my timesThe Korea Times
lkm

Lee Kyung-min

Korea Times AI content 2 team Reporter

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

Go to EmailGo to URL

Read more

Politics

Government signaling u-turn in nuclear energy policy

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Moon Sung-wook, front right, walks through the lobby at Hanul Nuclear Power Plant in Uljin, North Gyeongsang Province, March 18. YonhapBy Lee Kyung-min The government is rushing to make a rapid course correction in its nuclear energy policy, as evidenced by the energy minister calling for swift construction of four nuclear energy plants, a plan that has long been stalled and faced political disruptions under the Moon Jae-in administration. The trade ministry has dismissed the brewing criticism over policy inconsistencies. However, his marked flip-flopping calls into question whether and how deep Cheong Wa Dae was involved, since he made it clear in late January that expansion of nuclear energy was “not desirable.” On March 18, Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Moon Sung-wook visited Hanul Nuclear Power Plant in Uljin, North Gyeongsang Province, operated by Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power, and reiterated the need for the speedy construction of four nuclear power plants.“Please ensure the full use of the nuclear energy plants in o

Mar 21, 2022By Lee Kyung-min
Government signaling u-turn in nuclear energy policy
Economy

Yoon administration to freeze property tax

An apartment complex in Seoul Korea Times fileBy Lee Kyung-min The government is expected to freeze property tax for the entire homeowners including owners of one expensive home with an officially appraised value of over 1.1 billion won ($905,000) subject to the Comprehensive Real Estate Tax, according to government ministries, Sunday. The hefty Comprehensive Real Estate Tax is imposed for retaining expensive homes. The measure is part of the real estate market policy revisions pledged by President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol, whose win by a razor-thin margin was underpinned in considerable part by public fury over the housing prices doubling under the Moon Jae-in administration due to two dozen botched government policies. Higher housing prices led to a tax spike for homeowners, almost all of whom passed the unexpected burden to tenants in the form of higher rent, threatening their stable living arrangements. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport plans to announce the changes in the rate of officially appraised home value for this year, Wednesday, to be followed by specifi

Mar 20, 2022By Lee Kyung-min
Yoon administration to freeze property tax
Companies

China's COVID lockdowns to hit Korean firms

A woman undergoes COVID-19 testing in Beijing, Thursday. YonhapBy Lee Kyung-min The recent COVID-19 lockdowns in China are posing a major threat to Korean firms, many of which are suspending operations of their manufacturing plants in the world's second-largest economy, according to industry watchers and economists, Thursday. Not only large conglomerates, but also small and medium-sized local producers of semifinal and final goods relying on China for parts import are expected to feel the pinch of the acute disruptions to global value chains.Experts say Korea should diversify trading partners and establish viable alternate supply methods to reduce the immense current dependence on China, a repeated call ringing hollow to businesses that are highly averse to making unnecessary and costly investments.“We have decided to lower production capacity at our China plants for the time being,” a Hyundai Motor spokesperson said.The sudden shock to the manufacturing process is driven mostly by operation suspensions of key auto part wiring harness factories in China's Shandong provinc

Mar 17, 2022By Lee Kyung-min
China's COVID lockdowns to hit Korean firms
Companies

Woon Hyung Lee Foundation to hold 7th opera

Poster for Lucia di Lammermoor Courtesy of SeAH Woon Hyung Lee FoundationBy Lee Kyung-min The SeAH Woon Hyung Lee Foundation will hold its seventh concert at Seoul Arts Center next Saturday, in memory of Lee Woon-hyung, the late SeAH Group chairman who was a classical opera enthusiast, the foundation said Thursday. This year's performance will feature Lucia di Lammermoor, a tragic opera in three acts by Italian composer Gaetano Donizetti. It will be streamed live on YouTube starting at 7 p.m. The foundation said this year's event would help lift the spirits of many people feeling depression and fatigue from the drawn-out COVID-19 pandemic.“In-person cultural experiences have been curtailed drastically and largely disappeared over the past few years due to the pandemic,” the foundation said. “We hope the event will provide people with a healthy break from the seemingly unending crisis.” The opera will be directed by Stephen Carr, an associate professor of opera and musical theater studies at Eastman School of Music in the U.S. A stage director, performer and ed

Mar 17, 2022By Lee Kyung-min
Woon Hyung Lee Foundation to hold 7th opera
Companies

World Forestry Congress sees 60% registration rate

Korea Forest Service officials celebrate the launch of a preparation committee for the 15th World Forestry Congress at an office in Daejeon, March 9, 2020. Korea Times fileKorea Forest Service Minister Choi Byeong-amBy Lee Kyung-min Over 7,000 people from over 110 countries have registered to attend the 15th World Forestry Congress in Seoul scheduled for May, according to the Korea Forest Service (KFS), the event organizer, Tuesday.They account for over 60 percent of 11,387 people from 115 countries initially expected to join the international event, which is held every six years. Jointly organized by the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), this year's event will be held from May 2 to 6 at COEX in southern Seoul. “A total of 7,017 people have registered as of today,” an official with the organizing committee said. “More people will register in the coming weeks.”The soaring number of COVID-19 Omicron variant cases across the country remained a major sticky point for the event, a reason why the committee has allocated a special budget for containment e

Mar 15, 2022By Lee Kyung-min
World Forestry Congress sees 60% registration rate
Companies

