Posco Group's general trading arm Posco International said Thursday the company has seen a significant improvement in terms of performance, according to its first quarterly earnings report released since merging with Posco Energy on January. In a regulatory filing, Posco International said it recorded 8.3 trillion won ($6.1 billion) in sales from January to March, a 16 percent decrease from the same period from a year earlier. However, the company added that it generally saw a jump in its p

Industry April 27, 2023

South Korean steel giant Posco said Tuesday it had signed its first ever long-term agreement with Samsung Electronics in a bid to expand technical cooperation between the two industrial giants and to jointly seek new business opportunities. According to Posco, its Vice Chairman Kim Hak-dong and Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Han Jong-hee visited Samsung's headquarters in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, to iterate the specifics of the three-year agreement the two companies signed in March. &quo

Industry April 25, 2023

Delivery workers of e-commerce giant Coupang's subcontractors have set up a labor union, calling for better working conditions amid the company’s rapid growth in recent years. According to the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, one of the major umbrella confederations of unions here, the new labor union held a launching ceremony at the company’s logistics center in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, on Monday. This labor union primarily includes delivery workers at subcontracted comp

Consumer April 24, 2023

More than 200 times the amount of pesticides permitted on avocados had been detected in those shipped from Colombia to South Korea, according to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. In 22,080 kilograms of Colombian avocados imported by a Korean agricultural product trade platform operator Tridge, 2.03 milligrams per kilogram of thiabendazole had been detected. This is much higher than the standard of 0.01 milligram per kilogram set by the Korean regulator. Thiabendazole, a fungicide and pestici

Consumer April 21, 2023

This article is the seventh installment in a series of interviews with global business chiefs of South Korean food companies that are expanding aggressively in overseas markets. -- Ed. Amid the rising demand for healthy foods, South Korea has increasingly exported its traditional superfood samgyetang, or ginseng chicken soup, to overseas markets in recent years. According to the Korea Agro-Fisheries and Food Trade Corp., exports of samgyetang have jumped by 64 percent from $11 million in 2017 to

Consumer April 20, 2023

A delegation from Vietnam held a conference in Seoul on Wednesday to promote the Vietnamese province of Thai Binh's potential to rise as an industrial zone, calling for investments from South Korean companies. The event, co-organized by Thai Binh Provincial People's Committee, the Embassy of the Vietnam and The Korea Herald, sought to introduce the province's transition from agriculture-oriented industry to a smart industrial complex. "As of first quarter of 2023, Thai Binh&#

Industry April 19, 2023

Fashion and materials conglomerate Kolon Group is eyeing the aerospace business as its driver of future growth, following its belief that the group’s know-how in producing various composite materials will prove competitive in the space sector. Kolon set in motion its vision to foray into the space business in 2019, starting with its venture capital unit Kolon Investment’s 1 billion won ($757,679) investment in Innospace, a South Korean startup specializing in developing hybrid space

Industry April 18, 2023

South Korean's annual expenditure per capita on pets, along with the nation's pet-related businesses, is growing steadily, data released Monday showed. Purchase records from 2019 to 2022 compiled by the big data center at major Korean card firm Shinhan Card showed that the average annual spending per person at a slew of pet-related services or products -- such as animal hospitals, dog hotels, dog cafes, and dog salons -- recorded 353,000 won ($268) last year, the highest in four years.

Industry April 17, 2023

A slew of Korean online luxury retailers have capped last year with sharp falls in their profits as consumers have begun returning in-store while competition among online malls grow fierce. Korean luxury goods platform Must-it's operating losses widened by 68 percent on-year to 16.8 billion won ($12.9 million), according to the firm's regulatory filing on Friday. Other Korean major platforms also were in the red in 2022, with Korean luxury goods retailer Balaan seeing its operating los

Consumer April 16, 2023

This is the sixth installment of a series of interviews with global business chiefs of South Korean food companies that are expanding aggressively in overseas markets. -- Ed.   Sauces embody a tradition -- they are a compilation of decades of locals’ know-how for spicing up native cuisine. As such, matching traditional sauces with foreign dishes is rare. However, Korea's largest sauce maker Sempio said it is currently at the vanguard of savory Korean sauces imbuing diverse menu items

Consumer April 13, 2023

Following a merger with Posco Energy, Posco International -- the general trading arm of Posco Group -- said Thursday that it is ready to reestablish itself as a company that will specialize in a slew of emerging business sectors, ranging from eco-friendly energy, steel to food. During a ceremony held in Songdo Convensia in Incheon, Posco International announced its goals to aggressively target emerging business sectors and significantly raise its market value. Specifically, Posco International s

Industry April 13, 2023

Korean contract manufacturer Samsung Biologics said Wednesday it will be participating in the series A funding round held for Araris, a Swiss biotech company that develops antibody-drug conjugate technologies. ADC refers to a class of drugs mainly designed as a targeted therapy for treating cancer. According to the company, Samsung Biologics will be making its investments in the Swiss biotech company with Samsung Life Science Fund -- a fund co-managed by Samsung Biologics and tradings company Sa

Industry April 12, 2023

Global luxury giant LVMH Group, the operator of multiple fashion and jewelry brands such as Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior and Tiffany & Co., logged record sales in South Korea last year, following a slew of price hikes for its flagship products amid the country's increased spending on luxury goods. According to Louis Vuitton Korea, the Korean subsidiary of LVMH's Louis Vuitton, the company's sales last year recorded 1.69 trillion won ($1.2 billion), up 15 percent from 2021. Th

Consumer April 10, 2023

BUSAN -- Celebrating the visit of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) delegation to Busan, the southeastern port city held a variety of cultural events including a "K-Culture Night" concert featuring Soprano Jo Su-mi and singer Rain. Held on Wednesday evening at the Busan Cinema Center, the concert was attended by thousands of people, despite chilly weather and rain. From classical music to K-pop performances by Oh My Girl, the show was designed to showcase the wide and dive

Social Affairs April 6, 2023

BUSAN -- Baek Kyung-ran, born and raised in Busan, has never seen the city in such a festive mood before, except perhaps for the time when the country was hosting the World Cup 21 years ago. "Things have definitely changed around here. I see so many banners related to promoting the Expo on public transportation and street lamps. I also saw cheerleaders and dance teams performing to promote the country’s bid to host the World Expo on the streets," she said in front of Busan Statio

Social Affairs April 5, 2023