POSCO announced Wednesday it has acquired control of U.S. graphene nanoplate manufacturer XG Sciences, boosting the world’s fourth-largest steelmaker’s bid to transform into an all-round materials developer. Graphene is a transparent nano-carbon material that has electric conductivity and flexibility. It is widely used as an electrode in various industrial materials, energy and electronic devices.

Although the country’s thriving coffee market has stoked demand for espresso and drip coffee in recent years, instant coffee remains Korea’s preferred drink, a recent survey showed. Last year, Koreans consumed 22.8 billion cups of coffee collectively, according to the survey by Nielson Korea and Dongsuh Foods Corp., the top local instant coffee maker. That translates as 452 cups for every Korean o

Air travelers will likely pay more fuel surcharges for long-haul flights and less for short-haul flights starting July at the earliest as the government looks to better adjust the rates to fluctuations in jet fuel prices, officials said Sunday.　Fuel surcharges are an extra charge added to the ticket price of air flights, to cover the cost of fuel rates. The Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime

Korea plans to launch a fund to help foreign investors bring in skilled labor and technology from overseas in target sectors. The Global Win-Win Fund will be created in August or September with 100 billion won ($92.6 million) and expanded to 300 billion won ($278 million) over the next two years, the Ministry of Knowledge Economy said Sunday. Of the total, the state-run Korea Finance Corporation p

S-Oil Corp. said Thursday it has given funds to children in low-income families for their liver transplant surgeries.The country’s third-largest oil refiner has been supporting 26 children suffering biliary atresia since 2009 through company and employee donations. The rare symptom among infants means that bile ducts ― long tubes carrying bile for digestion ― between the liver and the small intest

SK Innovation Co., Korea’s top refiner, broke ground on its second plant Monday to produce batteries for electric vehicles, upping the ante for its fledgling green energy business as a next-generation revenue source.Located in Seosan, South Chungcheong Province, the facilities will start manufacturing 200-megawatt-hour batteries early next year and 300-MWh batteries by the end of 2012, SK Innovati

Hyundai Mobis, Korea’s leading auto parts maker, was named one of the world’s top 10 suppliers on the back of robust sales, an industry report showed Sunday.According to the report by Detroit-based Automotive News, Mobis was ranked as the eighth-largest parts manufacturers in 2010 in terms of sales, up four notches from the previous year.Its revenue jumped 28.7 percent to $14.43 billion last year