Companies
Lobsters on sale
Models display lobsters from Canada at an E-mart outlet in Seoul, Wednesday. The discount store chain said it will offer lobsters at 9,900 won ($8.37) each. Yonhap
Jun 12, 2019
Kwak Yeon-soo
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.
Read more
Companies
Renault Samsung workers end week-long strike
Renault Samsung's plant in Busan / YonhapBy Kwak Yeon-sooRenault Samsung Motors' union has called off a week-long strike and decided to return to work, according to company officials Wednesday. The automaker resumed wage negotiations with its union, they said.The union workers announced they would halt their walkout hours after the company imposed a partial lockout at the plant. The firm had threatened to sue striking workers for financial damage unless they end the strike and return to work.The change in the union's attitude came one day after the automaker announced a partial lockout at its plant in Busan to more efficiently manage employees who are not taking part in the strike.On Tuesday, the automaker gave notice to its employees, saying it would impose a partial lockout due to sinking sales and production losses as a result of the dispute with the union.The company was to suspend night shifts for an unspecified period as the utilization rate at its Busan plant fell below 25 percent of the normal level following the union's all-out strike.Union workers had been holding all-out s
Jun 12, 2019
Companies
SK Innovation files countersuit against LG Chem
LG Chem CEO Shin Hak-cheol, left, and SK Innovation CEO Kim Jun / Korea Times fileBy Kwak Yeon-sooSK Innovation has filed a damage suit against LG Chem to defend itself from the latter's claim that it infringed upon trade secrets, the company said Monday.The nation's leading EV battery manufacturer said it filed a pair of lawsuits with the International Trade Commission (ITC) and a U.S. court in Delaware for defamation, and the latest move is aimed at securing its customers and market. The suit claims damages of 1 billion won ($846,680).“The situation has become intolerable and we can no longer stand the rival company making groundless accusations,” an SK Innovation official said. “We will take all possible measures to normalize our business and improve our reputation,” the official said.The company said this is not the first time LG Chem has initiated frivolous lawsuits, demanding its rival company to stop condemning normal and legitimate business activities in the battery business and make efforts to benefit both companies and the nation.Regarding the counte
Jun 10, 2019
Companies
Olive Young opens global online mall
Olive Young's global online mall website / Courtesy of CJ OliveNetworksBy Kwak Yeon-sooOlive Young, run by retail conglomerate CJ Group, opened a global online mall as part of its efforts to increase online sales worldwide, the company said Monday.This is the first time a Korean beauty chain has launched an online mall for multinational consumers, rather than targeting a specific country or region.The online shopping platform features a comprehensive range of beauty products, ranging from skincare to fragrance brands. It provides direct-to-consumer services in more than 150 countries and plans to utilize the online mall strategically by conducting market research for each country, according to the company. Olive Young's move comes in line with the growing demand for and influence of K-beauty products in the global market. Olive Young aims to accelerate globalization by providing customer support in various languages, including English, Chinese, Japanese and Spanish.“The global online mall is a platform for Olive Young to expand into foreign markets,” an Olive Young offici
Jun 10, 2019
Companies
CJ to build cultural arena north of Seoul
CJ LiveCity's arena to be built in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province / Courtesy of CJ LiveCityBy Kwak Yeon-sooCJ LiveCity will join hands with the world's leading sports and entertainment company Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG) to build a cultural arena in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, to host concerts and other live events, the company said Monday.The cultural arena will be designed to become a landmark venue for K-pop concerts, using advanced technologies that ensure high-quality sound for live performances. The 20,000-seat arena will also feature a K-pop themed entertainment park, according to the company.CJ LiveCity said the arena will combine CJ's expertise in hands-on studio-produced cultural content, and a hallyu-themed waterfront park with AEG's extensive venue management.“The partnership with AEG is hugely positive for our business and pivotal to the success of this arena construction project,” said Kim Cheon-soo, CEO of CJ LiveCity. “The arena will not only house concerts of K-pop stars but world-class artists.” Adam Wilkes, CEO of AEG Asia, also expressed e
