FULL MOON -- A full moon rises on Wednesday, the inauguration day of the nation's 19th President Moon Jae-in. (Bae Hyun-jung/The Korea Herald)

The following is an unofficial translation of President Moon Jae-in's inaugural address made on May 10, 2017.President Moon Jae-in (Yonhap)I am deeply grateful to all of you, the people, for your great choice. As the 19th President of the Republic of Korea, I take the first step today toward a new Republic of Korea. I sense a heavy responsibility endowed by the people. My heart is full of passion for building a country that we have never had. And my head is full of a blueprint to open a new worl

An attempt to lease out the remaining duty-free store licenses by tender at the new terminal at Incheon International Airport has failed again, as no duty-free operators made a bid, authorities and industry sources said Wednesday.The auction for licensing to run the apparel and accessories store at the second terminal (T2) at the hub airport that is expected to open later in the year has been put off for a second time due to a lack of tenders, according to Incheon International Airport Corp. and

Korea’s new president will not consider lowering the excise tax on cigarettes, according to a spokesman for the administration Wednesday.“Instead of lowering the tax, we are looking into the possibility of creating tax-free cigarettes for low income consumers,” Moon Jae-in’s spokesman Hong Ik-pyo told The Korea Herald on Wednesday. No timeframe has been set for the introduction of the lower-priced cigarettes, according to Hong. Cigarettes for sale at a convenience store (Yonhap)The excise tax on

Creating land about two-thirds the size of Seoul is not an easy job. Saemangeum Project, a mega project designed to turn a sea area into 283 square kilometers of reclaimed land, is the biggest land development in Korea so far. But to successfully complete the project, it must have a central authority to oversee it, in light of the overlapping authorities of related ministries and municipalities, said the head of the development agency.“It’s a structural problem,” Saemangeum Development and Inves

The retail arm of E-Land Group said it has agreed to sell a majority stake to a consortium as part of its efforts to reduce financial burdens and restructure the company ahead of its planned public listing early next year.According to the company on Tuesday, E-Land Retail is set to sell 69 percent of its shares for 600 billion won ($531 million) to a consortium including Curious Partners. Dongbu Securities is managing the deal.“The deal is not complete yet, but we expect it to be closed before t

Beer sales made up more than half of liquor sales at a major supermarket chain here, according to data Tuesday. Figures from retailer E-mart showed that sales of beer made up 55 percent of all liquor sales in April, up from 51 percent in March. Last month was the first time that beer made up more than half of all liquor sales.  A shopper browses imported beer at a department store in Seoul. (Yonhap)“People are increasingly avoiding large drinking parties and strong liquor,” said a spokesperson f

The cereal and granola market in Korea is rapidly expanding -- by more than 20 percent annually, according to a discount retailer Monday.E-mart said sales of cereal products at its stores rose by 23.5 percent on-year in 2016, and 29.7 percent in the first quarter of 2017. Meanwhile, other meal replacement products, such as bread and instant noodles, saw declining sales of 7.3 percent and 17.8 percent, respectively. Fruits & Granola by Peacock is sold at E-mart (E-mart)The discount retailer credi

Tobacco companies operating in Korea and smokers are wary, as the upcoming presidential election raises the possibility of another tax hike on cigarettes here.With the exception of Hong Joon-pyo of the conservative Liberty Korea Party, none of the major candidates have explicitly promised a cut in the unpopular spike in cigarette prices that went into effect in 2015.  (Yonhap)Although other candidates such as front-runner Moon Jae-in of the liberal Democratic Party of Korea have said they are re

Luxury brands including Balenciaga and Ferragamo are seeing falling profits in Korea as savvy consumers increasingly buy luxury items directly from overseas or during outlet sales.According to filings with the Financial Supervisory Service, several companies saw significant decreases in profits in 2016.  (Yonhap)Ferragamo Korea’s operating profit fell 12 percent on-year to reach 5.9 billion won ($5.2 million), while Fendi Korea’s operating profit fell 11 percent. Dior suffered losses coming to 8

Korea’s largest air carrier Korean Air said Wednesday that it is continuing to expand its social responsibility efforts, utilizing resources to help those in need all over the world.Outside of Korea, the company uses its expertise as an international carrier to send emergency supplies to areas hit by natural disasters.Korean Air conducts a one-day cafe event with volunteers recruited via social media (Korean Air)On April 12, Korean Air sent bottled water on a cargo carrier headed to Lima, Peru,

Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin is poised firm his grip on his family’s conglomerate, following decision of the group’s four major units Wednesday to merge their investment entities into a central holding company.According to industry analysts, the Shin family is expected to acquire nearly 50 percent of the shares of the newly created holding company. Shin himself will hold 10.56 percent of the shares in the holding company, as his existing stakes in the four Lotte units are converted into st

Lotte Group announced Wednesday that it would be shifting toward a holding company structure, combining the investment entities of its four major units into a single holding company.Lotte Confectionery, Lotte Shopping, Lotte Chilsung Beverage and Lotte Food called separate meetings of its boards of directors to vote on decisions to split into investment and business entities, and to combine the investment entities together.(Yonhap)“The decision follows through on the promise to restructure gover

US-based logistics company UPS will acquire local logistics firm Logen to expand its presence in the Korean market, according to news reports Wednesday.UPS is said to have agreed to a 270 billion won ($240.2 million) deal with Baring Private Equity Asia to acquire 100 percent of Logen’s shares.  Employees sort packages at UPS Korea’s Docksan Center. (UPS)A spokesperson for UPS declined to comment on the deal when reached by The Korea Herald.This will be UPS’ second foray into the Korean logistic

The top executive of the International Air Transport Association encouraged South Korea to ratify an international agreement laying out the legal responsibilities following incidents with unruly passengers on flights.“We encourage Korea to sign MP14,” IATA Director General Alexandre de Juniac told reporters Monday at the 2017 IATA Safety and Flight Ops Conference ongoing at the Grand Hyatt Seoul. IATA Director General and CEO Alexandre de Juniac speaks at the 2017 IATA Safety and Flight Ops Conf