Samsung Electronics stayed on as the world’s second-largest tablet computer vendor in the second quarter of the year, a report showed, as it strives to catch up with industry leader Apple. 　The South Korean giant logged a market share of 18 percent in the April-June period, after shipping 8.2 million Galaxy Tab tablets, up 19 percent from a year ago, according to market researcher Strategy Analytics. 　Apple defended its top position with a 35 percent share as its iPad shipments ju

Korean companies in wide range of fields explore new products, services based on rapidly increasing big data

How garbage mountains are piling up in South Korea

South Korean carmakers' sales fell 4.5 percent last month from a year earlier as an extended global chip shortage and the COVID-19 pandemic continued to weigh on vehicle production and sales, industry data showed Wednesday. The country's five carmakers -- Hyundai Motor Co., Kia Corp., GM Korea Co., Renault Samsung Motors Corp. and SsangYong Motor Co. -- sold a combined 544,992 vehicles in August, down from 570,601 units a year ago, according to data from the companies. Their domestic sales dec

Korea becomes first country to regulate global tech giants’ business models

Global cargo airliner Atlas Air has agreed to build a freighter aircraft maintenance facility at Incheon Airport. Atlas Air signed a deal in July to set up a joint venture with Sharp Technics K to build the maintenance, repair and overhaul facility slated to open in 2025. Sharp Technics K Chief Executive Paik Soon-suk said the new facility wouldbe able to accommodate multiple wide-body aircraft at the same time and contribute to the growth of airfreight and e-commerce on a global scale as Inch

Renault Samsung Motors Corp. said Wednesday its sales rose 17 percent last month from a year earlier on strong exports of its SUV models. The South Korean unit of Renault S.A. sold 8,846 vehicles in August, up from 7,570 units a year earlier, the company said in a statement. Domestic sales fell 25 percent to 4,604 units from 6,104 during the same period, while exports jumped to 4,242 units from 1,466 on strong demand for the XM3 and QM6 SUVs, it said. From January to August, its sales decline

Economics textbooks used in South Korean high schools lack practical knowledge about real-life issues, such as personal finance, and are biased against corporations, a study released by a big business lobby claimed Wednesday. In its report, the Federation of Korean Industries claimed that young adults in Korea were falling behind in terms of economic knowledge compared to older generations, due to a lack of proper education. FKI commissioned Yang Joon-mo, an economics professor at Yonsei Univ

Firm aims to be world’s No. 1 hydrogen player by 2025

CJ OliveNetworks, an ICT solutions provider of CJ Group, has established a research center on artificial intelligence in the southeastern city of Gwangju, the company said Wednesday. Named as “CJ Lucidus AI Lab,” it is the second research body of the CJ affiliate, and is located within the premises of Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology. The company has partnered with the institute to establish the lab for a shared goal of contributing to the advancement of the local AI

Kwon Oh-hyun, who led Samsung Electronics’ semiconductor business until 2017, will chair the board of directors at SNU Holdings, a holding company of his alma mater Seoul National University, the university said on Wednesday. Nicknamed Mr. Chip, he previously served a chief executive officer of Samsung Electronics in charge of its flagship chip and display business from 2012-2017, before stepping aside from management. He was then promoted to the chairman, more of an honorary post at Sams

South Korean food catering service provider Our Home will run a cafeteria for the United States Postal Service, becoming the first Korean firm to clinch a deal from a US public institution. The company said Wednesday that its US branch won a bid to operate a cafeteria in the institution’s processing and distribution center in Los Angeles. The 1,421 square meter facility will open by the end of this month and operate for 24 hours every day. The USPS is a public institution that oversee

South Korea continued to report record-shattering export results in August, data showed Wednesday, reinforcing an economic recovery almost single-handedly driven by overseas sales as domestic spending remains weighed down by the pandemic. According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, outbound shipments jumped 34.9 percent from a year earlier to $53.2 billion last month, the best performance that the Asia’s fourth-largest economy has ever pulled off in August.  The previ

Doosan Corp. said Wednesday it has developed the industry’s most efficient solid oxide fuel cell for homes and buildings, with plans to offer the new product to the market next year. According to the holding firm of Doosan Group, the 10-kilowatt SOFCs can turn hydrogen into electricity 40 percent more efficiently than polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells now available in the market. Also, the 10-kW SOFCs exhibit the same efficiency as 5-kW SOFCs, but require 50 percent less space to

South Korea’s newly appointed Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo on Wednesday exchanged ideas with World Trade Organization Director General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala on how to restore multilateralism in global trade amid intensifying protectionism triggered by the pandemic. According to the Trade Ministry, during the virtual meeting, which was arranged at the request of the WTO, Yeo stressed that the upcoming 12th Ministerial Conference at the WTO set for Nov. 30 would be a chance to yield tangible r