April 24, 2024

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EDITOR'S PICKS

• Tech 
  

  Samsung starts production of 290-layer V-NAND chips

  Samsung Electronics, the world’s largest memory chip maker, said Tuesday it kicked off the mass production of its one-terabit triple-level cell vertical NAND, or V-NAND, which is about 50 percent denser and 10 percent more energy efficient than its predecessor that launched in 2022. “We are excited to deliver the industry’s first 9th-gen V-NAND which will take future applications leaps forward. To address the evolving needs for NAND flash solutions, Samsung has pushed the boun

• Companies 
  

  SK CEOs vow to bolster corporate value-up drive

  The chief executive officers of SK Group affiliates have agreed to ramp up efforts to bolster the conglomerate’s corporate value by swiftly carrying out rebalancing work to inspect and optimize businesses amid prolonged global management uncertainty. SK Group said Tuesday the latest decision came as top management agreed to bolster the corporate value-up drive at the April SK Supex Pursuit Council meeting held under the chairmanship of Chey Jae-won earlier in the day. Established in 201

• Tech 
  

  [Exclusive] Korean military set to ban iPhones over 'security' concerns

  South Korea’s military is considering a comprehensive ban on iPhones in military buildings due to increasing concerns about possible leaks of sensitive information through voice recordings, according to multiple military sources on Tuesday. The sources, a group of ranking officers who wished to speak on condition of anonymity, said that the Air Force headquarters released an internal announcement on the military's intranet server on April 11, instructing a complete prohibition on any dev

• Markets 
  

  Aging population to drive down Korea's housing prices from 2040: experts

  South Korea's housing prices are expected to see a long-term decline starting in 2040, hit by the nation’s falling birth rate and quickly aging society, according to experts who joined a Seoul seminar hosted by construction project management firm Hanmi Global on Tuesday. "In 2025, South Korea will become a superaging society with an over-65 population surpassing 10 million, which will account for more than 20 percent of the country's total population. Due to the aging population an

• Tech 
  

  LG CNS wins Google Cloud partner awards for second year

  South Korean IT solutions provider LG CNS said Tuesday it has been named as the services partner of the year for the second consecutive year at the 2024 Google Cloud Partner Awards. The annual awards recognize the standout performance of both global and regional companies across 14 categories, including services, sales, technology and industry solutions. The service partner award is given to a company that provides differentiated services and supports the success of the customer's business th

• Companies 
  

  CJ's processed rice sales soar in North America

  With the rising number of Korean restaurants abroad and the global appeal of Korean food, CJ CheilJedang's processed rice product is experiencing a surge in popularity across North America. CJ CheilJedang announced on Tuesday that sales of Bibigo Cooked Sticky White Rice amounted to 160 billion won ($116 million) last year in North America, marking a 21 percent increase from the previous year, and doubling the figures for 2021. Processed rice stands as one of CJ CheilJedang's seven key global

• Markets 
  

  [Herald Interview] Bridging Korea, Philippines for better future

  Building bilateral ties between Korea and the Philippines could be a means to boosting the livelihoods of the people of each country for Luis Chavit Singson, chairman of the Philippines’ LCS Group of Companies, and boxing legend Manny Pacquiao. Singson and Pacquiao, longtime friends and investment partners, visited Seoul this week in a search for new business opportunities, along with Secretary of Agrarian Reform Conrado Estrella. Over the years, the two have been highly interested in co

• Markets 
  

  KITA partners with German VC fund to bolster auto firms in Gwangju

  The Korea International Trade Association is ramping up its efforts to support the overseas expansion of local mobility companies in the Gwangju area. On Tuesday, the state-run trade agency's regional headquarters for Gwangju and South Jeolla Province announced that it had signed a memorandum of understanding with MobilityFund, a German venture capital fund, and the Gwangju Green Car Promotion Agency to help boost the global competitiveness of local future and eco-friendly automobile firms. M