SK On to build battery plant with Ford in Turkey

A battery manufacturing plant, SK Battery America, under construction in Georgia, the U.S. Courtesy of SK OnBy Lee Kyung-min SK On, the wholly owned subsidiary of SK Innovation, a refiner, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Ford Motor, a U.S. automobile manufacturer, and Koc Holdings, the largest industrial conglomerate in Turkey to create a joint venture for electric vehicle (EV) battery production, the firm said Tuesday.The envisioned battery plant will be set up near Ankara, Turkey. It will produce high-nickel batteries NCM batteries composed of lithium, nickel, cobalt and manganese. Its annual production capacity of between 30 and 45 GWh will begin as early as 2025. SK On is the first among the three leading Korean battery suppliers ― LG Energy Solution and Samsung SDI ― to work with an automaker and create a joint venture for large-scale production in Europe. The joint venture is expected to bolster Ford's presence in Europe and the United States. Ford was named as the No. 1 commercial vehicle brand across Europe for the seventh consecutive year in 2021. Ford Tr

Mar 15, 2022By Lee Kyung-min
SK On to build battery plant with Ford in Turkey
Companies

Gov't vows 'maximum penalty' against HDC

Former HDC Hyundai Development Company CEO Chung Mong-gyu Korea Times fileBy Lee Kyung-min HDC Hyundai Development Company could lose its construction license, as the government vows the “maximum penalty” for the scandal-tainted construction unit of HDC Group over the collapse of an apartment building under construction in Gwangju in January, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Monday.License cancellation would force the firm permanently out of the construction industry, whereas operation suspension, a less severe administrative action, would prohibit it from engaging in bidding on advance orders for a certain period. The strongest penalty is inevitable, since January's accident came only about six months after another accident that caused 17 casualties at a redevelopment site it supervised in the metropolitan city last June. Man-made disaster “The accident occurred due to a combination of risk factors under poor overall management,” a land ministry official said during a press briefing.The ministry said the fatal collapse resulted

Mar 14, 2022By Lee Kyung-min
Gov't vows 'maximum penalty' against HDC
Companies

Global robot scientist Dennis Hong joins LG Electronics

Dennis HongBy Lee Kyung-min Global robot scientist Dennis Hong has joined LG Electronics to help advance the group-wide future growth drive in the high-tech industry, according to the firm, Monday. The electronics affiliate of LG Group said Hong will play an integral part in the firm's long-term plan to develop integrated robot logistics solutions encompassing storage and home delivery for retail consumers. “The addition of the world-renowned robot scientist to our group of robot experts will propel the corporate presence on the global stage,” the firm said.LG Electronics opened LG Boston Robotics Lab in the U.S. in 2020, and has since developed next-generation robot technologies in collaboration with a global robot scientist, Kim Sang-bae, a professor of mechanical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Hong is currently a professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). He doubles as the founding director of the Robotics & Mechanisms Laboratory (RoMeLa). He made the 2009 “Brilliant 10” list

Mar 14, 2022By Lee Kyung-min
Global robot scientist Dennis Hong joins LG Electronics
Companies

Daegu World Gas Conference on alert over Ukraine crisis, Omicron spread

Members of the WGC 2022 National Organizing Committee attend a meeting at COEX, Seoul, Jan. 23. Korea Times fileBy Lee Kyung-min The World Gas Conference Daegu 2022 scheduled for May is bracing itself for the rapid spread of the Omicron variant and the escalating Russia-Ukraine war, event organizers said Friday.According to the Daegu Metropolitan Office, the international event to be held in Daegu from May 23 to 27, has received only 200 registration requests, as of Friday, only 5 percent of the initially expected attendance of 4,800. “Many participating firms seem hesitant to register early,” said a Daegu Metropolitan Office official who coordinates the event with the WGC 2022 National Organizing Committee associated with Korea Gas Corp. “The numbers are low, mostly because of the raging Omicron variant. But we still have about two months left, so we expect the registration rate to pick up as we near the event.”An official of the committee said the latest announcement on the easing of COVID-19 restrictions and self-quarantine will help increase participation

Mar 11, 2022By Lee Kyung-min
Daegu World Gas Conference on alert over Ukraine crisis, Omicron spread
Economy

Goldman Sachs lowers Korea's growth outlook to 2.8 percent

In this 2021 July file photo, the Goldman Sachs company logo is seen on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S. Reuters-YonhapBy Lee Kyung-min Goldman Sachs has revised down Korea's economic growth forecast for this year to 2.8 percent from its previous projection of 3.2 percent, largely on weaker external demand and increasing macroeconomic risks from the Russia-Ukraine conflict. It also revised up Korea's inflation forecast by 0.6 percentage point to 3.6 percent mainly on higher commodity prices.In a report titled, “Korea Views: Policy Implications of Presidential Election and Our Macro Views,” the global investment banking powerhouse said rising macro risks from the Ukraine conflict will translate into adversely impacting the growth of the oil shock on global and domestic demand. The report also mentioned that it expects one of the most relevant changes to macro investors would be a relatively conservative fiscal policy stance under the presidency of Yoon Suk-yeol.“The Yoon presidency is expected to set up fiscal rules within the fi

Mar 11, 2022By Lee Kyung-min
Goldman Sachs lowers Korea's growth outlook to 2.8 percent
previous page
185186187188189
next page

Top 5 stories

Korea Times
About Us
Introduction
History
Contact Us
Products & Services
Subscribe
E-paper
RSS Service
Content Sales
Site Map
Policy
Code of Ethics
Ombudsman
Privacy Policy
Youth Protection Policy
Terms of Service
Copyright Policy
Family Site
Hankookilbo
Dongwha Group
FacebookXYoutubeInstagram
CEO & Publisher: Oh Young-jinDigital News Email: webmaster@koreatimes.co.krTel: 02-724-2114Online newspaper registration No: 서울,아52844Date of registration: 2020.02.05Masthead: The Korea TimesCopyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.