Economy

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  [CES 2023] KSOE signs cooperation agreement with ABS to develop autonomous commercial vessels LAS VEGAS -- Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering, the holding company of Hyundai shipbuilding group, signed a cooperation agreement with the American Bureau of Shipbuilding to jointly develop and demonstrate artificial intelligence-based autonomous “unmanned” commercial vessels. Backed by the accelerated speed of AI-based smart vessel development, Avicus, the autonomous vessel development wing of HD Hyundai, the world’s top shipbuilder formerly known 2023-01-08
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  [CES 2023] SK ecoplant partners with Plug and Play Ventures to jointly develop eco-friendly businesses LAS VEGAS -- SK ecoplant, an environmental and energy solution provider affiliated with South Korea's SK Group, has joined hands with Plug and Play Ventures, an international early-stage venture capital, to cooperate in the development and investment of new eco-friendly businesses. 2022 has been a busy year for the South Korean environmental and energy solution provider. SK ecoplant partnered with a handful of companies across the globe to expand its business areas into vario 2023-01-08
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  [CES 2023] LG Innotek showcases autonomous driving technology at CES LAS VEGAS -- LG Innotek, an electric component maker affiliated with South Korea’s LG Group, showcased the company’s top-notch autonomous driving technologies at the Consumer Electronics Show, an annual technology exhibition held in Las Vegas, for the first time. While the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) mainly focuses on electronics including smart devices and home appliances, the venue is also the favorite of carmakers and component manufacturers who wish to boast the 2023-01-07
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  [CES 2023] LG Electronics to demonstrate smart home platform using various home appliances at CES SEOUL -- At the Consumer Electronic Show, an annual electronics show held in Las Vegas, LG Electronics will demonstrate whether its smart platform can control home appliances created by other companies. Through the platform equipped with voice control and artificial intelligence technology, the company aims to upgrade the connectivity between products of many different brands so that consumers can conveniently use home appliances. The artificial intelligence (AI) platform called Th 2023-01-06
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  Samsung Electronics' operating profit plunges 69% in fourth quarter amid falling demand SEOUL -- Samsung Electronics' operating profit nosedived 69 percent to 4.3 trillion won ($3.37 billion) in the fourth quarter of last year from a year before due to the falling prices of memory chips amid a global economic slowdown, the IT giant said on January 6. It was the first time since the third quarter of 2014 that Samsung has posted a quarterly operating profit of less than 5 trillion won. The earnings shock came although the company enjoyed record-high yearly sales 2023-01-06
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  Korea takes world's top spot in eco-friendly ship construction in 2022 SEOUL -- South Korean shipbuilders received orders of 15.59 million compensated gross tons (CGT) last year, representing 37 percent of the orders placed worldwide, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The country’s global shipbuilding market share hit the highest since 2018 when it reached 38 percent. Korea came second in the world orders ranking in 2022 after China which took a 49 percent share. Citing data from Clarkson Research Services, the trade m 2023-01-06
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  Hygiene product maker Aekyung's detergent manufacturing technology wins green certification SEOUL -- A manufacturing technology for kitchen detergents developed by Aekyung, a major hygiene product maker in South Korea, won government approval as green technology. The new eco-friendly method that uses natural extracts can replace synthetic additives with various chemical substances. Most chemical components in synthetic preservatives are decomposed in sewage treatment plants. One of the main components of synthetic preservatives is surfactants which weaken the surface tens 2023-01-05
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  Vietnam emerges as Korea's most profitable trading partner in 2022 SEOUL -- Vietnam brought a bigger trade surplus to South Korea last year than any other trading partners of the latter, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The ministry said on January 4 that South Korea posted an estimated $34.25 billion in trade surplus with Vietnam in 2022. The Southeast Asian country topped the list of countries with which South Korea enjoyed a surplus. Vietnam edged out Hong Kong which was listed at the top of the trade surplus list fo 2023-01-05
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  Kolon Industries partners with Hanyang University to develop gene therapy technology SEOUL -- A biotechnology research center specializing in age-related diseases partnered with Hanyang University in Seoul to carry out research and development projects for gene therapy. Through collaborations, the research center affiliated with Kolon Industries, a chemical textile manufacturing company in South Korea, will also play the role of an incubator for prominent young biotechnology researchers. Age-associated diseases include Parkinson's disease, arthritis, osteoporos 2023-01-05
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  Operator of e-grocery platform Market Kurly postpones IPO plan SEOUL -- Kurly Corp., which operates e-grocery platform Market Kurly, has decided to put off an initial public offering (IPO) plan indefinitely due to dampened investor confidence amid deteriorating economic and market conditions at home and abroad. The move came more than four months after the company obtained preliminary approval for its listing on the Korea Exchange (KRX) on August 22 last year. Under its original plan, Kruly had sought to complete its listing process by next mon 2023-01-04
