‘Korea Week’ kicks off with BTS clips on display

The top trade officials of South Korea and Canada agreed Monday to strengthen cooperation on supply chains of key materials and other trade issues, Seoul's industry ministry said. Seoul's Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo and his Canadian counterpart, Mary Ng, reached the consensus during a video conference earlier in the day, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. During the meeting, the two sides vowed to boost ties in supply chains of raw materials and major minerals by promoting

Hyundai Development Company Chairman Chung Mong-gyu stepped down Monday, apologizing for two fatal accidents at the builder‘s construction sites in Gwangju.  “I apologize deeply to the family members of the victims in the accident in Gwangju and to the public,” he said during a press conference at its headquarters in Yongsan, Seoul.  “I promise to give all effort and support to amend the situation at the accident site and regain public trust.” The HDC c

The tide of the presidential race in South Korea has shifted again, poll results showed Monday, this time again in favor of presidential nominee Yoon Suk-yeol of the main opposition People Power Party. Successful campaign efforts from Yoon’s side following the end of a damaging internal feud, as well as the abrupt death of a whistleblower in a case involving main rival Lee Jae-myung of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, are believed to have aided Yoon in garnering more support in the l

French luxury brand Louis Vuitton is closing shops at all downtown duty-free stores in South Korea by March 2023. Having stopped running its store at Lotte Duty Free Jeju in December, Louis Vuitton will close three more -- at the Shilla Duty Free in Jeju, Lotte Duty Free in Busan and Lotte World Tower in Jamsil, Seoul -- in March, according to UK travel retail media outlet Moodie Davitt Report. Louis Vuitton also plans to pull out from the three remaining downtown duty-free stores -- Lotte Du

Jailed former President Lee Myung-bak was admitted to a hospital on Monday for an unspecified chronic illness, the justice ministry said. The 81-year-old was transferred to the Seoul National University Hospital in central Seoul from the Anyang Correctional Institution where he is serving a 17-year sentence for embezzlement and bribery convictions, according to the ministry. Lee will undergo medical examinations for his chronic illness, and when he will be discharged from the hospital will not

Lotte Hotel, the hotel chain owned by Korea’s retail giant Lotte Group, said Monday that it will open a new hotel in Chicago next year, the first overseas launch under its lifestyle boutique hotel brand L7. Lotte said it completed an acquisition of Kimpton Hotel Monaco Chicago for 42.8 billion won ($35.9 million) on Friday (US time) in a joint investment with the state-run Korea Overseas Infrastructure Development Corp. The 13-story hotel with 191 rooms is expected to be refurbished int

Summit with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohamed bin Zayed canceled for unknown reasons

The goal of Samsung Electronics becoming the No. 1 foundry player by 2030 is facing a major hurdle as its rival TSMC prepares a whopping $44 billion investment in 2022 to consolidate its lead, according to industry sources Monday. “Last year, Samsung Electronics spent roughly 40 trillion won ($33.5 billion) in memory, foundry and infrastructure investments. This year, TSMC plans to spend more than 50 trillion won solely for the foundry business,” said Lee Seung-woo, an analyst at

South Korean telecommunication company LG Uplus has named Gabe Hwang, former executive at AT&T and WarnerMedia, as its inaugural chief data officer in its push for an innovation to enhance consumer experience and boost productivity, the company said Monday. Hwang will lead data-related businesses of LG Uplus from delivering data capabilities for client to the company’s artificial intelligence integration and digital transformation. Hwang’s addition will allow LG Uplus to

Your date looks dramatically different with the mask off? He or she may be ‘magikkun’

South Korea's antitrust regulator said Monday it has decided to impose a combined 233 million won ($195,800) in fines on three companies for colluding to fix bidding prices over the transport of steel plates. Dongbang and two other firms colluded to fix their quotations between 2016 and 2018 for bids on thick plates by the country's largest steelmaker POSCO, according to the Fair Trade Commission (FTC). Prior to the bidding, the companies colluded to divide the sections over which they will tr

Banks in South Korea are expected to take a wait-and-see attitude in their lending policy during the first quarter after significantly toughening loan controls for months in line with the government's push to rein in household debt. According to the poll of 17 banks and other financial institutions by the Bank of Korea, the index measuring the banks' attitude toward home-backed and unsecured loans came to zero and minus six, respectively, for the January-March period. The figures were higher t

The presidential National Security Council (NSC) expressed strong regret Monday after North Korea fired two suspected short-range ballistic missiles eastward that marked the North's fourth show of force this month. The council held an emergency meeting after South Korea's military announced that the North fired two suspected ballistic missiles into the East Sea. "The standing members of the NSC had an in-depth discussion as the strongly regretful situation continues, with North Korea firi