• Tech 
  

  Samsung SDI showcases latest battery tech at EVS37

  Samsung SDI is exhibiting its next-generation "super-gap" battery technologies, including all-solid-state batteries and ultra-fast charging solutions, at the 37th Electric Vehicle Symposium & Exposition in Seoul from Tuesday, where it plans to show its ongoing progress in achieving future commercial availability. The event, known colloquially as the "World EV Olympics," has been a key international platform for electric mobility since its inception in 1969. This year ma

• Markets 
  

  K-water, Kyrgyzstan forge renewable energy, climate ties

  Korea Water Resources Corp. is intensifying its international outreach to jointly tackle the climate crisis and bolster the export of water management technologies. In line with this initiative, the state-run water management agency announced on Tuesday that it has entered into multiple agreements with Kyrgyzstan to foster cooperation in the water sector and climate crisis response. Kyrgyzstan, a pivotal partner country for Korea, has previously concentrated its efforts in the environmental a

• Tech 
  

  Samsung, SK hynix investors dump shares on Nvidia crash

  Investors of the two Korean chip makers – Samsung Electronics and SK hynix -- dumped their shares Monday after Nvidia, the US chip giant, lost almost 10 percent Friday -- its worst day since March 2020. Market heavyweight Samsung Electronics and its chip rival SK hynix opened weaker in the day compared to Friday’s closing. Samsung and SK hynix fell 1.93 percent and 0.98 percent, respectively, to end trading at 76,100 won ($55.14) and 171,600 won on the country’s benchmark Kos

• Companies 
  

  Hyundai Motor to power US EV plant with renewable energy

  Hyundai Motor Group has inked a 147-megawatt power purchase agreement with Matrix Renewables, a Spanish renewable energy company, to power its electric vehicle plant currently under construction in the state of Georgia, the Korean auto conglomerate said Monday. According to Hyundai Motor, the deal marked the largest single PPA signed by a Korean company in the US. The conglomerate’s four companies -- Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America, the auto giant’s EV plant, Hyundai Mobis N

• Startups 
  

  [Herald Interview] Why Toss invited hackers to penetrate its system

  In 2022, South Korean fintech app Toss launched the nation’s first bug bounty program by a finance company, inviting attacks on its security system from the outside. Operating the program for several months in the first two years, Toss has kept the doors open starting last year so that hackers can report whenever they discover a vulnerability in Toss security. White hat -- or ethical -- hackers that make a significant discovery are rewarded up to 30 million won ($22,000). Toss remains t

• Companies 
  

  Posco charity foundation tackles disability challenges

  The Posco 1% Foundation, founded in 2013, is funded by the donations of employees at South Korean steel giant Posco Group. Among the foundation's diverse charity projects is one aimed at supporting people with disabilities, particularly in career-seeking activities. According to a 2023 survey by the Korea Employment Agency for Persons with Disabilities, about 5 percent of the nation’s population is registered as disabled. The economic participation rate and employment rate of people wit

• Companies 
  

  HD Hyundai Infracore zeroes in on European market

  HD Hyundai Infracore, a construction equipment maker under Korean shipbuilding conglomerate HD Hyundai, will unveil its new fuel-cell electric wheel loader named the DL250-FCEV for the first time at the Intermat in France later this week, the company said Monday. The Intermat, one of the three biggest global construction machinery exhibitions along with the Conexpo in the US and Bauma in Germany, will take place at the Paris Nord Villepinte exhibition center Wednesday to Saturday. The construc

• Companies 
  

  [KH Explains] Will 6-day workweek for executives help Samsung avert crisis?

  Doubts have been raised over Samsung Group’s latest decision to make the executives of its key tech affiliates -- Samsung Electronics, Samsung SDI, Samsung SDS and Samsung Display -- work an extra day per week as part of the group's emergency measures to tackle ongoing business uncertainties. Critics pointed out that the six-day workweek for executives is "outdated and inefficient," and that it lies in contrast to other local Big Tech firms who are following the global trend of