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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.

Tariff gap with Japan further threatens Korea’s US car sales

Korean carmakers are now exposed to higher risks of losing price competitiveness in the United States as their Japanese counterparts begin gaining an edge with a reduced tariff rate of 15 percent there. Starting Tuesday, Japanese vehicles exported to the U.S. face the lowered tariff instead of the earlier rate of 27.5 percent, following the completion of their bilateral trade agreement. This is casting a gloomy outlook for Korea’s major carmakers as they are still subject to a 25 percent tariff in the U.S., even after Korea and the U.S. reached a broad deal to reduce it down to 15 percent. It remains unclear when the reduced tariff rate will take effect, as both countries are still fine-tuning the details of their agreement before it is signed. Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo, who arrived in Washington on Monday (local time) to meet his counterparts for the trade talks, hinted that Korea will not rush discussions for the sake of reaching a deal, saying the "devil's in the details." As for Japan's lowered auto tariff, he said, "We are making efforts to ensure the auto tariff will be reduced t

Sep 16, 2025By Lee Min-hyung
Tariff gap with Japan further threatens Korea’s US car sales

Nongshim to release 2nd batch of instant noodles featuring 'KPop Demon Hunters'

Nongshim, Korea's leading instant noodle maker, said Tuesday it will release a second batch of its popular Shin Ramyun product featuring characters from the global hit animated movie "KPop Demon Hunters" this week. The limited special product, part of a collaboration launched last month, comes in packs of six Shin Ramyun cup noodles. Each cup features a member of the film's virtual girl group Huntrix — Rumi, Mira and Zoey — on the packaging. Sales will begin at 10 a.m. Friday through the company's online shopping mall. Nongshim said the first batch of 1,000 units sold out in less than two minutes late last month. "We prepared more units than the first release to meet strong demand," a company official said. The company said the collaboration was facilitated by the movie's realistic depiction of Korean food, including cup noodles and snacks that closely resemble its products.

Sep 16, 2025By Yonhap
Nongshim to release 2nd batch of instant noodles featuring 'KPop Demon Hunters'

Gov't launches probe into purported attempt to sell SK Telecom client data

The science ministry said Tuesday it has launched an official probe into a purported attempt to sell personal data allegedly leaked from South Korea's top mobile carrier SK Telecom. The move came after a global hacking group, Scattered Lapsus$, posted on its Telegram channel that it would sell SK Telecom's client data for $10,000, adding that 42 South Koreans had already made contact. "After being aware that a global hacking group has seized SK Telecom's client data and is seeking to sell it, we requested the mobile carrier to submit related materials and plan to check the facts through on-site inspections," the Ministry of Science and ICT said. The group claimed the data includes customers' IDs, names, phone numbers, emails, addresses and birth dates. The group also threatened SK Telecom, saying it must engage in negotiations or all of the 27 million users' data would be released. The company reported in April that private data of its entire user base may have been leaked in a cyberattack on its network servers. The government also recently launched a probe against No. 2 mobile carrier KT

Sep 16, 2025By Yonhap
Gov't launches probe into purported attempt to sell SK Telecom client data

HD Hyundai clinches 2nd European supply deal for power circuit breaker

HD Hyundai Electric has clinched a new supply deal in Europe with its eco-friendly high-voltage circuit breaker, marking its second contract with a European company as it accelerates its push into the region. The electromechanics firm said Tuesday it has signed the deal with a Finnish engineering, procurement and construction company to ship 14 units of its high-voltage circuit breaker, the 145 kV SF6-Free. This is the Korean firm’s second supply deal for the circuit breaker following a deal with a Swedish company in May. The 145 kV SF6-Free is an eco-friendly product that uses no sulfur hexafluoride, better known as SF6, a gas with a global warming potential 23,500 times greater than carbon dioxide. It is the first product of its kind and was independently developed by HD Hyundai Electric. Global demand for high-voltage circuit breakers is rising due to increasing electricity consumption worldwide. Alongside power cables, distributors, transformers and smart grids, circuit breakers are essential for electricity distribution. According to Fortune Business Insights, the global circuit br

Sep 16, 2025By Ko Dong-hwan
HD Hyundai clinches 2nd European supply deal for power circuit breaker

SK Telecom launches ChatGPT promotion in collaboration with OpenAI

Korea's top mobile carrier SK Telecom said Tuesday it has joined hands with OpenAI to launch a promotional event for ChatGPT Plus subscribers. Under the promotion, SK Telecom will provide discount coupons to new ChatGPT Plus users, allowing them to use the service for two months free with a one-month subscription, marking the developer's first such collaboration with a local mobile carrier. SK Telecom has been maintaining close ties with OpenAI, co-hosting a hackathon in 2023 while jointly participating in the MIT GenAI Impact Consortium with six other businesses. The company said it will continue to pursue a two-track strategy of developing its own AI model while expanding cooperation with overseas partners. In August, a consortium led by SK Telecom was selected as one of five teams eligible to receive state support to develop homegrown AI foundation models as part of the government's goal of making the country a global leader in the field. "By bolstering the two-track strategy of seeking global ties and self-empowerment, we plan to expand a customer-oriented AI ecosystem," said Lee Jae-

