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Lee Kyung-min

Korea Times AI content 2 team Reporter

Value context and insight. lkm@koreatimes.co.kr

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Companies

Hankook Tire faces leadership vacuum after chairman's arrest

Hankook Tire & Technology headquarters in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province / Korea Times fileHankook Tire & Technology CEO Cho Hyun-bumBy Lee Kyung-minHankook Tire & Technology, a local tire manufacturer, is expected to see a slump in exports of its key products and delays in overseas investments after its CEO Cho Hyun-bum was arrested on charges of embezzlement and breach of trust for a combined amount of 20 billion won ($15 million), according to market watchers. Thursday's arrest came less than three years after he stepped down as CEO in June 2020 over previous bribery and embezzlement charges. The resignation was prompted by a prison term suspended for four years following his arrest in November of 2019 and subsequent guilty verdict. Cho will serve a prison term if he is found guilty on the latest charges, since he was released on a suspended sentence in 2020.Whether and how likely the leadership vacuum would drain the business of local manufacturers remains to be seen. Over 90 percent of its sales come from exports. The firm planned to invest 1 trillion won to expand and

Mar 9, 2023By Lee Kyung-min
Hankook Tire faces leadership vacuum after chairman's arrest
Companies

Civil servants reluctant to move to planned space agency in Sacheon

gettyimagesbankBy Lee Kyung-minAn increasing number of civil servants are expressing anxiety over their possible relocation to Sacheon, South Gyeongsang Province, where the government plans to establish a science ministry-supervised vice ministerial-level aerospace agency, separate from Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI). Many say the remote coastal region is simply too far from Seoul and Daejeon, for example, and not at all suited to foster science and ICT research work ― as well as the unsuitable living conditions, which are unfavorable to their children's education and also the lack of cultural events.Some employees of the agency will have no salary cap, according to measures outlined so as to attract high-level government officials with expertise in science. But this is drawing little enthusiasm from industry and science ministry officials, some of whom go as far as saying that they would rather take a leave of absence than move there. “I would consider taking a leave of absence,” a Sejong-based central government ministry official said on condition of anonymit

Mar 9, 2023By Lee Kyung-min
Civil servants reluctant to move to planned space agency in Sacheon
Companies

Korail fined $1.4 million for safety lapses

Workers repair severed railroad tracks at Yeongdeungpo Station in southern Seoul, Nov. 7. Korea Times file Korail CEO Na Hee-seung / Korea Times file By Lee Kyung-minState-run Korea Railroad Corp. (Korail) and Seoul Metro have been fined 1.92 billion won ($1.4 million) and 120 million won, respectively, for making unauthorized changes in their work-shift systems, and other violations, the transport ministry said Tuesday.The record penalty imposed on Korail follows a 1.8 billion won fine in January.Dismissed Korail CEO Na Hee-seung will be replaced in the first half, upon President Yoon Suk Yeol's appointment of one among a shortlist of nominees selected by a finance ministry-led recommendation committee. The committee will review candidates for one month.The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said the shift put in place led to fewer, ent

Mar 8, 2023By Lee Kyung-min
Korail fined $1.4 million for safety lapses
Companies

Edible insects widely used for food, cosmetics, fertilizers

Korea Edible Insect Laboratory (KEIL) CEO Kim Young-wook gives a presentation at the firm's smart farm in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province, Monday. Joint Press CorpsKorea fosters green bio industry players KEIL, SUNBIOBy Lee Kyung-minCHEONGJU ― Bugs are not the first thing to come to mind when people think about what to eat. Rather, the thought of putting them in our mouth is almost always likely to induce a gag reflex.Such longstanding perceptions are taking a new eco-friendly turn underpinned by the sustainable use of this high-quality source of protein and fat in the broader context of resource recycling. How then do bugs help advance the green drive? The answer lies in feeding them. Throwing out expired confectioneries and beverages is costly for convenience store operators and damaging to the environment.Time, workers and logistics are all resources needed to dispose of them.But what if bugs could do the job? They need to eat something to survive anyway.Trays filled with mealworms are stacked up at the KEIL farm in Cheongju, North Chungcheong ProvinceThis was the thinking of

Mar 8, 2023By Lee Kyung-min
Edible insects widely used for food, cosmetics, fertilizers
Companies

Korea seeks truce in trade war with Japan by halting WTO dispute process

Kang Gam-chan, an industry ministry official, speaks during a press conference at the Sejong Government Complex, Monday. YonhapBy Lee Kyung-minKorea will seek a rapid restoration of frayed bilateral relations with Japan by deciding to temporarily halt an ongoing dispute settlement process with the World Trade Organization (WTO), the industry ministry said Monday. Ties between the two countries have deteriorated after years of intensified conflict over Japan's export curbs on key materials needed to manufacture computer chips ― Korea's growth driver industry accounting for about a fifth of its total exports.Accelerating the move to end four years of bilateral feuding is a recent breakthrough in long-stalled talks over compensating Koreans who were forced to labor at Japanese factories during World War II. The dispute was triggered by Korea's 2018 Supreme Court ruling that ordered Japanese firms to pay Korean forced labor victims.Late Sunday, Korea and Japan agreed to establish a fund for the education and cultural exchanges of young people in both countries, including scholarships. Th

Mar 6, 2023By Lee Kyung-min
Korea seeks truce in trade war with Japan by halting WTO dispute process
Companies

