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Lee Gyu-lee

Korea Times Business Reporter

Lee Gyu-lee is a business writer at The Korea Times, focusing primarily on IT & telecommunications, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and KOTRA. Prior to this, she has covered a wide range of cultural news, from film, television and K-pop to lifestyle and fashion.

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Companies

POSCO, antitrust watchdog broaden partnership for shared growth

POSCO Group has partnered with the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) to expand its shared growth initiatives, which support supplier financing, technology development and market access, beyond direct suppliers to include second and third-tier vendors. The group announced that it inked an agreement with the commission on Thursday, aimed at strengthening supply chain competitiveness and promoting fair trade practices across about 5,300 partner companies. Under the agreement, the group pledged to improve payment terms, expand the use of its shared growth payment system that guarantees cash settlement on due dates and allows suppliers to convert receivables into cash early at lower financing costs. It also committed to providing incentives to first-tier suppliers that promote shared growth with lower-tier partners and broadening support programs to enhance supplier competitiveness. “POSCO Group has grown by treating shared growth with its partners as a core value,” POSCO Holdings President Lee Ju-tae said during the signing ceremony. "We will continue to foster a transparent and fair business c

Jul 16, 2026By Lee Gyu-lee
POSCO, antitrust watchdog broaden partnership for shared growth
Others

Offline mobile shops lose ground despite higher carrier subsidies

Offline mobile phone retailers are fading as more consumers buy unlocked smartphones online, use price-comparison platforms to find transparent deals and sign up for low-cost mobile plans without visiting a store, underscoring a structural shift in the country's smartphone distribution market. According to data from the National Tax Service, the number of registered mobile phone stores in Seoul fell to 2,965 as of April, down 5.8 percent from 3,149 at the end of 2021. The figure has declined steadily from 3,091 in 2022 and 2,966 in 2023. The effective number of operating stores is likely lower than official counts, as dormant and temporarily closed outlets are still counted in the statistics, with some owners keeping their business registrations active while effectively shutting down amid loan repayment pressures and weak customer traffic. The decline comes as consumers increasingly favor transparent pricing over the traditional practice of negotiating discounts with individual dealers, whose subsidies and contract terms often vary from store to store. An owner of a mobile phone shop in

Jul 16, 2026By Lee Gyu-lee
Offline mobile shops lose ground despite higher carrier subsidies
Tech & Science

Upstage, FuriosaAI team up to power Daum's AI search with homegrown stack

Upstage is partnering with its subsidiary AXZ, operator of internet portal Daum, and artificial intelligence (AI) chip startup FuriosaAI to run Daum’s new AI Summary search feature, which the companies describe as Korea’s first commercially deployed full-stack sovereign AI architecture. The collaboration brings together Upstage’s Solar large language model (LLM) on FuriosaAI’s RNGD neural processing unit (NPU) to power Daum’s AI Summary search feature in a single, end‑to‑end stack. The companies said the deployment marks Korea’s first commercial example of an AI stack built entirely with domestic technologies, spanning AI infrastructure, foundation models and end‑user services. To mark the launch, Upstage CEO Kim Sung-hoon, AXZ CEO Lee Keon-su and FuriosaAI CEO June Paik met Tuesday at AXZ's headquarters in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province to discuss the partnership and the future of sovereign AI. Daum’s AI Summary feature, which launched its beta service earlier this month, analyzes web documents using an LLM to generate comprehensive answers to search queries. "When users

Jul 15, 2026By Lee Gyu-lee
Upstage, FuriosaAI team up to power Daum's AI search with homegrown stack
Tech & Science

Kakao's turnaround hits roadblocks as AI, labor woes deepen

Kakao’s turnaround efforts are facing mounting challenges as weak artificial intelligence (AI) execution, slowing core businesses and escalating labor tensions cloud its growth outlook, even as it is expected to post another quarter of strong profits driven by restructuring and cost controls. Samsung Securities said on Monday that Kakao’s second-quarter operating profit is expected to rise 18 percent year-over-year to 231.1 billion won ($154.4 million), while revenue is forecast to increase 1.2 percent to 2.48 trillion won, driven by asset sales and restructuring. However, the brokerage cut its target price to 44,000 won from 60,000 won, citing concerns that the company's growth strategy had hit roadblocks. “Kakao’s introduction of AI agents, which it has positioned as a growth driver, is failing to deliver results, while its restructuring efforts are also losing momentum due to labor opposition," Samsung Securities analyst Oh Dong-hwan said in a report. He added that it was difficult to justify a valuation premium over peers under the current circumstances, citing prolonged lab

Jul 15, 2026By Lee Gyu-lee
Kakao's turnaround hits roadblocks as AI, labor woes deepen
Companies

Princess Anne visits HD Hyundai as UK seeks to revive shipbuilding

Princess Anne, the younger sister of Britain's King Charles III, visited HD Hyundai Heavy Industries' (HHI) shipyard in Ulsan on Tuesday, touring its shipbuilding and engine manufacturing facilities and discussing maritime cooperation between Korea and the United Kingdom. The princess arrived in Korea on Monday for a three-day visit to mark the 75th anniversary of the Battles of Imjin River and Gapyeong, two major Korean War engagements involving British forces. HD Hyundai is the only private Korean company Anne is scheduled to visit during her trip to Korea. Accompanied by Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence and British Ambassador to South Korea Colin Crooks, Anne met with HD Hyundai Chairman Chung Ki-sun, HHI Vice Chairman Lee Sang-kyun and HHI President Joo Won-ho. The executives introduced the company's shipbuilding technologies and discussed ways to expand bilateral cooperation in the shipbuilding and maritime sectors. The visit comes as the U.K. seeks to revitalize its domestic shipbuilding and maritime industries. Britain was once the world's leading shipbuilding nation, producing mor

