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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.

Korean trading cards rising assets for global collectors

Collectable trading cards are becoming increasingly profitable for Korean sellers as demand surges in the global market, with some cards selling for tens of thousands of dollars. According to global e-commerce platform eBay, Korean sellers of trading cards recorded double-digit year-on-year sales growth in the first quarter. Their overall sales on the platform ranked 10th by country in 2024 and spiked to sixth the following year. As of the first quarter, the figure rose to third. Korean sellers’ trading cards are largely categorized into intellectual property (IP) characters and sports. Their values are determined by their rarity and grade by third-party valuation. At the center of the Korean sellers’ market presence is Pokemon, a wildly popular franchise spanning games, anime, movies and trading cards introduced in 1996. Celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, the animation’s trading cards have recently seen explosive demand, topping an IP chart with the 10 highest sales among Korean sellers on eBay. Behind the Korean sellers’ popularity is a rising global demand for trading

Jun 20, 2026By Ko Dong-hwan
Korean trading cards rising assets for global collectors

Hope grows for Korean firms to join supply chains of Elon Musk empire

As Elon Musk's business empire continues to expand, expectations are rising for Korean firms to deepen their presence in supply chains spanning semiconductors, chipmaking equipment and telecommunications. According to industry officials, HPSP, a domestic semiconductor equipment maker, has recently received purchase orders for its High-Pressure Hydrogen Annealing (HPA) pilot equipment for Tesla's Terafab. HPA is a front-end process that uses highly compressed hydrogen gas to heat-treat semiconductor wafers, helping reduce leakage currents and improve power efficiency. The technology has been widely used in foundry manufacturing and is increasingly being adopted for advanced memory chips. HPSP is the leading player in the global HPA market. Terafab is a $119 billion semiconductor project in Texas aimed at establishing a semiconductor and artificial intelligence (AI)chip manufacturing ecosystem involving Tesla, SpaceX and Intel. The facility is expected to supply chips needed for computing infrastructure supporting SpaceX operations, Tesla's autonomous driving and robotics technologies and

Jun 19, 2026By Nam Hyun-woo
Hope grows for Korean firms to join supply chains of Elon Musk empire

Korean Air says Asiana integration costs could reach W1 tril., offset by 2028

Korean Air said Friday the cost of integrating Asiana Airlines could reach as much as 1 trillion won ($654.02 million), with synergies from the merger expected to offset the expense as early as the end of 2028. During an investor relations session in Seoul, the flag carrier said an analysis of its post-merger integration (PMI) strategy estimated integration costs at between 900 billion won and 1 trillion won, while annual synergy effects from the merger are projected to reach around 300 billion won. "We expect the synergy effects could exceed the results of the PMI analysis," Park Hee-don, a senior vice president at Korean Air, said. "If things go well, we believe the integration costs could be fully offset sometime between the end of 2028 and early 2029," he added. The airline plans to complete the launch of the integrated carrier by Dec. 17, with the goal of becoming a global top 10 airline operating 230 aircraft and generating 23 trillion won in annual revenue. Asked about the integration of the two airlines' mileage programs, Korean Air said it hopes the process can be finalized witho

Jun 19, 2026By Yonhap
Korean Air says Asiana integration costs could reach W1 tril., offset by 2028

OpenAI brings ChatGPT ads to Korea, keeps paid plans ad-free

OpenAI said Friday it has expanded its ChatGPT advertising pilot program to Korea, making it the sixth market to feature ads after the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Ads will appear only for adult users on ChatGPT's free and Go tiers. Users on paid plans — Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Edu — will not see advertisements. OpenAI said it is applying three core principles to the rollout: keeping ChatGPT's responses independent from advertiser influence, protecting user conversation data and personal information from advertisers and giving users control over their ad experience. Ads will be clearly labeled as "sponsored content" and kept visually separate from ChatGPT's generated responses. Advertisers will have access only to aggregated performance metrics such as impressions and clicks, and will not be able to view individual users' conversation history or personal data. Users can hide ads, submit feedback and manage ad personalization settings directly within the app. Ads will not be shown to accounts identified or predicted to belong to minors,

Jun 19, 2026By Jhoo Dong-chan
OpenAI brings ChatGPT ads to Korea, keeps paid plans ad-free

Cosmax Neo wins award for waste-reducing packaging design

Cosmax Neo, a functional cosmetics packaging subsidiary of the Cosmax Group, said Thursday it won a prize at the Korea Star Awards 2026, an annual national packaging competition organized by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources. The company received the Korea Packaging Technologist Society President's Award for its Smudging Drop Bottle, a container that integrates dispensing and skin application functions into a single structure. When the cap is opened, a built-in applicator automatically rises. Pressing the curved top section releases a measured amount of product through an air-push mechanism, allowing users to apply contents directly to skin without touching the formula by hand. The curved dome design minimizes residue, addressing a common problem with conventional air-push containers that tend to leave excess product behind. The applicator material can be customized to client specifications, and the bottle is compatible with a range of product types including serums, essences and base makeup. The announcement also highlighted the continued international success of the Motion D

Jun 19, 2026By Jhoo Dong-chan
Cosmax Neo wins award for waste-reducing packaging design

