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Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Chung Hwang-keun, right, and U.S. Ambassador to Korea Philip Goldberg shake hands at a restaurant in Seoul, Tuesday. The two agreed to strengthen cooperation in the agricultural sector, as part of joint efforts to tackle food and climate change issues. Courtesy of Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs
Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) headquarters in Naju, South Jeolla Province / Korea Times fileKEPCO CEO Cheong Seung-ilBy Lee Kyung-minKorea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO), the country's largest utility firm, and 11 of its subsidiaries spent about 2.5 trillion won ($1.7 billion) on employee bonuses over the past five years, according to data provided by a ruling party lawmaker, Tuesday, in what he said was the “height of irresponsible greed” of state-run firms at the expense of taxpayers.The heated criticism comes as KEPCO's operating loss is expected to break a record, exceeding 30 trillion won this year.The trade ministry plans to announce a rate hike next month, cornered by spiking prices of key global commodities including crude oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG). The energy price surge is due mostly to factors driven by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Experts say the geopolitical uncertainties fail to rationalize the trillions of won in bonuses, since they clearly neglected ― or overlooked at best ― their financial soundness, as highlighted by a lack of risk manageme
President Yoon Suk-yeol, left, and Fair Trade Commission (FTC) Chairman Han Ki-jeong, pose for a photo after Han was appointed to lead the FTC at the presidential office in Yongsan, Seoul, Sept. 16. Korea Times fileBy Lee Kyung-minFair Trade Commission (FTC) Chairman Han Ki-jeong pledged Monday to gradually ease anti-competitive practices in the market, pursuing a broader policy directive to restore fair competition underpinned by healthy market principles.Unnecessary, unclear and outdated regulations will be removed to help the country's large conglomerates, long bogged down by a lack of predictability in administrative judgments and oftentimes subject to arbitrary, restrictive interpretations and implementations of related laws, he said. The measures will help with effective business planning and market stability. Digitization of commerce will be best regulated by guaranteeing fair competition among market players, mostly platform operators, he added, a critical basis upon which the rights of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and consumers will be protected.Online fraud and
Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Won Hee-ryong speaks during a press briefing at the Sejong Government Complex, Monday. YonhapBy Lee Kyung-minThe government will seek the full implementation of autonomous driving by 2027, a policy goal buttressed by a series of pilot program plans including late-night operations of driverless buses in select metropolitan areas by 2025, the transport ministry said Monday.The public transportation system will undergo a major overhaul in 2024 to facilitate the early operation of the high-tech future mobility network, a move increasingly being adopted by Korea's advanced peers, including Germany and Japan.Safety concerns will be dispelled in large part by the establishment of new insurance standards, whereby accountability while driving will be clearly assigned among drivers, manufacturers and infrastructure operators of autonomous vehicles.Fewer hours driving means more free timeMinister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Won Hee-ryong said the government will fortify capabilities to advance autonomous driving and urban air mobility (UA
Ahn Duk-geun, Korea's top trade negotiator, sixth from right, attends a Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership meeting of ASEAN ministers in Siem Reap, Cambodia, Sept. 17. YonhapBy Lee Kyung-minKorea's trade minister and top trade negotiator have reaffirmed the importance of cooperation in trade and supply chain issues with the country's peers on a recent visit to countries in the Asia-Pacific regions, the trade ministry said Sunday.Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Lee Chang-yang and the country's top trade negotiator, Ahn Duk-geun, attended a meeting of economic ministers at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Siem Reap, a town in northwestern Cambodia, from Sept, 16 to 18 (local time).The three-day meeting was the first face-to-face event, three years after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, where the 10 ASEAN member states and other partners were able to resume constructive dialogue in the midst of fierce economic competition around the world, the ministry said. Ahn met with trade authorities of the Philippines, New Zealand and Australia for strengthe