Sep 16, 2025By Yonhap
SK Telecom launches ChatGPT promotion in collaboration with OpenAI

SK On opens all-solid-state battery pilot plant for commercialization by 2029

SK On completed construction of a pilot plant for all-solid-state batteries, reaching a major milestone for the firm's plan to commercialize them by 2029, the battery manufacturer said Tuesday. All-solid-state batteries are widely considered to be next-generation batteries due to their key upsides, such as lower risks of igniting and exploding. The company will produce prototypes of the batteries and validate their quality at the pilot plant in Daejeon. “This pilot plant will serve as a cornerstone for SK to leap forward as a strong and resilient company in addressing any changes in business environment,” SK On CEO Lee Seok-hee said. “We aim to remain at the forefront of commercializing all-solid-state batteries to accelerate electrification.” SK On plans to commercialize the batteries with an energy density of 800 watt-hours per liter, with a long-term goal of extending the figure to 1,000. The 4,600-square-meter plant uses SK On’s own warm isostatic press pre-technology to develop the batteries, marking the first application of this solution in Korea, according to the company.

Sep 16, 2025By Lee Min-hyung
SK On opens all-solid-state battery pilot plant for commercialization by 2029

Naver Webtoon, Disney to create comics platform

Webtoon Entertainment, the U.S. parent company of Naver Webtoon, will partner with the Walt Disney Company to create a new digital comics platform. The webtoon company announced Tuesday (local time) that it had signed a nonbinding term sheet with Disney to develop the new platform, which will house comics from Disney’s studios — Marvel, Star Wars, Disney, Pixar and 20th Century Studios. The platform will allow fans to access a library of 35,000 Disney comics, ranging from classics to latest releases, in one place for the first time. Until now, Marvel Unlimited was Disney’s only dedicated comics platform, and it only offered Marvel titles. Webtoon Entertainment will develop and operate the platform, which will provide comics in both vertical scrolling and traditional formats. “This new platform combines our product and technical expertise with Disney’s vast titles, offering fans around the world a new way to discover and enjoy Disney’s legendary characters and stories,” Webtoon Entertainment CEO Kim Jun-koo said. “It is truly an honor to partner with Disney, a company with

Sep 16, 2025By Lee Gyu-lee
Naver Webtoon, Disney to create comics platform

SK chairman takes legal action against YouTubers for spreading rumors about partner

SK Inc. Chairman Chey Tae-won has taken legal action against YouTubers for allegedly spreading malicious rumors about his live-in partner, prompting police investigations and civil lawsuits, sources said Tuesday. The Seoul Yongsan Police Station is investigating more than 10 YouTubers after Chey filed complaints against them for defamation last October, reportedly claiming they spread false and malicious information about himself and his partner, Kim Hee-young. Separately, Chey has reportedly sued them for damages at the Seoul Western District Court. Chey determined the actual identities of some of the YouTubers by filing legal proceedings against Google, the parent company of YouTube, through a U.S. court. The move comes after Chey took legal action against a YouTuber in 2021 for spreading false information about himself and his partner.

Sep 16, 2025By Yonhap
SK chairman takes legal action against YouTubers for spreading rumors about partner

Korean startups expand overseas remittance services for foreign residents

Startups in Korea are moving quickly to expand overseas remittance services targeting the country’s growing population of long-term foreign residents. According to Justice Ministry data, 2.65 million foreigners were living in Korea as of the end of last year, including 2.04 million long-term residents. Industry sources said Monday that SentBe and Hanpass are among the most recognized players in this market. Their services emphasize lower fees than banks and the convenience of transferring money anytime through mobile apps or web platforms. SentBe, founded in 2015 by former banker Choi Sung-wook, promotes its fees as being up to 90 percent cheaper than those of banks. The company offers transfers to more than 50 countries. Unlike banks, which adjust fees based on the transfer amount, startups apply a flat fee per transaction. At SentBe, the minimum fee is 2,500 won ($1.80). To prevent unlimited transfers, the company has set limits on both annual and per-transaction amounts. “Users can send up to $5,000 per transaction within an annual limit of $50,000," a company official said. The off

Sep 16, 2025By Hankookilbo
Korean startups expand overseas remittance services for foreign residents

SK hynix tops corporate tax payment in H1

Korea's major chipmaker SK hynix Inc. paid the highest amount of corporate tax among local businesses in the first half of 2025 on the back of its robust earnings, data showed Tuesday. SK hynix, which recently enjoyed strong performance driven by booming demand for artificial intelligence (AI) chips, paid 2.7 trillion won ($1.94 billion) in corporate tax during the period, according to its financial statement. The amount is more than three times higher than that of Kia Corp., which came in second at 908 billion won. Hyundai Motor Co. followed with 822.2 billion won, while SK Inc., the holding firm of SK Group, paid 600.6 billion won. In the second quarter, SK hynix saw its operating profit reach 9.21 trillion won, up 68.5 percent from a year ago, setting a new quarterly record. According to global market research firm Omdia, SK hynix also accounted for 39.5 percent of the global market for dynamic random-access memory (DRAM) in the second quarter, retaining the top spot after surpassing Samsung Electronics Co. in the previous quarter.

Sep 16, 2025By Yonhap
SK hynix tops corporate tax payment in H1
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