Economy

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  ​Emart opens multi-purpose studio to beef up live commerce capability SEOUL -- In a bid to lead the domestic live commerce market estimated at 2.8 trillion won ($2.5 billion), the megastore wing of Shinsegae, a retail conglomerate in South Korea, has opened a multi-purpose studio with top-notch equipment that will help small and medium-sized business owners to carry out mobile shopping shows like TV home shopping channels. Live commerce platforms, which are basically a mobile adaptation of TV home shopping channels, were popular in 2021-05-11
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  Hyundai Oilbank sets up power production joint venture using hydrogen fuel cells SEOUL -- Hyundai Oilbank agreed to set up a joint venture with a public power company for the production of electricity using hydrogen fuel cells. The deal is part of a broad roadmap unveiled by South Korea's top shipbuilding group to establish a hydrogen value chain by 2030 that combines the infrastructure and technology competitiveness of affiliates to produce and utilize hydrogen on land and sea. Hyundai Oilbank will supply blue hydrogen for the j 2021-05-10
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  S. Korea's railway wireless charging system attracts attention from experts SEOUL -- South Korea's wireless charging system for railways has attracted attention from experts who held an online meeting to establish international standards. Discussions focused on the method of coils, which are vital in a wireless charging system. South Korea has proposed an oval coil method. The meeting on May 7 involved some 30 experts from France, Italia, Germany, China, Japan and South Korea, which are 2021-05-10
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  Busan pushes for recycling of discarded fishing nets into renewable materials SEOUL -- As part of a national campaign to prevent marine pollution and ghost fishing, an aquatic phenomenon in which animals get caught by abandoned nylon nets, South Korea's southern port city of Busan will push for a pilot project to collect and recycle discarded fishing nets into high-quality materials that can be used for the production of sustainable eco-friendly fabrics. Busan, the busiest port in South Korea, said it would support quality ver 2021-05-10
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  POSCO E&C develops biodegradable dust control agent SEOUL -- POSCO E&C, a construction arm of South Korea's top steelmaker, has developed a biodegradable agent that can reduce dust from scattering into the air at construction sites. The new agent takes up to six months to completely decompose in the soil, while it's almost impossible for conventional ones to break down. Scattering dust reducers are mainly made of polymer materials that stick to floating microscopic objects and fall to the ground. Such 2021-05-07
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  Hyundai shipbuilding group leads hydrogen production using floating wind farm SEOUL -- South Korea's Hyundai shipbuilding group will lead a joint project to produce green hydrogen using electricity generated by a major floating wind farm complex that will be built off the southeastern port city of Ulsan with full government support. The shipbuilding group said that its affiliates signed a memorandum of understanding with the Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST), Korea East-West Power, and other partners involved in 2021-05-07
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  Doosan Heavy jumps into race to produce hydrogen with waste plastic SEOUL -- Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction, a key player in South Korea's nuclear power industry, has teamed up with Revo Tech, a company specializing in the continuous pyrolysis of waste plastic, to develop and commercialize a technology that uses waste plastic for the production of hydrogen. Pyrolysis is a chemical recycling process that can convert plastics into high-quality oil. Chemical recycling is an att 2021-05-06
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  SK Telecom partners with gene tech firm to develop AI gene analysis algorithm and new drug targets SEOUL -- South Korea's top mobile carrier SK Telecom has partnered with a domestic gene tech company to develop an artificial intelligence-based human genome analysis algorithm and new drug targets. The algorithm will help the development of new effective medicines for diseases such as cancer and Alzheimer's disease. A drug target is a molecule in the body, usually a protein that is intricately associated with a particular disease. The target is treated wit 2021-05-06
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  KT gets deep into hotel digital transformation with upgraded AI platform SEOUL -- KT, a top telecom company in South Korea, gets deep into the digital transformation of hotels with its upgraded artificial intelligence voice assistant platform. Voice recognition and touchscreen input systems have been installed to enhance user experience and convenience. KT's strategy is to become a digital conversion partner using integrated AI capabilities. "We're going to be a hotel DX (digital transformation) business that revolutionizes t 2021-05-06
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  LG Uplus develops 5G antenna module for business-to-business service market SEOUL -- South Korea's mobile carrier LG Uplus partnered with Ace Technologies, a domestic wireless communication technology developer, to develop a 5G antenna module for the business-to-business service market. The module can upgrade the data transfer speed of a 5G communication network for drones, smart factories, and other network-based businesses at a lower cost than adding more antennae. Unlike 5G-based business-to-consumer (B2C) models designed for sm 2021-05-06