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  Tesla fined $2.24 million for false advertising SEOUL -- U.S. electric carmaker Tesla and its South Korean unit were slapped with a fine of 2.85 billion won ($2.24 million) on January 3 for false and misleading advertising. The Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC), an antitrust regulator in Korea, said that it has decided to impose the fine on Tesla, holding the global EV giant accountable for violating laws related to fair labeling and advertising as well as consumer protection in ecommerce. The KFTC said that Tesla was found t 2023-01-04
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  ​Korean economy to grow less than 2% this year amid global slump SEOUL -- The South Korean economy is forecast to grow less than 2 percent this year amid growing uncertainties and downside risks. The Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Bank of Korea (BOK) estimated this year's growth rate at 1.6 percent and 1.7 percent, respectively. These figures are lower than the International Monetary Fund's 2.0 percent projection for the Korean economy and the OECD's 1.8 percent. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) even came up with a much lo 2023-01-04
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  [CES 2023] LG Electronics to disclose smart sleep care solution at CES SEOUL -- At the Consumer Electronics Show, a global tech event to be held on January 5 in Las Vegas, LG Electronics will showcase a smart sleep care solution capable of helping users to sleep properly by analyzing sleep patterns. By wearing lightweight wireless earphones weighing about 0.01 pounds each, users can listen to different frequencies that would help them to fall asleep easily. The smart solution called "brid.zzz" records various sleep-related information such a 2023-01-04
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  Ramyeon maker to adopt water-soluble ink-based eco-friendly packaging SEOUL -- Ottogi, a major instant noodle and food ingredient maker in South Korea, will adopt water-soluble ink-based environmentally friendly packaging material. The green packaging material emits less greenhouse gases and requires less ink during production. South Korea with an annual average instant noodle consumption of some 3.7 billion units is a heaven for Ramyeon lovers. The most popular kind of Ramyeon in 2022 is "Shinramyun" (9.8 percent) made by food ingredient m 2023-01-03
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  Income disparity widens amid COVID-19 pandemic SEOUL -- Households at the top 10 percent of the income bracket were found to earn 22 times more than what the poorest 10 percent made last year, according to Statistics Korea. The finding indicated that the COVID-19 pandemic has widened the income disparity amid declining household income, especially among the poor, and growing financial difficulties among the self-employed. This also raised concerns that the middle class has been shrinking at an alarming rate. The statistical o 2023-01-03
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  Sales of overseas tour package reservations soared by more than 2,000% in 2022: data SEOUL -- Thanks to eased regulations on overseas travel amid a prolonged coronavirus pandemic, sales of overseas tour packages have soared by more than 2,000 percent in 2022, according to data released by South Korea's largest online tour package and flight ticket reservation platforms. South Korea, struck by the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in February 2020, has strictly regulated people from coming into the country to prevent the spread of the highly infectious virus. 2023-01-03
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  Chemical material maker Kumyang to build secondary battery plant in southern port city SEOUL -- Kumyang, a chemical material maker based in the southern port city of Busan, will build a secondary battery plant with a total annual production capability of 300 million battery cells in the eastern area of the company's hometown. The company said batteries will be used for smart mobility businesses without disclosing the specific purpose. Battery cells will be mainly supplied to domestic companies but they will be exported to other countries if global demands are high. 2023-01-03
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  ​Convenience store franchise GS25 to demonstrate currency exchange kiosks for foreign tourists SEOUL -- To create a convenient money exchange environment for foreign tourists, the operator of South Korea's convenience store franchise GS25 will install digital money exchange kiosks in 10 stores located in tourist hot spots in Seoul. A total of 15 foreign currencies including the U.S. dollar and euro can be exchanged into Korean won through the automated machine created by currency management system developer Ooddy. Most tourists exchange their currency at banks, private c 2023-01-02
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  SK earthon partners with British carbon capture & storage company to seek new businesses SEOUL -- SK earthon, the eco-friendly energy business wing of South Korea's SK Group, has partnered with Azuli, a British carbon capture and storage company, in an effort to seek new global business opportunities and create new carbon reduction technology-related markets. The carbon capture and storage (CCS) technique uses special equipment to collect carbon dioxide created after burning fossil fuels or biomass before it enters the atmosphere. Using CCS, up to about 70 percent 2023-01-02
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  [CES 2023] Korea Seven works with VR content developer Caliverse to showcase metaverse convenience store at CES SEOUL -- At the Consumer Electronics Show, a global tech event to be held on January 5 in Las Vegas, the South Korean operator of global convenience store franchise 7-Eleven will disclose a real-world-like metaverse store where users can experience various food items using avatars. In the virtual world created by VR content developer Caliverse, digital humans will show different responses and facial expressions depending on the taste of snacks and drinks. The metaverse is a virtual 2023-01-02