South Korean steelmaker Posco said Sunday it will expand hydrogen production capacity in the next three decades to meet growing demand for the clean energy source and foster new growth drivers. Posco, the world's fifth-largest steelmaker by output, said it will produce up to 5 million tons of hydrogen by 2050 to reduce its reliance on fossil fuels and transition to renewable energy sources. The company plans to launch a hydrogen business unit next month and collaborate with research agencies

Starbucks has opened seven new stores in South Korea, bringing the total number of outlets that the US coffee giant has launched since its debut here 21 years ago to 1,503 amid a coffee craze among locals, industry sources said Sunday. Five of the seven new outlets opened Tuesday are drive-thru stores, the sources said. As social distancing guidelines for COVID-19 require coffee shops to adopt tougher virus measures, Starbucks has increased drive-thru outlets to allow customers to buy coffee w

South Korea's Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee has met with US President-elect Joe Biden's nominee for US trade representative, the trade ministry said Saturday. Yoo discussed pending trade issues with Katherine Tai, the chief trade counsel for the US House of Representatives' Ways and Means Committee, during her four-day trip that ended on Friday, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said, without elaborating. The meeting came before media reports that Biden nominated Tai, a China trade exp

Posco CEO Choi Jeong-woo has been chosen for a second term, the company said Friday. The steelmaker’s board of directors unanimously decided to reappoint Choi, whose term expires in March. The appointment is subject to final approval at the company's shareholders’ meeting, slated for March. Choi took office as the company’s ninth CEO in July 2018. It is customary for Posco CEOs to serve consecutive terms.  By Shin Ji-hye (shinjh@heraldcorp.com) 　 　

South Korea's Hyundai Motor Group said Friday its affiliates and its chairman will buy an 80-percent stake, worth up to 900 billion won ($828 million), in US robotics firm Boston Dynamics Inc. in the latest move to propel its future mobility business. The board of directors at Hyundai Motor and its two affiliates, Hyundai Mobis and Hyundai Glovis, approved the plan to acquire the controlling stake in Boston Dynamics from Japanese investment firm SoftBank Group, Hyundai Motor said in a regulator

Walt Disney Co. has said it will launch its flagship streaming service Disney+ in South Korea next year, a move that could intensify competition between local and global streaming giants in the country. Disney said in a tweet for its investor day presentation on Thursday that South Korea is among the major markets, including Eastern Europe and Hong Kong, in which Disney+ will roll out next year. Disney+ has seen rapid growth since its launch in November last year, and the latest announcement f

Celltrion announced Friday that the company’s adalimumab biosimilar candidate CT-P17 has received a positive opinion for marketing authorization from the Committee for the Medicinal Products for Human Use under the European Medicines Agency. Celltrion’s CT-P17 is a biosimilar of Humira, a treatment for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, ulcerative colitis and psoriasis. The CHMP’s positive assessment will be soon reviewed by the European Commi

Audi Volkswagen Group has unveiled its electrification strategy and business plans in the Korean market over the next years. The group said in a digital press conference Friday its four affiliated brands -- Audi, Volkswagen, Lamborghini and Bentley -- will release more than 20 new models next year and eight electric car models within three years in the Korean market. The German automaker plans to increase the proportion of electric vehicle sales in Korea to 11 percent of the total sales b

The South Korean government will create a fund worth 26 billion won ($23.9 million) by March next year to invest in local startups and small firms producing over-the-top solutions and digital content, the Ministry of Science and ICT‘s announced Friday. The government will inject around 16 billion won into the fund, while the remaining 10 billion won will be raised from private investors. About 60 percent of the fund will be spent to support media productions by local companies and hel

Hyundai Heavy Industries Group has been selected as the preferred bidder to acquire a controlling stake in Doosan Infracore, Doosan Group’s engineering unit, HHI Group confirmed Friday. A consortium of Hyundai Heavy Industries Holdings, HHI Group‘s holdings company, and private equity firm KDB Investment beat out local construction materials firm Eugene Corp. in the takeover race. It offered about 800 billion won ($735 million) for a 35.41 percent stake in the firm. The equity

Portable real-time PCR system, room temperature storage PCR reagent draw $10 million investment for Wizbiosolutions amid COVID-19

Samsung Electronics Co.'s share in the global wireless earphone market dropped slightly in the third quarter of the year, a report showed Friday, as more consumers lean toward cheaper products amid the pandemic. Samsung accounted for 5 percent of the global truly wireless stereo (TWS) product shipments in the July-September period, down 1 percentage point from the previous three months, according to market tracer Counterpoint Research. Apple Inc. remained the top wireless earphone vendor in

South Korea will inject 32.1 billion won (US$29 million) into the virus-hit budget carrier Jeju Air Co. to help it stay afloat amid the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, a state lender said Thursday. The Key Industry Stabilization Fund will extend 25.7 billion won in loans to Jeju Air and invest 6.4 billion won in the carrier's convertible bonds, the state-run Korea Development Bank, which operates the fund, said in a statement. Jeju Air, the country's biggest low-cost carrier, is required to tak

The coronavirus pandemic has upended the world of travel, as people become more reluctant to take public transport or stay at guest lodgings. That has provided a golden opportunity for the local camper van market, which has enjoyed solid growth over the past few years. According to government data, the number of camping vehicles registered in South Korea reached 24,869 in 2019, marking a 20-fold increase from 1,300 in 2011. Industry officials expect the number to further grow, as the govern

The final ruling on the battery patent lawsuit between LG Energy Solution and SK Innovation has been postponed to Feb. 10, the third delay in the US court case. The US International Trade Commission announced the delay on Thursday, without providing specific reasons. The court was originally scheduled to rule on Oct. 5, then the decision was delayed to Oct. 26 and then again to Thursday. The two Korean battery makers released official statements regarding the holdup, but with different int