Korea Times Digital Content Reporter
Kwak Yeon-soo is a digital editor at The Korea Times creating, editing and curating digital content for the newspaper’s website, mobile app and social media. She previously covered a diverse array of cultural, political and business topics.
S-Oil CEO Hussain A. Al-Qahtani, fifth from left, poses with Work Together Foundation Chairman Song Wol-joo, fourth from left, and food truck entrepreneurs at Yeouido Hangang Park in Seoul, July 12. The refiner donated 100 million won ($84,912) to support the fuel costs of food truck entrepreneurs. / Courtesy of S-Oil
A screen shows the result of the minimum wage vote for 2020 at a meeting of the Minimum Wage Commission at the Government Complex in Sejong, Friday. YonhapBy Kwak Yeon-sooBusiness communities have expressed dissatisfaction with the decision to raise the 2020 minimum wage.The Minimum Wage Commission ― comprising of representatives from labor, management and the public ― announced Friday that next year's minimum wage has been set at 8,590 won ($7.30) an hour, up 2.87 percent from this year. The council's decision came after a 13-hour discussion. The 2.87 percent increase is the third-lowest in history and is smaller than the previous rising pace of the wage. This year's minimum wage is 8,350 won an hour, 10.9 percent higher than last year. In 2018, the minimum wage rose 16.4 percent year-on-year to 7,530, the biggest hike in 17 years.?A minimum wage hike was one of President Moon Jae-in's key election pledges. He originally promised to raise it to 10,000 won by 2020, but has signaled the need to adjust it to the economic and job situation. Business representatives initially called for
A self-driving car jointly developed by Hyundai Mobis and Yandex / Courtesy of Hyundai MobisBy Kwak Yeon-sooHyundai Mobis and Russia's Yandex will be testing a public robotaxi service with a newly developed self-driving car, the auto parts maker said Thursday. An auto parts affiliate of Hyundai Motor and global IT company Yandex will test ride 100 driverless cars on public roads in Moscow by the end of this year. Together, they will expand the testing of jointly developed control systems for driverless vehicles to other regions. Earlier in March, the two companies signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU), with the ultimate goal of creating a self-driving platform that can be used by any car manufacturer or taxi fleet.The two have been cooperating in artificial intelligence (AI) technologies for voice and video recognition as well as infotainment technologies.Just six weeks after signing the MOU, the two companies succeeded in transforming the Hyundai Sonata into a driverless vehicle. Hyundai Mobis dispatched its researchers to Russia to accelerate platform development. Yandex is kn
By Kwak Yeon-sooGmarket, 11st, and other online open market operators have come under fire for allowing the illegal sales of non-prescription drugs, raising concerns that the easy availability of such medications can fuel misuse and abuse.Under the current Pharmaceutical Affairs Law, online sales of medications, including over-the-counter (OTC) drugs, is illegal here because it could endanger the health of its buyers.“A person who sells medications online can be convicted,” a Ministry of Food and Drug Safety official said. “It's also illegal to sell OTC drugs through an open market or overseas direct purchase.”OTC drugs are medicines sold directly to a consumer without a physician's prescription. The official added penalties could include up to five years in prison or a fine up to 50 million won ($42,505).However, the three online retailers have been allowing sales of medications, such as Omeprazole, Prilosec and Ibuprofen, on their platforms.An image of Omeprazole being sold through 11st / Captured from 11st websiteA spokesperson for Coupang said the products
The PLOOM TECH Starter Kit / Courtesy of JTI KoreaBy Kwak Yeon-sooJapan Tobacco International (JTI) in Korea launched PLOOM TECH, with which it claims smokers can enjoy tobacco vapor product with approximately 99 percent odor reduction by heating tobacco indirectly through vapor, the company said Thursday.The 'no smoke, no smoke smell' feature can expand the opportunities to use the product in private homes and in legally permitted public areas, according to JTI.“We are very excited to launch PLOOM TECH in a country renowned for quality, precision and innovation,” said Jose Amador, JTI Korea's General Manager. “With the new product, we will strive to provide adult consumers with the best possible vaping experience and support the company's consumer-centric approach of offering a wide choice of products that satisfy both smokers and vapers.”The PLOOM TECH Starter Kit consists of a battery, a USB charger and an adapter. It is priced at 35,000 won ($30), and Mevius for PLOOM TECH refills are priced at 4,500 won. The products are available in three flavors ― Purpl
