South Korea’s National Assembly presided over the sixth MIKTA Speakers’ Consultation on video Thursday. The theme of the event was “Complex challenges and parliamentary leadership in a pandemic era.” Launched in 2013, MIKTA is a consultative body made up of five middle powers -- Mexico, Indonesia, Korea, Turkey and Australia -- that share the core values of democracy and a free-market economy. Since 2015, each of the five member states has hosted one meeting with Korea

Foreign Affairs Dec. 17, 2020

To combat concerns about fine dust, especially during the winter, the city government of Seoul has toughened regulations on high-polluting vehicles and construction sites in the December-to-March period. The Seoul Metropolitan Government first launched the winter season fine dust management program last year to lower the fine dust levels of the city during the winter, when they are usually at the highest. This year, the city government implemented the program starting from Dec. 1 and it will

Social Affairs Dec. 17, 2020

South Korean movie director Kim Ki-duk died of complications from COVID-19 in Latvia on Friday.  News reports from Russia said the director died in the hospital from complications associated with COVID-19. Kim Ki-duk's family confirmed to multiple Korean media that the news was correct and that they had received a call on the day.  According to the sources, Kim arrived in Latvia in the middle of last month. He reportedly lived there with the help of film industry figures in L

Film Dec. 11, 2020

Posco CEO Choi Jeong-woo has been chosen for a second term, the company said Friday. The steelmaker’s board of directors unanimously decided to reappoint Choi, whose term expires in March. The appointment is subject to final approval at the company's shareholders’ meeting, slated for March. Choi took office as the company’s ninth CEO in July 2018. It is customary for Posco CEOs to serve consecutive terms.  By Shin Ji-hye (shinjh@heraldcorp.com) 　 　

Industry Dec. 11, 2020

Audi Volkswagen Group has unveiled its electrification strategy and business plans in the Korean market over the next years. The group said in a digital press conference Friday its four affiliated brands -- Audi, Volkswagen, Lamborghini and Bentley -- will release more than 20 new models next year and eight electric car models within three years in the Korean market. The German automaker plans to increase the proportion of electric vehicle sales in Korea to 11 percent of the total sales b

Mobility Dec. 11, 2020

Hyundai Heavy Industries Group has been selected as the preferred bidder to acquire a controlling stake in Doosan Infracore, Doosan Group’s engineering unit, HHI Group confirmed Friday. A consortium of Hyundai Heavy Industries Holdings, HHI Group‘s holdings company, and private equity firm KDB Investment beat out local construction materials firm Eugene Corp. in the takeover race. It offered about 800 billion won ($735 million) for a 35.41 percent stake in the firm. The equity

Industry Dec. 11, 2020

Hyundai Motor unveiled Thursday its new “2025 Strategy” for innovative mobility solutions and core business strategies such as electric vehicles, urban air mobility, autonomous driving, fuel cells and the hydrogen ecosystem. The nation’s largest automaker announced the plan during its CEO Investor Day forum held online for shareholders, analysts and credit rating agency officials. During the event, the company vowed to invest 60.1 trillion won ($55 billion) in future busines

Mobility Dec. 10, 2020

South Korean businesses on Thursday cried foul over the passage of what they called anti-business bills, saying the revisions could threaten management controls and put pressure on them at a time of unseen hardships stemming from the pandemic. Among the bills that passed the National Assembly on Wednesday, a revision to the Commercial Act regarding the “3 percent rule” has been met with the most criticism. The amendment requires listed companies to elect at least one auditor fro

Industry Dec. 10, 2020

Kia Motors’ labor union on Wednesday began a partial strike, its third collective action this year, following the collapse of negotiations over wages and other issues a day earlier. Lost production from strikes this year is expected to exceed 30,000 vehicles. Representatives of the management and the union held talks for two days, but failed to reach a compromise. Following the talks’ collapse at midnight Tuesday, the union decided to cut work short by four hours per day for three

Mobility Dec. 9, 2020

Faced with growing market uncertainties stemming from the pandemic, large companies in South Korea expanded their research and development investment to secure future growth engines. Samsung Electronics and Naver led the way, data showed Wednesday. According to an analysis conducted by Seoul-based corporate tracker CEO Score of 217 of the nation’s top 500 companies by revenue, the companies’ total aggregate R&D spending came to 40 trillion won ($36 billion) from January to Sept

Industry Dec. 9, 2020

South Korean e-commerce company Cafe24 said Tuesday that it launched its Facebook Shops real-time integration service, allowing e-commerce merchants to gain 3.1 billion Facebook users as potential customers. Cafe24 said Facebook Shops allows merchants operating online direct-to-consumer stores to showcase their products on Facebook and Instagram. With a few clicks, merchants can set up their shops on both social media platforms. Businesses of all sizes using Cafe24 can now use Shops. Previousl

Industry Dec. 9, 2020

LG Group said Monday it has set up an artificial intelligence research center called LG AI Research as part of its digital transformation strategy to create better value for customers. The research institute will study data intelligence that predicts optimal judgment through big data analysis, next-generation voice, image recognition and analysis technology, and language processing technology that enables natural situation recognition. To this end, it will establish a high-performance computin

Technology Dec. 7, 2020

The Mercedes-Benz E-Class is South Korea‘s most beloved imported sedan. Since its launch in 2016, the 10th generation E-Class models have sold about 160,000 units, making it the best-selling imported car in Korea. Last year, the E-Class was the top-selling luxury car among both Korean and imported cars. Maintaining the highest spot in the luxury sedan market, however, is not an easy job. Hyundai’s luxury sedan Genesis G80 came on fast this year, overtaking the E-Class. By October

Mobility Dec. 6, 2020

Samsung Electronics, which completed its annual executive reshuffle Friday, is expected to hold a global strategy meeting next week with the participation of all executives from the global offices to establish business strategies for next year. Samsung’s global strategy meeting, which is held twice a year in June and December, is a venue where executives at local and global units gather to review the business conditions of each sector and discuss new growth engine plans. Convention

Industry Dec. 6, 2020

One in 4 companies in South Korea has implemented or is planning restructuring measures this year due to financial difficulties stemming from the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, data showed Thursday. According to a survey of 437 companies carried out by local job search platform Saramin, 27.2 percent of the respondents said they had conducted layoffs or planned to do so. The most common reason given for restructuring was “the worsening business situation due to COVID-19” (69.7 perce

Industry Dec. 3, 2020