Officials of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and Gangneung City pose for a photo after Gangneung won the bid to host 2026 Intelligent Transport System (ITS) World Congress over Taiwan at the LA Convention in the U.S., Saturday (local time).By Lee Kyung-minKorea will host the 2026 Intelligent Transport System (ITS) World Congress in Gangneung, Gangwon Province, the transport ministry said Sunday. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said the eastern city won its bid to hold the international event over Taiwan at the LA Convention in the U.S., Saturday (local time). Held every year, the ITS World Congress is the largest international exhibition and academic conference in the transport community. Seoul held the event in 1998 and Busan hosted it in 2010. Countries in three regions ― the Americas, Europe and the Asia Pacific ― take turns holding the event following a vote from ITS Board of Director countries. The first event took place in 1994 in Paris, France.The ministry selected Gangneung as a candidate city in 2020, and has since spent 36 billion won (
gettyimagesbankBy Lee Kyung-minKorea's business inventory in the April-June period soared 18 percent from the quarter before, in what the business community is considering an indication of a full-fledged economic recession, rather than a temporary slowdown due to external factors, a survey by the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) showed, Friday. The quarterly figure registering a back-to-back increase for the fourth consecutive quarter is the first since 2017. Chief among the 26-year-high figures was the 79.7 percent quarter-on-quarter increase in non-metallic mineral reserves, followed by increases in oil refining (64.2 percent) and electronics and communications devices (58.1 percent).Behind the surge in the inventory figures lies a decoupling between industrial production and output, an unusual development in the country's manufacturing that began in the latter half of this year.The country's business conditions will, the report said, take a turn for the worse, bogged down by a slowdown in exports and subsequent widening trade deficit, compounded by tightening domestic
An oceans ministry official speaks during a press briefing at the Sejong Government Complex, Thursday. Yonhap By Lee Kyung-minThe government will reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the marine and fisheries sectors by 70 percent over the next eight years, as part of its overarching carbon neutrality drive to better respond to global climate change concerns, the oceans ministry said, Thursday. Emissions will be reduced to 1.2 million tons by 2030, down 70 percent from the 4.06 million tons produced in 2018. The use of low-carbon and carbon-free energy sources will be expanded for enhanced energy efficiency.The five-year plan seeks to align the policy focus of the global initiative better with heightened awareness of the seriousness of the climate crisis and the subsequent rapid progress made by Korea's global peers.The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries said the fourth plan for 2021-2025 has outlined measures more specific to how the marine and fisheries sectors can reduce carbon emissions in their business operations.“The new plan is about tangible ways to make a visible contribut
A strawberry farm that employs smart technologies in Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province. Korea Times fileBy Lee Kyung-min The government will launch a team of agriculture and trade authorities to help accelerate the export of smart farming, the rural affairs ministry said Wednesday. The move is a follow-up to a collective request by local farmers made during an export fair held in August. Most said the government should help the farmers identify stable sources of sales and strategies to keep up with rapidly changing market demands. Comparative analysis to fortify their competitive edge in the global market should follow, backed by aid to resolve legal and tax issues abroad, which are often very different from in Korea, they say. The growth of smart farming is explosive, as indicated by data from MarketsandMarkets Research, a market research firm specializing in business-to-business transactions. The smart agriculture market, it said, is expected to grow to $20.8 billion (28.9 trillion won) by 2026, up from $12.9 billion in 2021. Propelling the growth are rising food costs due to the rap
The site of Gascade and Deutsche ReGas in Lubmin, northeastern Germany, Aug. 30. Korea Times fileBy Lee Kyung-minConcerns are growing over a possible shortage of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in the upcoming winter as prices are expected to soar due to Russia's supply cut to European buyers and Australia's move to curb exports of key natural resources, market watchers said Tuesday.Of particular concern to Korea is Australia's move to secure the resources for domestic winter heating demand, pushing up LNG prices, certain to deepen energy woes for countries in Europe and the Asia Pacific region.The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), Australia's competition regulator, recommended that its government restrict LNG exports, out of concerns about supply being overshot by demand next year.Data from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy showed Korea imported over $6 billion (8.2 trillion won) worth of LNG from Australia in the first half of this year. This is almost twice the amount bought from Qatar ($3.63 billion) in the same period, followed by the U.S. ($2.5 billion