Olympus to acquire Korean gastrointestinal stent firm Taewoong Medical

Olympus logoBy Lee Kyung-minOlympus Corp., a global medical technology company committed to making people's lives healthier, safer and more fulfilling, has agreed to acquire Taewoong Medical, a Korea-based manufacturer of medical devices such as gastrointestinal (GI) metallic stents to strengthen its product portfolio capabilities, the firm said Monday.This will in turn contribute to improving patient outcomes through comprehensive solutions.Taewoong will receive about $370 million (480 billion won) in cash. The company expects to complete the transaction on June 30, subject to customary closing conditions.Incidences of biliary cancers, where metallic stents are used frequently as part of the treatment, have been increasing in recent years due to population aging.Metallic stents are often used to treat jaundice, one of the symptoms of an obstructed or narrowed biliary tract caused by biliary cancer. The stent allows for minimally invasive treatment, supporting faster patient recovery.Different types of stents are needed depending on the condition of the lesion and the patient's anato

Mar 6, 2023By Lee Kyung-min
Olympus to acquire Korean gastrointestinal stent firm Taewoong Medical
Companies

Business associations call for drastic changes to overtime regulations

Korea Federation of SMEs Chairman Kim Ki-moon speaks during a press conference in Yeouido, Seoul, Monday. YonhapBy Lee Kyung-minBusiness associations are demanding the government take further steps in expanding overtime limits to help employers better meet production needs under the broader context of labor reform, according to industry officials, Monday. Propelling the collective demands by major employers' groups is years of frustration and uncertainties in business planning, brought on mostly by frequent threats and actual strikes of unionized workers. Those almost always led to wasting time and corporate resources, hindering effective and timely management decisions critical to businesses' survival and profit generation.They say workers refusing to take on extra hours amid short-term high output demands puts corporate growth prospects at risk and ends up undercutting trust with buyers that would not otherwise hesitate to seek committed long-term partnerships.The government announced earlier in the day that the current weekly 12-hour overtime limit will be increased to 29 hours pe

Mar 6, 2023By Lee Kyung-min
Business associations call for drastic changes to overtime regulations
Companies

SK Incheon Petrochem invests in LDC to recycle waste tires

Korea Development Bank Jungbu headquarters chief Park Young-sang, left, SK Incheon Petrochemical President Choi Yun-seok, center, and LDC CEO Hwang Yong-kyung, right, join hands after signing a contract to invest in LDC at the firm's headquarters in Incheon, March 3. Courtesy of SK Incheon PetrochemicalBy Lee Kyung-minSK Incheon Petrochem, the petrol business subsidiary of SK innovation, the energy affiliate of SK Group, has invested in a promising local pyrolysis startup LDC (Life re-Defined Carbon) to produce 20,000 tons of eco-friendly products per year from as early as the first half of next year.Pyrolysis is a common technique used to convert plastic waste into solid, liquid and gaseous fuels. It helps in the green transformation of the otherwise fossil-fuel-oriented energy firms. The petrol affiliate said Sunday that it has signed a three-way contract with the startup and Korea Development Bank, in order to establish a pyrolysis facility. The construction of the facility is the first step toward expediting its waste tire recycling business, which the firm says will foster susta

Mar 5, 2023By Lee Kyung-min
SK Incheon Petrochem invests in LDC to recycle waste tires
Companies

Korea strengthens agriculture, land use cooperation in Central, South America

A delegation of high-level government officials of Korea and Colombia attend a meeting, March 1 (local time). Courtesy of Rural Development AdministrationBy Lee Kyung-minA delegation of high-level government officials has discussed ways to fortify cooperation with three Central and South American countries in the areas of agriculture and spatial data management, the land ministry said Sunday.Among the priorities of the delegation was to promote Korea's bid to host World Expo 2030 in Busan, mostly by strengthening ties with policymakers in Paraguay, Colombia and Guyana. They are members of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE), the intergovernmental organization in charge of overseeing and regulating World Expos.The land and foreign ministries, two of the agriculture ministry-affiliated agencies ― Rural Development Administration (RDA) and Korea Forest Service ― as well as the Korea Real Estate Board, a land ministry-affiliated organization, visited the countires from Feb. 27 to March 3 (local time).The delegation spent two of the five-day trip in Paraguay to discuss cooperat

Mar 5, 2023By Lee Kyung-min
Korea strengthens agriculture, land use cooperation in Central, South America
Companies

Korea aims to have robots help police on patrols by 2024

gettyimagesbankBy Lee Kyung-minThe government seeks to have self-driving robots to aid police on nighttime patrols by 2024, as part of the expanded use of autonomous mobility vehicles for enhanced public services, the industry ministry said Thursday. Underpinning the drive is the accelerated commercialization of smart mobility services, the next-generation growth driver widely anticipated to facilitate new business opportunities for the private sector, aided by eased regulations and simplified test runs.A greater number of robots will be used to promote public safety, faster transport services, environmental protection, medical services and smart farming. These are industries in need of a stable and reliable source of workers, higher productivity and the prevention of workplace accidents ― areas expected to see major breakthroughs with advances in robot technology. These are some of key measures announced by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy to foster the robotics industry.“The government has outlined measures to lead innovation in the robotics industry, a goal equally

Mar 2, 2023By Lee Kyung-min
Korea aims to have robots help police on patrols by 2024
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