Indonesian candy Kopiko steals scenes in K-dramas

Indonesian candy brand Kopiko is stealing scenes in Korean TV and online streaming series. For years, viewers have watched characters in shows popping the sweet into their mouths, with the label prominently displayed. It is not a coincidence: Macrocom, a Seoul-based importer, has paid for the candy's product placement in more than a dozen shows since 2021. It started with "Vincenzo" on tvN, continuing with "Castaway Diva" on the same network in 2023, "Connection" on SBS in 2024, and most recently, "Brave New World," which is currently airing on SBS and Netflix. Macrocom and the brand’s manufacturer PT Mayora Indah Tbk, a major consumer goods company in Indonesia, began targeting the Korean dramas as a way to promote Kopiko. Their strategy for TV producers to show characters eating them to relieve stress and remark on its deliciousness. Over the past four years of TV exposure, Kopiko has built up its brand recognition here, leading to a boost in sales. GS25, a major convenience store franchise brand, sold more than 200,000 packages in a month after it went on shelves in 2024 for 1,000

Jun 19, 2026By Ko Dong-hwan
Indonesian candy Kopiko steals scenes in K-dramas

Public power generation firms' proposed merger sparks debate

A third-party analysis proposing that the government merge Korea's five state-run power generation companies to streamline structural inefficiency is prompting debates, with civic groups arguing Friday that the merger would still fail to incentivize generators to minimize costs and ultimately expand the use of renewable energy. A day earlier, the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment revealed a study report conducted by Samil PwC on optimal scenarios that could improve the efficiency of five state-run power companies — Korea South-East Power, Korea Midland Power, Korea Western Power, Korea Southern Power and Korea East-West Power. The companies were originally a singular subsidiary under the country’s exclusive state-run power distributor Korea Electric Power Corp. They were all separated in 2001 as individual entities under the government’s power industry restructuring plan. The report said merging them back is “structurally most appropriate.” It noted that while the government is seeking to introduce renewable energy-based power facilities with an overall capacity of 1

Jun 19, 2026By Ko Dong-hwan
Public power generation firms' proposed merger sparks debate

AI race pushes LG CNS and Doosan into broad technology alliance

As companies scramble to secure an edge in artificial intelligence and automation, LG CNS and Doosan Corp. have agreed to join forces in a wide-ranging partnership that stretches from agentic AI and robotics to data centers and cloud computing. The companies signed a memorandum of understanding Thursday at LG Sciencepark in Seoul to strengthen their competitiveness in emerging technology businesses, including AI transformation, robot transformation, data centers and cloud services. The agreement brings together LG CNS’ digital transformation capabilities and Doosan Corp.’s industrial technology expertise at a time when businesses are investing heavily in AI-driven productivity and next-generation infrastructure. Under the deal, the companies said they will establish a joint business cooperation body within one month and develop detailed plans for collaborative projects. One of the central pillars of the partnership is AI transformation. LG CNS said it will leverage its enterprise agentic AI platform, AgenticWorks, to help strengthen Doosan Corp.’s agentic AI capabilities and develop

Jun 19, 2026By Lee Kyung-min
AI race pushes LG CNS and Doosan into broad technology alliance

BioTNS selected as host of gov't's ultra-precision digital PCR project

BioTNS, a Korean molecular diagnostics company, was selected as the host organization to spearhead a 30 billion won ($19.53 million) government program to set up technical standards for ultra-precision digital Polymerase Chain Reaction (dPCR) diagnostics, according to the company, Friday. With 15 institutions participating, the program is a seven-year initiative to secure global leadership in next-generation molecular diagnostics by establishing technical standards for dPCR. Through the program, the government seeks to overcome the core limitations of legacy molecular testing methods and build a critical infrastructure for ultra-precision medicine based on domestic technologies. Along with BioTNS, the consortium includes six companies, two state-backed research institutes and seven university hospitals. Participating companies include Gencurix, Hanil Scientific, JNP Medi and Omicsyn, while GC Labs will support clinical validation and commercialization. The National NanoFab Center and the Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology will provide technology support. Seven hosp

Jun 19, 2026By Nam Hyun-woo
BioTNS selected as host of gov't's ultra-precision digital PCR project

Hyundai Rotem secures $487.3 mil. railway maintenance project in Morocco

Hyundai Rotem said Friday it has secured a railway maintenance contract worth 748.2 billion won ($487.3 million) in Morocco, building on a major train supply deal previously signed with the North African country. The defense and railway equipment unit of Hyundai Motor Group signed the agreement with Morocco's national railway operator, ONCF, in the capital city of Rabat on Thursday (local time). The project covers the maintenance of all 440 train cars to be supplied by Hyundai Rotem and will be carried out over a 20-year period through a joint venture established by the company and ONCF. The deal follows Hyundai Rotem's 2.23 trillion-won contract secured in February last year to supply double-decker electric trains to Morocco. The trains are expected to operate on routes connecting major cities centered around Casablanca as the country prepares to co-host the 2030 FIFA World Cup.

Jun 19, 2026By Yonhap
Hyundai Rotem secures $487.3 mil. railway maintenance project in Morocco
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