The Transport Ministry said Monday it has begun a nationwide survey on the preferred format for new vehicle license plates. The one selected would be applied from September next year.  Transport Ministry officials show five different designs for new vehicle license plates for the nationwide survey, during a press briefing last week. (Yonhap)In July, the ministry decided to adopt a new license plate with seven digits, adding one to the current six. Such a change would allow for 210 million new ca

South Korean biopharmaceutical company Celltrion said Monday that its first-ever chemical combination drug for use by patients with HIV-1 infection has been approved by the US Food and drug Administration.　Developed by Celltrion, Temixys is a tablet-type drug that targets HIV-1, short for Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1. It is a next-generation modified drug combining the properties of GSK’s Zeffix (lamivudine) and Gilead Sciences’ Viread (tenofovir disoproxil fumarate).The newly-approved ta

South Korean parts manufacturer LG Innotek has mass-produced compact refrigerators with thermoelectric modules, the firm said Monday. According to LG Innotek, the recently launched table-sized refrigerator LG Objet has been incorporated with thermoelectric modules. These modules are combined with the components of thermoelements, radiator panels and radiating fans, to replace the cooling compressor system.LG Innotek's thermoelectric modules (LG Innotek)By using thermoelectric semiconductor techn

South Korean retailer E-mart said Monday that its No Brand private-label products will enter the Philippines market via the brand’s first overseas store set to open in 2020. According to E-mart, the company signed a franchise contract for exports with the Philippines’ leading retailer Robinsons Retail on Friday. Under the deal, the company aims to open 25 No Brand stores and 25 Scentence beauty stores at major shopping malls and department stores in the Philippines by 2020. A No Brand store in G

After rising to become one of the easiest and most popular payment methods among Korean users through its flagship messenger service, Kakao Pay announced Monday it is expanding its business with an easy-to-use investment facilitator platform.The mobile finance unit of South Korean mobile messaging giant Kakao announced the launch of a new service, Kakao Investment, which lets users invest in various projects through the KakaoTalk messenger without the need to install a separate app. The service

Starting in September 2019, Korea may change the look of its license plates for newly registered cars. Instead of six digits, the new plates under consideration would have seven. The Hangeul character that follows the second digit would instead follow the third. The addition of a digit would allow 210 million new cars to roam the country, a move the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport calls “ample preparation for the era of a reunified Korea.” The ministry is also considering a change

 A Posco Engineering & Construction Co.-led consortium has been selected as the preferred bidder for a 600 billion-won ($533 million) project to build a gas-fired combined cycle power plant in Malaysia by early 2023, the builder said Monday.Malaysia's local property developer Tadmax Resources Bhd, the Selangor provincial government-linked Worldwide Holdings Bhd in Malaysia and South Korea's state-run utility Korea Electric Power Corp. have jointly selected the South Korean company as the preferr

Sales of imported commercial vehicles rose 15 percent last month from a year earlier on increased demand, a local automobile association said Monday.The number of newly registered imported commercial vehicles rose to 343 units in October from 298 a year ago, the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association said in a statement.  The corporate logos of MAN, Mercedes-Benz, Volvo Trucks, Scania and Iveco (Yonhap)"Local demand for imported trucks, buses and vans remained steady though ther

E-Mart Inc., South Korea's leading discount chain operator, said Monday its stores dedicated to selling the company's private-label products will open in the Philippines as it moves to expand its global presence.E-Mart signed an agreement with Robinsons Retail on Friday to open 25 No Brand outlets and 25 Scentence shops in the Southeast Asian country by 2020, according to the South Korean retailer.Scentence is E-Mart's beauty brand. This file photo, taken on April 5, 2018, shows a No Brand store

ocial contributions by South Korea's 500 largest companies jumped more than 30 percent in 2017 thanks to more favorable political and other conditions, a report said Monday.Out of the top 500 firms by sales, 198 businesses contributed a combined 2.7 trillion won ($2.4 billion) to social activities last year, up 30.1 percent from the prior year, according to the report by the Federation of Korean Industries.The headquarters of the Federation of Korean Industries (Yonhap)The tally marks a drastic

Samsung says claims that bio unit case is linked with Lee’s succession are ‘fiction,’ but fears it could affect top court’s ruling

Korea South-East Power Co. has donated 18 million won ($16,000) to a young patient from Pakistan with a cleft lip and palate as the first beneficiary of its medical social contribution service, the company said Sunday. The firm helped with the surgery expenses while paying a visit to the 7-month-old patient at the Dental Hospital of Gangneung-Wonju National University.The donation was part of the KOEN Miso-Dream project jointly launched with the Seoul Medical Service Foundation in April this yea

For Kim Yo-han, a 32-year-old office worker in Seoul, November has always been the month to shop for products with big discounts offered on e-commerce websites. From high-tech gadgets to designer clothes from luxury brands, Korean e-commerce companies run up to 80 percent discount promotions this month, mimicking Black Friday in US and Singles Day in China. Limited price flash deals usually lead to a huge increase in sales and traffic, creating buzz among online shoppers. Korean e-commerce giant

Mega trade pact expected to diversify export destinations, increase shipments to India in particular