Hyundai E&C Executive Vice President of Plant Division Lee Won-woo, left, shakes hands with Saudi Aramco Vice President of Project Management Fahad E. Al-Helal after signing a contract for the Marjan incremental development project at Saudi Aramco's headquarters in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday. / Courtesy of Hyundai E&CBy Kwak Yeon-sooHyundai Engineering & Construction won a 3.2 trillion won ($2.7 billion) order to build gas and crude oil-processing facilities in Saudi Arabia, the company said Wednesday. Hyundai E&C said it signed a deal with Saudi Aramco, the world's largest oil producer, for two major packages of an oil field incremental development project in Marjan, northeast Saudi Arabia. According to the company, the 1.72 trillion won Package 6 requires it to expand an existing gas-oil separation facility. Under the Package 12 deal, which is worth 1.45 trillion won, Hyundai E&C will build facilities for an onshore plant. The company expects each construction project to take 41 months. Hyundai E&C said its construction record in Saudi Arabia helped the
Krakatau POSCO Coke Plant junior team leader Muklis, left, poses with a Red Cross Indonesia Cilegon official at the donation ceremony held at Red Cross Indonesia Cilegon office, June 25. / Courtesy of POSCOBy Kwak Yeon-sooA Krakatau POSCO employee donated his reward money to charity, practicing the core vision of the company to grow together, the steelmaker said Wednesday. According to the company, Muklis, a junior team leader at the coke plant of Krakatau POSCO, donated 50 million rupiah ($3,381) to Red Cross Indonesia Cilegon and 10 million rupiah to an employee volunteer group within POSCO.The donation ceremony came after he won the POSCO Grand Award for Corporate Citizenship of 2019 in April. Muklis was recognized for his contribution to the improvement of facilities by establishing an eco-friendly operating system at its coke oven plant. The award is annually given to 10 selected employees from a total of 60,000 POSCO Group workers. “As a corporate citizen and also part of the Cilegon community, I hope to contribute to the welfare of the community. Hopefully this donation
Sinter gas treatment system at Hyundai Steel's Dangjin plant / Courtesy of Hyundai SteelBy Kwak Yeon-sooHyundai Steel will reduce air pollutant emissions from its sinter plants by more than 50 percent by 2021 through operating a sinter gas treatment system (SGTS), the company said Tuesday. According to the company, the amount of pollutants emitted from sinter plants in Dangjin, South Chungcheong Province, has been reduced since it adopted an SGTS. The emissions of hazardous air pollutants, such as sulfur oxides and nitrogen oxides, have been reduced to the range of 30 ppm and 40 ppm from the original 140 ppm and 160 ppm. The SGTS uses catalytic converters to remove nitrogen oxides and adds sodium hydrogen carbonate to the sinter mixture to remove sulfur oxides from waste gas.Two of three SGTS started operations in May and June, respectively, and the additional system will be completed by June 2020. If all three systems operate without a break, the company expects to reduce the amount of hazardous air pollutants to 10,000 tons in 2021 from 23,292 tons in 2018.“We decided to embe
Customers form a queue to enter Blue Bottle Coffee Korea's new store in Samcheong-dong, Seoul, July 8. / Korea Times photo by Kwak Yeon-sooBy Kwak Yeon-sooBlue Bottle Coffee Korea opened its second store in Samcheong-dong, a traditional-style district, in a bid to target gallery goers and those who want to enjoy the natural landscape of Seoul.The new whitewashed walls of the shop were designed by Japanese architect Jo Nagasaka, who also designed Blue Bottle's first Korean store in Seongsu-dong. The three-story building faces the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea (MMCA) through the glass walls of the first floor. “In order to create an equal relationship with the MMCA, we installed gray brick stones on the ground of the first floor,” a Blue Bottle Coffee Korea official said. “By doing so, customers can feel connected to the museum and enjoy the view outside.”Orders are placed and collected from the counter on the first floor, and customers can enjoy their beverages and snacks on the second and third floors.The second floor has a view of the
POSCO executives, outside directors and institutional shareholders discuss during an investor relations meeting at POSCO Center in Seoul, Monday. Courtesy of POSCOBy Kwak Yeon-sooPOSCO held a meeting with institutional investors and outside directors at the POSCO Center to share information about the company's corporate governance and the board's role, the company said Monday.The meeting was aimed at increasing shareholders' understanding of the board's role, the company's business structure and its decision-making processes, according to the steelmaker.This comes in line with POSCO Group Chairman Choi Jeong-woo's “100-task initiative,” in which he pledged to study enhanced shareholder policies. Last year, POSCO announced it would regularly hold outside directors' investor relations (IR) meetings for the sake of investors. The meeting was attended by three outside directors, including POSCO Chairman of the Board Kim Shin-bae; five board directors, including POSCO Senior Vice President and Head of Corporate Strategy and Planning Division Chon Jung-son; and six institutiona