my timesThe Korea Times
yeonskwak

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.

Go to Email

Read more

Companies

SUVs, vans gaining more popularity

Hyundai Motor's Palisade / Korea Times fileImproved mileage, sleek design, more interior space behind growing popularity of crossover vehiclesBy Kwak Yeon-sooKwon Hyuk-yoon, a 55-year-old Seoul resident, recently traded his SsangYong Chairman sedan for a Nissan Qashqai crossover SUV after moving his workplace to Jeonju three years ago.“SUVs have more room and a better driving position compared to passenger sedans. I decided to buy a crossover SUV, expecting it would be better for long highway commutes,” Kwon said. “And since I enjoy hiking, I preferred a sportier model.”He added that SUV fuel efficiency has improved over time, mitigating some of its downsides.Like Kwon, more and more motorists are favoring SUVs or CDV (Car Derived Vans) vehicles.Due to the changing consumer tastes, the popularity of sedans has dropped to an all-time low, Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association (KAMA) data showed Sunday. According to the data, 44,171 sedans were sold in February, accounting for 50.8 percent of 86,932 overall passenger sedans sold domestically.As the percenta

Mar 24, 2019By Kwak Yeon-soo
SUVs, vans gaining more popularity
Tech & Science

ICT minister nominee accused of wasting research money

By Kwak Yeon-sooCho Dong-ho, ICT minister nominee / Korea Times fileCho Dong-ho, the nominee to head the Ministry of Science and ICT, is in the hot seat over his online electric vehicle (OLEV) project that performed poorly after receiving about 78.5 billion won ($ 69 million) funding from the government.Rep. Yoon Sang-jik of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party has called for the withdrawal of Cho's appointment as ICT minister, citing the OLEV project as a failure.Cho, a professor from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) and director of the OLEV project, is known to have played a leading role in developing wireless recharge technology for electric vehicles.According to the OLEV project group, the OLEV picks up power from underground power lines through the non-contact magnetic charging method, while either moving or standing.About 200 patents have been granted on OLEV because it was considered an eco-friendly and economic automotive system.Based on his research in the fields of wireless recharge technology and 5G telecommunication technology, Cho was tap

Mar 24, 2019By Kwak Yeon-soo
ICT minister nominee accused of wasting research money
Companies

POSCO E&C expands loan support for partners

By Kwak Yeon-sooPOSCO E&C logo Korea Times filePOSCO Engineering & Construction (E&C) has joined hands with financial institutions to expand loan support for its partners for the first time in the industry, according to the company, Thursday.POSCO E&C launched a program jointly with Seoul Guarantee Insurance (SGI) and Shinhan Bank to help partners take out loans more easily. Under the program, companies that are in a contract relationship with POSCO E&C can receive guarantees and apply for loans without particular collateral.Partner firms are required to apply for loans within 60 days from the date of contract with POSCO E&C. Then, they can be issued a guarantee from SGI after assessment and receive a loan from Shinhan Bank.In September last year, POSCO E&C signed a business agreement with Korea Commission for Corporate Partnership, SGI and Shinhan Bank to design a program for growing together with partners. Partner firms can benefit from lower interest rates compared with other loan options in the market.The borrowing limit is below 40 percent of its cont

Mar 21, 2019By Kwak Yeon-soo
POSCO E&C expands loan support for partners
Companies

Orion enters India's snack foods market

Orion Vice Chairman Huh In-cheol, left, shakes hands with Mann Ventures Founder Sukhbir Singh Mann, Wednesday, at a groundbreaking ceremony for a manufacturing plant which Orion will establish by the first half of 2022 in Rajasthan, India. / Courtesy of OrionBy Kwak Yeon-sooOrion has buckled down to make inroads into India's fast growing snack foods market in cooperation with local partner Mann Ventures, aiming to boost its global presence, the firm said Thursday.The Korean confectionery company held a groundbreaking ceremony the previous day to build a manufacturing plant on land owned by Mann Ventures in Rajasthan, India.Founded in 1989, Mann Ventures is India's leading processed food manufacturer that offers manufacturing and packing services to multinational companies.Orion said it will oversee sales, marketing and distribution in India, while its local partner will focus on production management.This is its first large-scale production facility operated in collaboration with an Indian food manufacturer.The company said it plans to complete construction of the factory by the firs

Mar 21, 2019By Kwak Yeon-soo
Orion enters India's snack foods market
Companies

SeAH Woon Hyung Lee Foundation holds 5th opera

Singers perform during the "Opera Spreading Beauty to the World" concert at the Seoul Arts Center in southern Seoul, Wednesday. The SeAH Woon Hyung Lee Foundation for Culture and the Arts held its fifth concert in memory of Lee Woon-hyung, the late SeAH Group chairman who was a classical opera enthusiast. / Courtesy of SeAH Woon Hyung Lee FoundationBy Kwak Yeon-sooThe SeAH Woon Hyung Lee Foundation for Culture and the Arts held its fifth concert Wednesday to commemorate Lee Woon-hyung, the late SeAH Group chairman and a famed supporter of classical opera. The concert titled “Opera Spreading Beauty to the World” was held at 8 p.m. at the Seoul Arts Center. The two-hour performance, directed by Chung Chi-yong, featured a dozen opera singers and musicians as well as the Korea Symphony Orchestra. Among others, world-renowned opera singers such as soprano Rachele Gilmore and baritone Vladimir Stoyanov performed Giuseppe Verdi's opera “Rigoletto.” Sarah Meyers of the Metropolitan Opera directed the stage.Seasoned singers, including tenors Chung Ho-yoon, Shin Hyun-si

