While industry sectors across the board in Korea are struggling to handle the economic impact of COVID-19, the nation’s 5.48 million self-employed and small business owners are among those suffering most. Oh Myong-seok, who has been running a 24-hour diner in Yongsan, Seoul, for seven years, is experiencing its worst-ever slump, as the store has seen its daily customer figures cut in half. “For night times from 9 p.m. to 9 a.m., revenue has been halved, for day times it has been

Industry March 18, 2020

Hanjin KAL, holding company of South Korea’s flagship carrier Korean Air, complained to the Financial Supervisory Service on Tuesday, calling for a probe into “violations” of the Capital Market Act, amid the succession battle between siblings at the conglomerate. The company said that the alliance involving Hanjin Group heiress Cho Hyun-ah, Korea Corporate Government Improvement and Bando Engineering and Construction, have falsely posted equity statements that breach the Fina

Mobility March 17, 2020

JTI Korea said Monday it is recruiting talented youth to participate in the global internship program “Make It Bright” at its global headquarters in Geneva. The company’s Make It Bright internship program is currently being run in 33 countries. Selected trainees can choose one of the given topics to participate in the local and global presentation competition, from which they can receive professional mentoring and hands-on experience, the company said. After several stage

Industry March 16, 2020

Starbucks Korea said Monday it will expand its free coffee delivery it started in mid-February for workers at the disease control center hotline 1339 to the end of this month. According to the coffee chain, it has been providing 500 cups of coffee every day since Feb. 17 to three 1339 call centers, two operated by the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Yeongdeungpo, Seoul and Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, and one operated in cooperation by National Health Insurance Service. O

Consumer March 16, 2020

Doosan Solus said Monday that its subsidiary in Hungary had won a supply contract to provide 100 billion won ($82 million) worth of battery foil, used in electric cars, to a global battery manufacturer. According to the company, Doosan Corporation Europe clinched the four-year deal from 2021 to 2024. It is the second such deal for the overseas branch, the first having been signed around the end of last year. The South Korean copper manufacturer said the two contracts account for about 80 per

Industry March 16, 2020

More individual brands have been turning to a direct-to-consumer strategy in South Korea, investing in their own online retail outlets and mobile applications to reduce dependence on giant middlemen, or e-commerce platforms. As the preference for online shopping continues to grow -- particularly amid the coronavirus-enforced self-isolation recently -- competition among online retailers has been intensifying to the point that the line separating different industries is slowly blurring.　 Indust

Consumer March 15, 2020

South Korean air carriers that have been hit hard by many flight cancellations over coronavirus face a double whammy with rising parking airport fees, according to industry sources Saturday. Airports charge companies for using their facilities as parking spaces. At Incheon International Airport, the parking fee is free for three hours upon arrival, with different amounts depending on the aircraft size, for every 30 minutes. According to flagship carrier Korean Air, it has been charged almost

Mobility March 14, 2020

The Shincheonji Church of Jesus -- epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in Daegu City -- announced Saturday that it has replaced its ceremony to mark the 36th anniversary of foundation with an online worshipping service. A considerable number of its followers -- under fire from mainstream Christian churches as a cult -- were linked to the infection spread in Daegu as they had held assemblies and meetings. As of Saturday, 62 percent of the confirmed cases turn out to be related to Sh

Social Affairs March 14, 2020

Once a mecca for techies in South Korea in the 1970s, Sewoon Electronics Plaza, has now been transformed into a springboard for young entrepreneurs. Sewoon Sangga, located in Jongno-gu in central Seoul, was built as Korea’s first multi-use residential and commercial complex in 1968, and was home to the country’s very first electronics marketplace -- Sewoon Electronics Plaza. During its heyday, the venue attracted some of the best technicians in the country, hosting some of the

Travel March 13, 2020

As retail businesses are seeing a boost in their sales online amid the COVID-19 outbreak, high-end department stores and outlets have also hopped on the bandwagon, according to the industry on Wednesday. WeMakePrice, a South Korean e-commerce platform operator, said the combined sales of department stores and outlets it hosts spiked in the period from Feb. 1 to 28 by 316 percent from a year earlier. While department stores and premium outlets are widely seen to be more dependent on physical

Consumer March 11, 2020

Starbucks Korea said Monday it will temporarily close 39 stores among the 74 in Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province region, hit the hardest by the coronavirus outbreak. According to the coffee chain, 39 stores will be closed from Monday to March 22 to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Nine will extend the closures since-February. Only 35 drive-thru stores in the region will operate normally and the company will conduct disinfection regularly, it added. The company plans to introduce social di

Consumer March 9, 2020

Renault Samsung Motors said it started delivering its new premium sport utility vehicle unit XM3 on Monday, with 8,542 preorders -- which opened on Feb. 21. The company is of the view that its TCe 260, a high-performance1.3-liter gasoline turbo engine co-developed by Renault Group and Daimler Automotive Group, has captivated customers, taking up 84 percent of the preorders so far. The carmaker has introduced two versions for the new SUV line -- TCe 260, and a 1.6-liter gasoline engine, GTe.

Mobility March 9, 2020

Amid the prolonged outbreak of the COVID-19, South Korean businesses are extending telecommuting and flexible work hours for employees in various forms to prevent further spread. While the companies are putting such measures temporarily in support of the so-called “social distancing” campaign promoted by the government to keep people from gathering in large crowds, some companies are taking it as an opportunity to seriously consider plans to build virtual and smart work systems.

Industry March 8, 2020

For Hwangbo Kyung-sun, a 29 year-old office worker in Seoul, it has become a routine to take omega-3 supplements or krill oil pills along with bringing a face mask and hand sanitizer to protect herself against the fast-spreading COVID-19. “It is basically the most I can do to not get infected from the coronavirus,” Hwangbo told The Korea Herald. Like Hwangbo, more people in South Korea are buying health functional foods, also known as nutraceuticals, which are not pharmaceu

Industry March 5, 2020

Even as the new coronavirus outbreak is dampening consumer sentiment, imported car sales bucked the trend in South Korea rising 5.3 percent in February on-year, latest data showed Wednesday. According to Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association, the number of newly registered imported cars in the country recorded 16,725 units in February. For the first two months of this year, sales increased by 0.8 percent from the same period in 2019 -- from 34,083 units to 34,365 units.

Mobility March 4, 2020