SK Ecoplant, a construction and energy arm of SK Group, on Wednesday signed an agreement to participate in a $4.5 billion green hydrogen commercialization project headed by Canada, amid the Canadian prime minister's three-day state visit to Korea celebrating the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between South Korea and Canada. SK Ecoplant struck up a partnership with Canadian renewable energy company World Energy GH2 to participate in the first phase of the Nujio’qonik project

Industry May 17, 2023

South Korean food giant Nongshim saw its profits nearly double in the first quarter, primarily led by its booming business in the US, the company's earnings report said Tuesday. According to Nongshim's regulatory filing, the company's sales and operating profits during the January to March period were tallied at 860.4 billion won ($643 million) and 63.8 billion won, respectively, on a consolidated basis. Compared to the same period last year, Nongshim's sales have increased b

Industry May 16, 2023

Thailand's largest conglomerate as well as a state-owned oil and energy company PTT called for investments from South Korean companies, in a bid to forge potential partnerships and scale up its businesses ranging from EVs to semiconductors, during a session organized by the Thai Embassy held in Seoul on Monday. During the session, the chief officer of PTT Buranin Rattanasombat said that PTT will function as an optimal partner for Korea. The group has forayed into a number of key industries

Industry May 16, 2023

South Korean food giant CJ CheilJedang said Monday it will start selling Korean street food products in major overseas markets, such as North America and Europe, riding a wave of momentum from the booming "K-food" business. The conglomerate will launch six "strategy" Korean street food products in the overseas market under its brand Bibigo. The new products include tteokbokki, Korean-style hot dogs, gimbap, fried seaweed rolls, bungeoppang (fish-shaped waffle filled with red

Consumer May 15, 2023

South Korean food giant Pulmuone said Sunday it is planning on expanding the production line of its Asian noodle products in the United States by the end of this year, following its burgeoning Asian noodle business there. According to Pulmuone, the company said its sales of Asian noodles in the US were tallied at $72.2 million last year, seeing an on-year growth of 65 percent. Over the course of the last three years, the company's Asian noodle products in the US had seen a 119 percent growt

Industry May 14, 2023

Kim Dong-sun, head of strategic management at Hanwha Galleria and the youngest son of Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-youn, is ramping up efforts to amplify his presence as a succession scheme at the nation’s seventh-largest conglomerate is taking shape centering on the chairman’s three sons. While his elder brothers -- Dong-kwan, president of Hanwha Solutions; and Dong-won, president of Hanwha Life Insurance -- are taking over the group’s key defense and energy and financial b

Industry May 14, 2023

Starbucks Korea is putting off its summer promotional event for 2023 in order to carry out tougher product inspection in the aftermath of the massive recall of a promotional product that contained toxic, carcinogenic chemicals last year. The seasonal promotional event, called the “e-frequency” reward program, has been taking place biannually in South Korea, offering limited-edition goods to its loyal customers since 2013. The coffee chain typically announces the launch of the summer

Industry May 11, 2023

South Korea’s e-commerce giant Coupang said Wednesday it clocked in record quarterly earnings despite a general slowdown in the retail market, continuing its winning streak for three consecutive quarters since turning to black for the first time in 2022. In its first-quarter earnings call, the US-listed company said it logged record quarterly sales of $5.8 billion in the first three months of this year, seeing on-year growth of 13 percent. Operating profits and net income were tallied at $

Industry May 10, 2023

Amid the generally sluggish business results of the Korean beauty industry during the first quarter, market analysts provided contrasting second quarter expectations for leading beauty giants LG Household & Health Care and Amorepacific. While the former's prospects appear dim, the latter is expected to rebound with the company's aggressive expansion of sales of its flagship brand Sulwhasoo, said stock market observers Monday. According to financial market tracker FN Guide, LG H&

Industry May 8, 2023

May is traditionally a month for a slew of family-oriented celebrations that involve gift-giving and outdoor dining. Regarding the holidays that are concentrated in early May, more than 80 percent of Koreans in their 20s said they feel pressured about having to spend money on holidays in "family month," according to a recent survey. The survey, conducted by job seeking site AlbaChunkuk on 615 Koreans in their 20s, showed that 85 percent of the respondents had replied they felt "st

Economy May 5, 2023

A South Korean climate tech company LowCarbon said Friday it struck up a partnership with the state of Florida in a bid to ramp up its efforts to construct research hubs for clean hydrogen technology in the United States and expand its presence in the US hydrogen market. Via a memorandum of agreement signed at a hotel in Seoul on April 26, LowCarbon said it is expected to participate in the $8 billion clean hydrogen hub project sought by the US Department of Energy and the Floridian government.

Industry May 5, 2023

The century-old Italian-South Korean sportswear brand Fila is vying for long-term growth by establishing global consistency in its businesses, chiefly by incorporating ESG values into its operations across the world, according to the firm's chairman. Gene Yoon, chairman of Fila Holdings & Acushnet Holdings, said during an online interview Thursday that Fila will be putting in all efforts to prepare a solid foundation for the company's long-term growth by undertaking more concrete E

Industry May 4, 2023

Korean people love burgers, but potential buyers hesitate to snap up deals tied to global burger franchises like McDonald's due to rigorous headquarter policies that often spark conflict and hinder growth. McDonald's Korea has been struggling to find a buyer since it has been put up for sale in June last year despite double-digit growth of Korea's hamburger market in recent years. According to market research firm Euromonitor, the hamburger market here was valued at 4 trillion won ($2.9 billion)

Industry May 3, 2023

May, also known as "family month," is when Korean consumers dine out in celebration of a string of family-oriented holidays such as Children's Day, Parent's Day and Teacher's Day. However, with the country seeing an exponential growth in consumer prices lately -- mainly those of agricultural products and livestock -- concerns are rising that dining out is increasingly becoming less affordable for most Koreans. Kim, a white-collar worker in his 20s, told The Korea Herald

Consumer May 1, 2023

Kim Min-young, a white-collar office worker in her 30s, said that in light of the start of golf season -- which customarily runs from April to September -- she recently spent some 700,000 won ($523) on clothes from the newly released spring and summer collection launched by her favorite golf wear brand. "When my friends and I go to golf courses for a game, there's definitely that tension of scanning who is using what and who is wearing what -- and what brands the products are from,&q

Industry April 29, 2023