Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co. (KSOE) said Tuesday that it has a combined 1.36 trillion won ($1.2 billion) of orders from five customers to build 12 ships. Under a deal with an Oceanian company, four liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers and a 40,000-cubic meter liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carrier will be delivered by the first half of 2024, KSOE said in an emailed statement. Another deal with an African company calls for KSOE to deliver four 50,000-ton petrochemical carrie

Samsung Heavy Industries Co. said Tuesday it has signed a 529 billion-won ($477 million) deal with an Asian company to construct four container carriers. The 13,000 twenty foot equivalent unit (TEU) container carriers will be delivered to the Asian company by February 2024, Samsung Heavy said in a regulatory filing. With the latest deal, Samsung Heavy has achieved 65 percent of its annual target of $9.1 billion, by winning orders worth $5.9 billion for 48 ships, the company said. As new orde

LG Electronics Inc. is fast converting its overseas smartphone manufacturing lines into facilities that produce home appliances, industry insiders said Tuesday, following its decision to withdraw from the mobile business. LG said the Brazilian government last month approved its plan to expand its Manaus plant in Amazonas, northwestern Brazil, in a move to shift its production lines from the Taubate site on the east coast. When the $62 million project is completed, LG Electronics will have ne

ONE store, a South Korean app market operator, said Tuesday it received a combined 17 billion won ($15 million) in funding from Microsoft Corp. and the venture capital arm of Deutsche Telekom as it prepares to go public later this year. Microsoft will invest 11.3 billion won in the app market company, a subsidiary under major mobile carrier SK Telecom Co., while Deutsche Telekom Capital Partners will chip in 5.5 billion won, according to ONE store. The move comes after local telecom operators

Financially troubled budget carrier Eastar Jet Co. has received letters of intent (LOIs) from some investors for its stake up for sale and will select a final bidder next month. Easter Jet, currently under a court-led rehabilitation scheme, has received LOIs from several companies, including a consortium led by Kanglim, a local equipment maker under underwear company Ssang Bang Wool, and other private equity funds, according to industry sources.   The budget carrier selected a preli

The number of medical devices produced by local companies has surpassed those imported from other countries for the first time since 2011, according to a report released by the government, Monday. The number of local companies’ medical devices reported to the government last year reached 4,222, accounting for 51.6 percent in the market, according to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. The total number of reported medical devices here, including imports, reached 8,183, slightly down fr

LG Electronics is on path to take the crown of the world’s No. 1 home appliance maker by sales, as it continues a stellar performance this year, local analysts predicted. According to market reports from securities companies here, the home appliance and air solution unit of LG Electronics is expected to post record high sales of around nearly 7 trillion won ($6.3 billion) in the second quarter, claiming the world’s top spot in terms of quarterly sales for a second consecutive quar

Hanwha Group has won a 24.3 billion-won ($21.8 million) deal from the Agency for Defense Development to develop a key device that helps laser beam weapons target drones flying several kilometers away, the company said Monday. Over the next four years, Hanwha will develop a prototype of an amplification device that magnifies the output and travel distance of laser beams. “Laser weapons can shoot down fast-flying objects at the speed of light. Based on 20 years of research into laser t

Samsung’s shipbuilding arm reels under bad stock, operating loss

Retail giants such as Shinsegae Group and Lotte Group are rolling out paid vaccine leave for staff as the country’s vaccine rollout gathers speed. Shinsegae Group, the retail giant behind Shinsegae Department Store and Emart, said on Monday it would provide two days off work to those who get vaccinated. The group said one additional day off will be provided to those who have side effects from vaccination. “We are actively providing our employees with an environment where they can

Ford Sales and Service Korea received a correction order from the Fair Trade Commission for misrepresenting one of its vehicles as having a rear braking support system, the watchdog agency said Monday. According to the FTC, the importer and seller of the US-based Ford advertised in 2019 that its sport utility vehicle the Ford Explorer Limited was equipped with a reverse braking system, which was not true. In brochures and on its official website, the automaker had said the function helped t

Korean Air Lines Co., South Korea's biggest carrier, said Monday it has obtained its second overseas approval from Thailand for its planned acquisition of smaller local rival Asiana Airlines Inc. Korean Air said it recently received approval from the Thai regulator, following the first from Turkey in February. It still needs nods from seven other countries and the European Union to proceed with the 1.8 trillion won ($1.6 billion) deal to acquire the debt-ridden Asiana. The seven countries i

South Korean steelmakers have raised prices of automotive steel for the first time in four years, people familiar with the matter said Monday, a move that could boost their bottom lines. Posco, the country's largest steelmaker, reached a deal with Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Corp. to raise the price of a ton of automotive steel to 50,000 won ($45), they said. The move is meant to reflect the increased costs of iron ore, one of the main raw materials used in steel production. The price of iron o

Naver’s voice-powered AI will call up vaccine recipients in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province, to monitor their health status, the company said Monday. The pilot program, dubbed the COVID-19 AI CareCall Service, has already been deployed in Busan, Seongnam and Suwon. Starting from June 1, calls are expected to reach COVID-19 vaccine recipients aged 75 and above residing in select areas of the city four days after inoculation to check if they are experiencing any adverse effects. If a sy

The Seoul metropolitan government opened elevated bicycle lanes Monday along a stream that flows through the heart of the city as part of efforts to encourage the use of the eco-friendly means of transportation among citizens and tourists. The bike lanes were built on a 5.94-kilometer-long section of the existing two-way roads that run along Cheonggye Stream, connecting Cheonggye Plaza near Gwanghwamun to Gosanja Bridge in the eastern ward of Dongdaemun. Raised to the same height as the sidew