Jun 10, 2019
Companies
Turning coffee waste into bio-fuel
The Tilted-Slide Fast Pyrolyzer developed by KIMM / Courtesy of KIMM By Kwak Yeon-sooA Korean scientist has developed a new technology to produce bio-crude oil from used coffee grounds that can be put to commercial use in the near future, Korea Institute of Machinery & Materials (KIMM) said Wednesday.The new technology will prove to be renewable and less expensive, according to KIMM. The “Tilted-Slide Fast Pyrolyzer,” developed by KIMM researcher Choi Yeon-seok, produces bio-crude oil from used coffee grounds. The reactor employs the method of rapidly heating coffee grounds in the absence of air and evaporating them like water vapor. It also uses a gravity-pulled process at the top of the reactor, vaporizing it with sand heated to 500 degrees. When the vapor is collected and frozen, it becomes a type of bio-crude oil. Meanwhile, the charcoal dust generated as a byproduct during the process can be reused as a heat source.The heating value of bio-crude oil generated f
Jun 7, 2019
Companies
Jeju Samdasoo losing clout in bottled water market
By Kwak Yeon-sooJeju Province Development Corporation CEO Oh Kyong-sooJeju Samdasoo, the most popular bottled water brand, has been losing its market share to other brands as Lotte, Nongshim and other producers aggressively going after its customers, according to industry officials Friday.E-mart and other retailers have launched their own bottled water brands, which are substantially cheaper than Jeju Samdasoo, successfully appealing to price-sensitive consumers.Produced by Jeju Province Development and sold under a consignment contract with Kwangdong Pharmaceutical, Jeju Samdasoo has maintained the country's No.1 bottled-water brand since its launch in 1998. But its market share has been declining since 2015. It held 45.1 percent of market share in 2015, but its market share was down to 34.8 percent of the market by the end of 2018 due to supply and delivery problems stemming from a deadly accident that occurred at a manufacturing plant in October 2018. Production of Jeju Samdasoo has been halted for a month after a worker was killed after getting caught in a machine at the plant.Al
Jun 7, 2019
Companies
Renault Samsung workers rise against union leaders
An assembly line of Renault Samsung's Busan plant / Korea Times fileBy Kwak Yeon-sooA “labor-labor” conflict is flaring up at Renault Samsung Motors as unionized workers are divided over staging a full-scale walkout after wage negotiations with management collapsed Wednesday.Although union leaders called for an all-out strike after failing to iron out the differences with management, more than half of the workers refused to follow the order. Instead, they returned to work to normalize the operations of the company's main plant in Busan. This is the first time in Korea's labor movement history that unionized workers have refused to follow orders from the leadership and returned to work.The division over leaders' brinkmanship tactics is complicating the union's stance to collectively bargain over wages and benefits, according to the company. “The strike participation rate has been on steady decline, and the union members aren't as supportive of their executives as before,” a company official said. “Because the majority of the union members have decided not
Jun 6, 2019
Companies
Hanwha Group helps combat river pollution in Vietnam
Hanwha Communications Committee President Choi Sun-mok, center, and student volunteers hold up a placard that reads “Clean up Vietnam-Mekong,” in Vinh Long Province in southern Vietnam, Wednesday. / Courtesy of Hanwha GroupBy Kwak Yeon-sooHanwha Group reaffirmed the company's commitment to spread awareness on environmental issues and help local communities in Vietnam, by donating two solar-powered boats to tackle river pollution, the company said Thursday. To mark World Environment Day on June 5, Hanwha Group launched a “Clean up Vietnam-Mekong” campaign in Vinh Long Province in Vietnam in collaboration with the Vietnam Environment Administration and the Global Green Growth Institute. Aside from encouraging public engagement in tackling water pollution, the company donated two solar-powered boats with the aim to combat pollutants floating on the Mekong River. Powered by Hanwha Q Cells' Q.Peak solar modules, the donated boats will be used to collect waste on the Mekong without emitting any greenhouse gases or other pollutants, according to the firm. The boats a
Jun 6, 2019