South Korea said Friday it will provide any necessary support to local producers of fabric filters to help boost the production of face masks amid the spread of the new coronavirus. The COVID-19 epidemic has caused severe shortages of face masks, prompting the government to introduce a de facto distribution system for protective masks. Under the measure set to take effect Monday, people can purchase only two face masks per week from pharmacies on designated days of the week depending on thei

The National Assembly on Thursday voted down a bill intended to loosen the eligibility requirement for the largest shareholder of an internet-only bank. A revision of the Act on Special Cases Concerning Establishment and Operation of Internet-only Banks failed to pass in parliament, as 82 of 184 lawmakers on hand in the plenary session voted against it. Only 75 lawmakers voted for the bill while 27 abstained. The revision bill calls for removing a record of antitrust and taxation law violatio

The coronavirus spread has impacted online transactions since January, with the sales of masks surging while purchases of cosmetics dropped, data by Statistics Korea showed. Weather also played a part, with the warmer temperatures discouraging people from buying clothing. The shorter delivery days due to the Lunar New Year holiday also affecting the growth in online transactions. Upon the COVID-19 outbreak in South Korea as of Jan. 20, purchases of masks surged 57 percent from a year ago, and

LG CNS said Thursday that its in-house unit Hempking -- launched in 2018 -- has been spun off after the success of its customs service system that utilizes artificial intelligence and robotic process automation technologies. The newly developed solution can reduce the time required for customs clearance. Instead of the five hours it takes for a single item cargo the time can be cut down to five minutes, according to the company. The AI-based computer program uses optical character reader to r

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Korean Air said Thursday that it had begun checks on all passengers’ temperatures on international routes to check for the COVID-19, as part of the company’s preventive measures. The air carrier said it had secured eight thermal imaging cameras and handheld, non-contact infrared thermometers to check if a passenger’s temperature was below 37.5 Celsius degrees.  Passengers with body temperatures above 37.5 Celsius degrees will be refused boarding, Korean Air said. 

Starbucks Korea’s remote services have spiked as customers try to minimize direct contact and staying time inside its cafes. The company said Thursday its on-the-go ordering service Siren Order, available on its app, surpassed 8 million orders in the January-February period, a 25 percent increase on year. Meanwhile, the coffee chain saw a 32 percent jump in drive thru users in the same period, 40 percent of them using My DT Pass service on the app. The automatic charging service allow

Samsung Electronics said Thursday it has clinched a 5G network supply deal with New Zealand’s largest mobile carrier Spark. The South Korean tech giant said it will help establish Spark’s 5G network later this year with its latest new radio solutions -- including slim and lightweight massive multiple-input and multiple-output units. The equipment provides carriers with more flexible and scalable solutions that are simple and cost-effective to deploy, to accelerate commercial 5G

S-Oil said Thursday its chief executive has donated 500 million won ($421,440) to a local disaster relief organization to help people hit by the coronavirus outbreak. Hussain Al-Qahtani, who was appointed as the company’s new CEO last June, made the donation to Hope Bridge Korea Disaster Relief Association. “As Koreans are facing difficult times due to the virus spread, S-Oil has decided to share the pain and participate in the national efforts to overcome the crisis,” he sa

Shinsegae Group is set to provide a total of 900 billion won ($758 million) to help small and medium-sized business partners that are struggling as a result of the new coronavirus outbreak. Shinsegae Department Store and E-Mart decided to pay about 800 billion won in advance to some 5,000 small and medium-sized suppliers to help them remain stable at a time of plunging sales. Shinsegae TV Shopping also plans to pay its smaller partner companies 25 billion won in advance. The department store

Hyundai Motor Group on Thursday unveiled images of its luxury brand Genesis’ third-generation G80. The new G80 comes back in seven years. It is Genesis’ flagship model since 2008 when it was launched. An accumulated 210,000 units of G80 have been sold in the local market as of 2019.  Genesis Design Center chief Lee Sang-yub said that the latest G80 has been designed under the concept “athletic elegance,” putting its representative design features such as quad lamp

Big businesses in South Korea are introducing more "social-distancing" measures to help contain the disruptive coronavirus outbreak, sources said Thursday. It comes as the government has proposed a social-distancing drive to slow the fast spread of the pneumonia-causing disease, seeing the next couple of weeks as a turning point for containing it. Social distancing refers to a series of tactics designed to keep people from gathering in large crowds, including working from home, can

Hanjin KAL Corp., the holding company of logistics-centered Hanjin Group, recommended the group's heir apparent as a member of its boardroom ahead of a vote showdown this month amid a family feud over the throne of the group. Hanjin KAL Corp., which owns shares in Korean Air Lines Co., said its board members have suggested Hanjin Group Chairman Cho Won-tae and Korean Air Chief Financial Officer Ha Eun-yong as executive directors at the holding firm, the company said in a statement. "The