Mar 20, 2019By Kwak Yeon-soo
SeAH Woon Hyung Lee Foundation holds 5th opera
Companies

Hyundai Mobis joins hands with Yandex for autonomous driving

Hyundai Mobis CEO Park Chung-kook, left, and Yandex CEO Arkady Volozh pose for a photograph after signing an MOU at Hyundai Mobis Tech Center in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, Wednesday. Courtesy of Hyundai MobisKwak Yeon-sooHyundai Mobis signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Yandex to boost cooperation in developing an autonomous driving platform, the auto parts maker said Wednesday.Yandex, Russia's biggest IT company that provides mobility service, builds intelligent products and services powered by machine learning. According to the Hyundai Motor Group unit, it is their first time signing an MOU with a global IT company. Teaming up with Yandex will serve as a gateway to advancing into the future mobility market and securing future vehicle technologies, the company said. The two plan to cooperate in developing artificial intelligence technologies for voice and video recognition as well as infotainment technologies. At the signing ceremony held at Hyundai Mobis Tech Center in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, the two companies expressed hope that their cooperation will accelerate dev

Mar 20, 2019By Kwak Yeon-soo
Hyundai Mobis joins hands with Yandex for autonomous driving
Companies

KORAIL to host heads of global railway operators April 8-12

By Kwak Yeon-sooKorea Railroad Corp. logo / Korea Times fileKorea Railroad Corp. (KORAIL) will host the 34th meeting of the Organization for Cooperation between Railways (OSJD) General Directors from April 8 to 12 at Lotte Hotel Seoul, the state-run railway operator said Monday. Established in 1956, the OSJD is an international organization built around 29 member countries in the European and Asian region, including Poland, Russia, China, Vietnam and the two Koreas. The combined length of OSJD members' railways surpasses 280,000 kilometers and more than 2 million freight trains transport goods on those tracks. The organization makes decisions upon and establishes international transport standards with regard to the passengers and freight transportation of international railways such as the Trans-Siberian Railroad and Trans-China Railway.Under the slogan “Toward the Future of Peace and Prosperity,” the OSJD's leaders will share 2018's accomplishments and discuss way to improve use and operation of railways in Eurasia and seek cooperation opportunities to invest in infrastr

Mar 19, 2019By Kwak Yeon-soo
KORAIL to host heads of global railway operators April 8-12
Companies

Try Real Brownie

Homeplus bakery Mon Boulanger launched the chocolate fudge “Real Brownie” on Monday. The bakery chain said it will start selling Real Brownies at 4,900 won ($4). To help preserve the flavor and promote an environment-friendly brand image, real brownies will be sold in rectangular disposable pulp boxes. / Courtesy of Homeplus

Mar 18, 2019By Kwak Yeon-soo
Try Real Brownie
Companies

Hyundai gets over 10,000 pre-orders for new Sonata

Hyundai Motor's new Sonata / Courtesy of Hyundai MotorBy Kwak Yeon-sooHyundai Motor has received 10,203 pre-orders for the new Sonata just a week before its official launch on March 21, fast gaining popularity among young consumers according to the company, Sunday.The new Sonata is the eighth generation of the company's mid-sized sedan, undergoing its first major change after its predecessor's launch in March 2014.The number of pre-orders is considerable given that Korea's largest carmaker sold a monthly average of 5,487 LF Sonatas last year in Korea.About 48.9 percent of those that pre-ordered the new Sonata were individual consumers, up 10.9 percent point from 38 percent of those who bought LF Sonata during the same period five years ago.In addition, 14 percent of them were buyers in their 20s, which is an 8.7 percentage point increase from those who bought the previous model.“The new Sonata's appeal is a combination of a reasonable price, exceptional performance and sensuous design,” a Hyundai Motor official said.The new model is equipped with a third-generation platfo

Mar 17, 2019By Kwak Yeon-soo
Hyundai gets over 10,000 pre-orders for new Sonata
Trends

INTERVIEW Japan's past hangs over granddaughter of fighter

Kim Alla, granddaughter of the late independence fighter Hong Beom-do, poses with a photograph of her grandfather, who led the Korea Independence Army to oppose Japanese forces, at her house in Spassk-Dalny, Russia, Feb. 28. Korea Times photo by Kwak Yeon-sooThis is the sixth in a series of articles highlighting overseas independence fighters on the occasion of the centennial of the March 1 Independence Movement ― ED.By Kwak Yeon-sooSPASSK-DALNY, Russia ― “All his life, Hong Beom-do wanted nothing but liberation from Japan's colonial rule,” Kim Alla, 77, the only surviving granddaughter of the freedom fighter, said during an interview with The Korea Times at her home in a small town in Russia.Hong, who led resistance fighters against the Japanese army, is one of Korea's most celebrated independence activists who fought for liberation during the 1910-45 Japanese occupation.He was born in 1868 in Pyongyang, in what is now North Korea, and was a hunter before organizing a resistance force named the Righteous Army.Hong and his force moved to Gando, also known as Jiandao, Chin

Mar 17, 2019By Kwak Yeon-soo
[INTERVIEW] Japan's past hangs over granddaughter of fighter
previous page
175176177178179
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.