Lotte Energy Materials Corp. aims to boost its global market share in high-end copper foil manufacturing to 30 percent over the next five years, with a push to expand its presence in Europe and North America, its CEO said Tuesday. The new copper foil unit under South Korea's Lotte Group unveiled its growth ambitions as it seeks to become a main global player in the burgeoning electric vehicle components market. Lotte Energy Materials, formerly Iljin Materials Co., set sail under the new nam

Hyundai Motor Co. and its affiliate Kia Corp. said Tuesday their combined sales in the United States rose 9.9 percent in June from a year earlier on robust sales of SUVs and environment-friendly models. Last month, Hyundai and Kia sold 145,849 vehicles in the world's most important automobile market, up from 132,739 units a year earlier, according to the companies' sales data. Hyundai's sales climbed 11 percent to 75,354 units in June from 67,597 a year ago, while Kia's were

South Korea's top e-commerce retailer Coupang said Monday it has launched a new service allowing customers to buy luxury beauty brands' products at its platform. At Rocket Luxury, customers will be able to purchase products of 16 high-end beauty brands from home and abroad, including Estee Lauder, MAC, Bobby Brown and Hera, directly bought by Coupang. The products will be delivered through the "rocket delivery" service, which offers delivery service within 24 hours upon order

SUV-maker vows to diversify lineup of buses, trucks through acquisition

AfreecaTV, one of South Korea’s biggest livestreaming platforms, met with global billiards industry officials at the venue of the Porto Three-Cushion World Cup in Portugal on Thursday to discuss ways to globally develop the billiards industry through its platform. AfreecaTV exclusively livestreamed two Three-Cushion World Cup tournaments, held in Portugal and Vietnam this year, respectively. “The key to the billiards industry’s success lies in a strong partnership with all the

Experts uncertain about impact of coercive policy, fearing long-term price hikes to offset losses

Economic historian Chris Miller, author of best-seller 'Chip War,' advises US and its allies to brace for China’s vast subsidy campaign while 'limiting protectionism among themselves'

Posco Group announced Monday that it will invest 121 trillion won ($93 billion) by 2030 to step up as a global leader in eco-friendly materials. The new investment plan was announced during a ceremony celebrating the 50th anniversary of Posco’s first steel mill set up in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province, in 1973. “With the investment, (the group) will secure future technologies, stay ahead in the growing industries and work toward a sustainable future through green materials,”

Korean automotive duo on pace to garner over W20tr in operating profits this year

David Turk, deputy secretary at the US Department of Energy, visited the construction site of BlueOval SK in Stanton, Tennessee, a joint venture of SK On and Ford Motor Co., the South Korean battery maker said Monday. “BlueOval SK is a project that shows fantastic partnership among the US government, SK On, Ford and BlueOval SK,” Turk said during a meeting with SK On, Ford Motor and SK BlueOval executives and US government officials on Thursday. “I think this is a phenomenal

LG Innotek said Monday that it has won the 2023 Supplier Excellence Awards from the UK luxury carmaker Jaguar Land Rover, becoming the first Korean firm to be named as a qualified supplier. The electronics component manufacturer became the winner of the "impact" category at the British carmaker’s annual awards for its outstanding quality of components and compliance with delivery dates. JLR has selected top-performing suppliers each year and has recognized their extraordinary con

Mini has opened the world's first showrooms specifically designed to promote its high-performance brand -- John Cooper Works, or JCW -- in South Korea, the company under BMW said Monday. Located in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, Incheon, Daegu and Busan, the four JCW performance showrooms present the entire lineup of JCW vehicles, offering premium services and test drives for customers. The Korean sales of JCW models jumped by 45 percent on-year in 2022, logging the biggest annual sales figure o

South Korea and Spain are teaming up to conduct joint research on smart manufacturing and future mobility as part of their agreement signed last year to bolster technology ties, according to the Korea Institute for the Advancement of Technology, an institution affiliated with the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, on Sunday. In November last year, the two countries set up an industrial technology partnership committee and discussed possible areas for collaboration. As a follow-up to the agr

South Korea's antitrust regulator said Monday the number of conglomerates in the country fell to 81 following the takeover of Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. by Hanwha Group. Hanwha earlier clinched a deal to acquire a 49.3 percent stake and managerial control in DSME, with the Fair Trade Commission giving the final nod to the agreement in late April. DSME was renamed Hanwha Ocean in May. Prior to the takeover, DSME was the country's 37th-largest conglomerate with comb

The number of South Korean air passengers using domestic carriers increased in the first half to around 84 percent of pre-pandemic levels, government data showed Sunday. According to data released by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, 53.4 million air passengers used both domestic and international routes in the first six months 2023, around 84 percent of the 63.6 million passengers in the January-June period of 2019. 2019 was the second year passenger numbers exceeded 60 millio