Jul 14, 2026By Lee Gyu-lee
Princess Anne visits HD Hyundai as UK seeks to revive shipbuilding
Companies

Samsung SDI 1st to meet global indoor battery fire safety standard

Samsung SDI said Tuesday its uninterruptible power supply (UPS) batteries have become the first in the industry to pass a global indoor fire safety test, bolstering its competitiveness in the fast-growing artificial intelligence (AI) data center market. The battery maker said its UPS batteries met all criteria in UL Solutions' Indoor Large-Scale Fire Test (LSFT), becoming the first in the world to meet the standard. UPS systems provide emergency power during outages or voltage fluctuations and are considered critical infrastructure for AI data centers, where uninterrupted power is essential. The Indoor LSFT, introduced by UL Solutions earlier this year, evaluates whether a fire intentionally ignited in a battery module spreads to adjacent racks or systems under conditions that simulate real-world UPS operations. During the test, the battery module in which thermal runaway was intentionally initiated was completely consumed by fire, but the flames did not spread to adjacent racks. According to Samsung SDI, no gas release, explosion or rupture was observed, and the system met all required

Jul 14, 2026By Lee Gyu-lee
Samsung SDI 1st to meet global indoor battery fire safety standard
Tech & Science

Telecoms step up cybersecurity spending after breaches

Major telecom companies — SK Telecom, KT and LG Uplus — are sharply increasing their cybersecurity investments and strengthening security governance following last year's high-profile breaches, positioning security as a core business priority rather than a compliance obligation. According to the Korea Internet & Security Agency (KISA), the three carriers’ combined information security investment rose to about 367.5 billion won ($243.9 million) in 2025, up about 22 percent from 301.2 billion won a year earlier, far outpacing the approximately 4 percent growth in overall IT investment. On average, the three carriers devoted nearly 7 percent of their overall IT investment to information security last year, compared with 5.8 percent in 2024. The widening gap reflects a shift in investment priorities as telecom companies respond to increasingly sophisticated cyber threats while seeking to restore consumer confidence after last year's security incidents. SK Telecom and its fixed-line affiliate SK Broadband together invested 143.4 billion won in information security, the largest amount am

Jul 13, 2026By Lee Gyu-lee
Telecoms step up cybersecurity spending after breaches
Companies

LNG reemerges as strategic fuel for Korea's AI, chip ambitions

Liquefied natural gas (LNG) is regaining strategic importance as the government reassesses its energy mix to support massive investments in artificial intelligence (AI) data centers and semiconductor manufacturing, while a prolonged global boom in LNG strengthens prospects for the country's broader LNG supply chain. Seoul is reconsidering LNG's domestic role after previously planning to reduce its share in the country's power mix under long-term decarbonization targets. Growing electricity demand from AI infrastructure and semiconductor manufacturing has renewed focus on LNG-fired power generation as a flexible backup source to balance the intermittency of renewable energy. The government is expected to consider a sharp increase in the share of LNG power in a new electricity plan, which will be drawn up later this year. It is also said to be reviewing a proposal to meet part of Samsung Electronics and SK hynix’s planned semiconductor cluster’s 6.3-gigawatt power demand in the southwestern region with LNG combined-cycle plants. Executives have also called for greater policy support fo

Jul 11, 2026By Lee Gyu-lee
LNG reemerges as strategic fuel for Korea's AI, chip ambitions
Companies

Ferrari strengthens Korea footprint with Hyosung, Samsung collaborations

Ferrari is deepening its ties with Korean companies through technology collaborations and an expanded luxury retail footprint, with CEO Benedetto Vigna describing Korea as an inspiring market and calling for broader cooperation in electrification and digital technologies during last month's Korea-Italy business roundtable in Rome. Held on the sidelines of President Lee Jae Myung's state visit to Italy, the meeting underscored Ferrari's view of Korea not only as a key luxury car market but also as a strategic technology partner. Earlier this year, Ferrari unveiled a one-off 12Cilindri Tailor Made model in Seoul featuring Korean artistic elements, including traditional lacquerware and horsehair craftwork, highlighting its efforts to localize the brand in one of Asia's fastest-growing luxury markets. The momentum continued in June, when reservations for Casa Ferrari, a brand immersion pop-up in Seoul's Seongsu neighborhood, reached nearly 2,000 within an hour of opening. Vigna's remarks also drew renewed attention to Ferrari's long-standing relationships with Korean partners, particularly H

Jul 10, 2026By Lee Gyu-lee
Ferrari strengthens Korea footprint with Hyosung, Samsung collaborations
Companies

Paradise City receives triple honors in France's La Liste Hotels 2026

Paradise City, an integrated resort complex on Yeongjong Island, Incheon, notched triple honors in the 2026 edition of France’s La Liste hotel rankings, with two of its properties making it into the world’s top 1,000 hotels and winning the Style & Design Hotel Award. Global restaurant, pastry shop and hotel guide La Liste announced this year’s list of top 1,000 hotels and Special Awards for hotels during an awards ceremony in Paris on Wednesday (local time). Art Paradiso, the resort’s lifestyle boutique hotel, made its debut on the list this year, earning a score of 93.5 and tying for sixth place globally alongside Paradise City. The boutique hotel also won the Style & Design Hotel Award 2026, a special distinction presented to hotels recognized for excellence in design, architecture and artistic identity. Only six hotels worldwide received the award this year, with Art Paradiso the only Korean property among the honorees. "The fact that Paradise City hotel and Art Paradiso were recognized together at La Liste Hotels 2026 is a meaningful achievement that demonstrates the competit

Jul 9, 2026By Lee Gyu-lee
Paradise City receives triple honors in France's La Liste Hotels 2026
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