by the Food and Drug Agency of Indonesia. Indonesia’s pharmaceutical market has been growing significantly. According to market tracker Insights10, the country’s flu vaccine market is expected to increase from $38.5 million in 2022 to $69.1 million by 2030. Due to its geography spanning both the Northern and Southern hemispheres, Indonesia re

Oct. 23, 2024

Gochujang heats up US as Americans seek out ‘swicy’ food

As the new trend of spicy-sweet -- "swicy" -- flavors has been gaining ground in the US restaurant scene, Korean gochujang (red chile pepper paste) is gaining popularity. According to a Tuesday report from CNBC, more Americans are seeking bold flavors, and gochujang has become one of the key ingredients fueling this movement. “Common menu items have paired fruity flavors with chili powder or used sauces like hot honey and gochujang, a red chile (pepper) paste that’s a pop

Oct. 23, 2024