South Korea lags behind global competition in semiconductor, battery subsidies

SEOUL, October 07 (AJP) - Korea is falling behind in providing subsidies for semiconductor and battery industries compared to its global competitors, according to a report released on Monday by the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI). The United States, China and Japan are investing billions of dollars in these sectors, while Korea has yet to offer any subsidies in the sectors, the group representing large companies said. For example, China aims to increase its chip self-suffic

October 7, 2024

Samsung envisions AI integration across product lines

SEOUL, October 4 (AJP) – Samsung Electronics unveiled its vision for applying artificial intelligence across all product lines during its annual developers’ forum in the United States on Thursday. The 10th Samsung Developer Conference (SDC) attracted around 3,000 developers, partners and media representatives in San Jose, California, under the theme, “AI for All – A Decade of Open Innovation and Beyond.” The Korean tech giant announced plans to unify

October 4, 2024

Korea Zinc begins share buyback amid control battle

SEOUL, October 4 (AJP) - Korea Zinc, the world's largest smelter, said Friday it will undertake a share buyback with its partner, U.S. investment firm Bain Capital, to acquire up to 18 percent of its shares, to fend off what it calls a hostile takeover bid by its largest shareholder, Young Poong. Korea Zinc announced that it would start a share buyback with Bain Capital at a price of 830,000 won ($622), which is 80,000 won higher than the 750,000 won proposed by Young Poong and

October 4, 2024

Dried seaweed price soars at fastest rate in 37 years

SEOUL, October 4 (AJP) – The price of dried seaweed surged by 32.7 percent in September year-on-year, marking the largest increase in nearly 37 years, according to government data. The steep rise is attributed to poor harvests caused by abnormally high sea temperatures. The average sea surface temperature from June to August reached 23.9 degrees Celsius, the highest in a decade, delaying the seeding process and reducing supply. The state-run Korea Agro-Fisheries Trade Corp.

October 4, 2024

Krafton to showcase new games at G-Star

SEOUL, October 02 (AJP) - Korean game developer Krafton said Wednesday it will showcase several new titles during Korea’s largest game exhibition, G-Star, next month. The company, known for its popular battle royale game "PUBG: Battlegrounds," will participate in the annual event for the eighth consecutive year. This year’s G-Star is scheduled to take place from Nov. 14 to 17 at BEXCO in Busan. The company will display "inZOI," a life simulation g

October 2, 2024

Naver Map offers multilingual translation for visitor reviews

SEOUL, October 02 (AJP) - Naver has launched a multilingual translation service for visitor reviews on Naver Map, allowing non-Korean speakers to conveniently navigate and discover locations, the largest web portal in Korea said on Wednesday. The service supports English, Chinese and Japanese, utilizing its artificial intelligence (AI)-based translation tool, Papago. The Place Filter service on the map also supports translations in those languages. Users can use this feature to c

October 2, 2024

Hanwha Q Cells sells solar project in Washington state

SEOUL, October 02 (AJP) - Korea's solar energy solutions provider Hanwha Q Cells has sold a 142-megawatt solar power project in Washington state to Puget Sound Energy (PSE), the largest utility company in the region, the company said on Wednesday. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Hanwha said it will continue to supply equipment and provide engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services for the project, which is expected to be completed by the end of

October 2, 2024

Seoul court backs Korea Zinc share buyback amid control battle

SEOUL, October 02 (AJP) - A Seoul court on Wednesday allowed Korea Zinc Inc. to continue acquiring its own shares to defend against what it calls a hostile takeover bid by its largest shareholder, Young Poong, and the private equity firm MBK Partners. Young Poong and MBK are seeking to secure management control of the world's largest zinc smelter by acquiring an additional 7 to 14.6 percent stake through a tender offer from Sept. 13 to Oct. 4. They filed an injunction with th

October 2, 2024

SME body promotes Korean food, beauty products at US event

SEOUL, September 30 (AJP) - The Korea Federation of SMEs (KBIZ) has promoted Korean food and beauty products at a major Korean cultural event in the United States. The LA Korean Festival, with around 400,000 annual attendees, is one of the largest multicultural festivals in the western U.S. It features traditional cuisine, beauty products, and K-pop entertainment. This year, the festival took place at the Seoul International Park in Los Angeles over four days, starting on Thursday.

September 30, 2024

Diet sensation Queen Wasabi named face of health supplement company Foodology

SEOUL, September 30 (AJP) - Korean rapper Queen Wasabi, who gained attention for her recent drastic weight loss, has become the brand ambassador for local health supplement company Foodology. Queen Wasabi, whose real name is Kim So-hee, lost 16 kilograms over 2 1/2 months before performing at the Waterbomb music festival in early July. The rapper, who debuted in 2019, is known for her unique style and confident performances. Her weight loss regimen included diet, exercise and con

September 30, 2024