SPC Group said Wednesday that it will open Singapore’s first Shake Shack branch next year. It signed a partnership with the US premium burger chain Shake Shack Enterprise last month for the business rights to operate Shake Shack in Singapore, said SPC Group, a South Korean bakery and confectionary company that operates 60 brands worldwide. The first branch will open at Jewel Changi Airport. The company plans to open up to 10 outlets in Singapore by 2024.Shack Shack Enterprise said it chose SPC a

Reducing prices of fuel cell vehicles by half crucial to promoting use of hydrogen, says NEDO director

New ombudsman says xenophobic mentality still remains, needs to change

South Korea's exports remain bullish, helped by the robust shipment of semiconductors, but domestic demand is stagnant due to sluggish facility investment and weak employment, a state-run think tank said Wednesday."Export growth maintained a favorable growth trend led by semiconductors. But the domestic situation remains stagnant due to reduced investment and weak employment," the Korea Development Institute said in its monthly evaluation of the country's economic conditions. (Yonhap)The think t

A state-run maritime business promotion corporation said Wednesday it will provide liquidity support for cash-strapped shipping firms and fund eco-friendly projects.The Korea Ocean Business Corp. said it will provide 138 billion won ($121.9 million) worth of guarantees for four shipping companies to help them build liquefied natural gas-propelled ships and purchase other vessels.  (Yonhap)Among them are Korea Line Corp. SK Shipping Co., H-Line Shipping Co. and Polaris Shipping Co. The KOBC will

LG Electronics Inc. on Wednesday released a new laptop optimized for gaming content.The South Korean tech giant said the 15.6-inch laptop, the 15G880, comes with a 144Hz monitor and runs high-quality games more smoothly and without interruptions. LG said the new computer is especially helpful in playing shooting games since it can process up to 144 frames per second. (Yonhap)The laptop utilizes Nvidia Corp.'s G-Sync technology, which reduces screen-tearing during games. It is also equipped with

If you are listening to music, chances are you're on YouTube.A music consumer report by the industry's global body IFPI published on Tuesday found that 86 percent of us listen to music through on-demand streaming.And nearly half that time, 47 percent is spent on YouTube.Video as a whole accounted for 52 percent of the time we spent streaming music, posing challenges to such subscription services as Spotify and SoundCloud.But while Spotify's estimated annual revenue per user was $20, YouTube's wa

South Korea's 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics generated a financial surplus of at least $55 million, the International Olympic Committee has said, citing the head of the PyeongChang Organizing Committee.Lee Hee-beom made the announcement during his final report to the International Olympic Committee session in Buenos Aires. Short track speed skater Lee Jung-su (AFP-Yonhap)"We congratulate the Organizing Committee of the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018 for the organization of outstanding O

GONGJU, South Chungcheong Province -- Riding the wave of green cars, Kia Motors recently released its first fully electric vehicle, the Niro, highlighting its driving distance of 385 kilometers per charge -- enough to drive from Seoul to the southern port city Busan. South Korea’s roads, which until now have been packed with gasoline-powered sedans, mostly black or white in color, are going through a transition with the influx of eco-friendly cars such as electric vehicles, plug-in hybrid electr

Carmaker’s Czech plant considers manufacturing green cars in line with growing market demand

South Korea’s largest internet companies Naver and Kakao together invested nearly 1 trillion won ($878 million) in overseas businesses this year, a ninefold growth in foreign investments from the previous year, government-tracked data showed Tuesday.According to data provided by the Ministry of Science and ICT to Rep. Byun Jae-il of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, Naver and Kakao’s overseas investments this year reached 979.7 billion won. This is around 8.8 times bigger than last year’s 11

Market saturation, drop in tourists attribute to mounting losses of ‘food cosmetics’ concept brand

LG CNS, the information technology services unit of South Korea’s LG Group, has launched a next-generation enterprise resource planning solution with aims to take over the local ERP market currently dominated by foreign software firms like SAP and Oracle.　The LG unit on Tuesday announced the launch of an upgraded ERP solution, promising higher cost-effectiveness and operational efficiency through design changes and integration with new technologies like artificial intelligence and cloud computin

(Hite Jinro)South Korean liquor maker Hite Jinro’s low-alcohol fruit-flavored soju Jinro Plum is being advertised during a Korean Parade held at an annual K-town Festival in Manhattan, New York, Saturday. By using its bottle-shaped characters and bus advertisements, the company will promote the brand targeting both locals and Koreans in the US until Nov. 2. The promotional bus will also run in other cities like Chicago, Dallas, Las Vegas and San Francisco. According to the company, Jinro America

Smartphone makers still pondering on marketability due to high costs