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  S. Korea's first floating wind farm project passes preliminary feasibility study A concept image shows a floating wind farm. SEOUL -- A pioneering project to generate electricity from South Korea's first floating wind farm in 2026 has finally passed a preliminary feasibility study conducted by a national think tank, almost three years after a state company moved first by installing equipment to measure wind energy at a useless offshore gas platform. Korea National Oil Corp. (KNOC), which operates oil and gas fields, we 2021-05-06
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  Biosolution's skin irritation test model wins preliminary approval at OECD program SEOUL -- An animal replacement test method, that does not involve any animal, developed by "BioSolution," a domestic cell-based biotechnology company, has been registered in the OECD Test Guideline. Animal replacement experiments are attracting great attention as a test method capable of solving ethical problems such as animal welfare and overcoming disadvantages such as the inability to predict side effects resulting from differences between animal and 2021-05-04
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  S. Korea's work safety watchdog uses drones to inspect construction sites SEOUL -- South Korea's work safety watchdog will demonstrate drones to inspect the safety of work environments at construction sites. The drones will monitor sites to see if workers use proper safety gear and safety equipment such as fall-proof nets and guard rails are properly installed to help reduce safety accidents. The Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency (KOSHA) said in a statement on May 4 that it would demonstrate a special drone control tower 2021-05-04
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  LG Electronics and GS 25 launch robot grocery delivery service in southern Seoul SEOUL -- LG Electronics has expanded cooperation with GS25, a convenience store franchise operator, to introduce a robot delivery service at a convenience store as South Korea accelerates the adoption of service robots in its grocery delivery sector. The tie-up began in November 2020 when a pilot service using LG's closet-type service robot called "CLOi ServeBot" was launched at LG's research and development complex in western Seoul. Whe 2021-05-04
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  Research body to demonstrate power generation with high-altitute winds SEOUL -- Winds at higher altitudes are steadier, more persistent and of higher velocity. A government-funded research body has teamed up with South Korea's state electric utility KEPCO to demonstrate aerial wind power generation on an artificial island in the southeastern city of Changwon. Various mechanisms are proposed for capturing the kinetic energy of high-altitude winds such as kites, kytoons, aerostats, gliders 2021-05-04
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  Beauty product maker Amore launches custom-made bath balm production service using robot SEOUL -- South Korea's leading beauty product maker Amore Pacific has adopted robots to offer an instant tailor-made bath balm service based on the mood and the psychological status of customers. Amore uses robots to instantly create beauty products at offline stores targeting trend-wise young female consumers who want differentiated and personalized services. A bath balm is a mixture of wet and dry ingredients compacted to the shape of a ball or a b 2021-05-03
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  Blockchain technology used for commercialization of mobile driver's license service SEOUL -- South Korea will demonstrate and commercialize a mobile driver's license service using blockchain technology. Unlike other similar smartphone-based digital identification services, the app-based license will have the same authenticity as the physical plastic card version that is accepted anywhere as a personal verification tool. Three mobile carriers -- SK Telecom, KT, and LG Uplus -- have launched a digital driver&# 2021-05-03
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  LG Uplus works on 5G-connected smart system to ease container bottleneck in port SEOUL -- South Korea's mobile carrier LG Uplus will set up a 5G-connected smart port system that will accelerate the digital transformation of Busan Port. The mobile carrier will add remote control features for container cranes to allow operators to monitor and examine open-air storage yards from different angles using cameras and stack containers efficiently with minimized idle spaces. A container crane, also known as a container handl 2021-05-03
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  Mobile fashion retail platform Musinsa to open first offline store in Seoul SEOUL -- South Korea's mobile fashion retailer Musinsa will open its very first offline store in Hongdae, the western Seoul district of music and culture, in May. The store will sell Musinsa brand products, including seasonal apparel as well as men's and women's clothing. Musinsa said in a statement that its flagship store would open on May 26. The store would operate special fitting rooms where customers can try clothes on and take photographs. The 2021-04-30
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  Samwha Electric develops hybrid capacitor optimized for telecom equipment SEOUL -- Telecom equipment at mobile communication base stations must withstand rapid changes in temperature, and electronic components need to secure high reliability and durability. Samwha Electric, an electrolytic capacitor producer in South Korea, has developed a hybrid capacitor that can be used at 80 degrees Celsius for more than 10 years. A capacitor stores electric charge in an electric field. It is a passive electronic component designed to ad 2021-04-30