Prices of instant noodle products rose 11 percent from a year ago in October, the largest jump since 2009, leading an overall increase in food prices, government data showed Sunday.  According to the state-run Statistics Korea, ramen prices reached the highest on record last month, growing by the largest margin since February 2009, when the country saw a 14.3 percent growth in instant noodle prices.  The market’s four main players -- Nongshim, Ottogi, Samyang and Paldo --have a

About 90 percent of firms in South Korea are undecided on their investment plans for next year amid lingering uncertainty despite the country's move back to normalcy under the "living with COVID-19" scheme, a poll showed Sunday. According to the poll conducted on 316 firms by the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), 56.2 percent said they have not drawn up investment plans for next year. Of those surveyed, 32.1 percent said they are currently reviewing such plans. Only 11.7

South Korea's antitrust regulator said Sunday it has decided to impose a combined fine of 4.9 billion won ($4.1 million) on three transport companies for colluding to fix bidding prices. Sejoong Co. and two other companies colluded to fix their quotations to win  shipping engine transport and other bids that were put forward by Doosan Engine, the predecessor of HSD Engine, between 2008 and 2016, according to the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC). They colluded to set Sejoong as the prosp

South Korea's Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo proposed Friday that South Korean and global companies join hands to address climate challenges as he met with leaders of major businesses, his office said. Yeo made the call at a meeting of the Alliance of CEO Climate Leaders, a platform under the World Economic Forum, in Glasgow, Scotland. The meeting brought together dozens of top officials of multinational firms and government officials who sought ways to help accelerate the transition to a net-zero

A look back on the former prosecutor general’s remarks on economy and business

Samsung Heavy Industries Co. said Friday that its net losses widened in the third quarter from a year earlier due to one-off costs. Its net losses widened to 124 billion won ($105 million) in the July-September period from a loss of 7.3 billion won a year ago, the company said in a regulatory filing. Its operating losses deepened to 110 billion won in the third quarter from an operating loss of 13.4 billion won a year earlier, and sales dropped 11.4 percent on-year to reach 1.49 trillion won o

After Google’s move to allow a free choice of payment options for digital purchases made on its app store in South Korea, attention is turning to Apple, the other global tech giant targeted by a new law here. As of Friday, Apple remained silent on how it plans to comply with the law, which was passed by the National Assembly in August as the world’s first aimed at curbing the dominance of Google and Apple in the app ecosystem. On Thursday, the Korea Communications Commission said

SK Bioscience announced Friday positive results from phase 1 and 2 clinical studies of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate GBP510, increasing the prospect of Korea’s first homegrown coronavirus vaccine debuting next year. The Korean firm said people who received the vaccine candidate had neutralizing antibodies at levels 3-6 times higher than those of people who recovered from COVID-19. No severe side effects were reported during the clinical studies, it added. The phase 1 and 2 clinical

Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co. (KSOE) said Friday it has obtained a 748 billion-won ($632 million) deal to build three LNG carriers. The vessels will be delivered to an Oceania customer from the second half of 2024, the company said in an emailed statement. With the latest deal, KSOE has bagged orders worth $20.9 billion so far this year, far exceeding this year's order target of $14.9 billion. KSOE, the subholding company of Hyundai Heavy Industries Holdings Co., operates

Korea Communications Commission Chairman Han Sang-hyuk tested positive for COVID-19 Friday, after one employee from the commission was found to be infected with the virus.  Han was fully vaccinated, local reports said. As Han attended a National Assembly session Tuesday, attendees have been told to get tested by the health authorities, among them Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum. Following chairman Han’s test results, the government requested the National Assembly Budget Settlement Co

LG Uplus Corp., South Korea's third-largest mobile carrier, said Friday its third-quarter net profit fell 47.7 percent from a year earlier due mainly to the sale of its business unit. Net profit for the three months that ended in September fell to 211 billion won ($177.1 million) from a profit of 403.4 billion won in the year-ago period, the company said in a regulatory filing. Operating profit increased 10.2 percent to 276.7 billion won, the highest quarterly figure since 2010, while sales in

The global DRAM market for 2022 is expected to log similar yearly sales on solid demand despite falling prices, a recent report has said. Market researcher TrendForce said in its latest report released Thursday DRAM sales are expected to grow 0.3 percent to reach $91.54 billion next year. DRAM bit supply and demand are expected to increase by 18.6 percent and 17.1 percent year-on-year, respectively. The average selling price of DRAM is predicted to fall by 15 percent, with the drop being more

Jeju Air Co., South Korea's biggest budget carrier, said Friday it will resume flights to Guam later this month amid the country's accelerating vaccination campaign. Jeju Air plans to operate 38 flights on the Incheon-Guam route from Nov. 25 to Jan. 31 before it begins regular flights, depending on the country's vaccination and infection rates, the company said in a statement. The low-cost airline suspended most international routes in March last year following the outbreak of COVID-19 here in

SES on Thursday unveiled the world’s largest lithium-metal battery that is big enough to power an electric vehicle. According to the Singapore-based startup, the battery cell, dubbed “Apollo,” weighs just 0.98 kilogram and can deliver 107 amperes of electricity per hour. Also, it supports quick charging, taking just 12 minutes to go from 10 percent to 90 percent. SES claims that Apollo is the world’s first lithium-metal cell to have breached a 100 Ah threshold, but wh

LG Energy Solution said Thursday it has joined a nonprofit coalition of leading companies dedicated to improving social, environmental and ethical conditions in their global supply chains. The company said it is the first Korean battery producer to join the Responsible Business Alliance (RBA) which has some 180 members including Apple, Google, Volkswagen and Tesla. By becoming a member of the RBA, LG Energy Solution will apply RBA’s code of conduct in labor, health and safety, environmen