Winia Daewoo MINI washer enjoys bonanza in Singles’ Day sales in China South Korea’s electronics manufacturer Winia Daewoo, rebranded from Daewoo Electronics in July, enjoyed a boon from China’s annual Singles’ Day (Nov. 11) online shopping bonanza with its wall-mounted ..

Naver’s Line in talks for “various cooperation” with Yahoo Japan, merger not final Naver shares have shot up Thursday on news that Line Corp., its Japan-focused messenger app unit, is set to combine with Yahoo Japan, Japan’s largest internet portal operator, in a mega merger that co..

Delivery app operator Woowa Brothers rewards entire staff with 12-day holiday Woowa Brothers, operator of South Korea’s food delivery app Baedal Minjok and one of the few unicorns in the country, has rewarded its employees with universal 12-day holiday from December 21 to Janua..

GS25 delivers the highest revenue per area among CV names in Korea GS25, the convenience store brand run by GS Retail Co., earned most among local peers in Korea, where the number of around-the-clock stores per head now almost doubles that of Japan. According to dat..

Kumho Group minus Asiana to lose business conglomerate status South Korea’s Kumho Asiana Group is expected to see its assets more than halve after losing its flagship and most valuable member Asiana Airlines Inc. and be stripped of its conglomerate status, which..

Korea’s home-grown integrated app market One Store on global outreach One Store, an integrated app market created through alliance of Korean wireless makers, will take its success story globally by linking up with foreign carriers to take on Apple’s App Store.According ..

HDC envisions mobility group with Asiana, to add its trademark to the airliner HDC Group, a spin-off from Korea’s famous Hyundai and Chung family group that has expanded to financial and resort business through the wealth made from buildings it erected across the nation over the..

Shinsegae pulls off record sales in Q3 thanks to luxury focus South Korean retail giant Shinsegae Inc. enjoyed its best-ever quarterly sales for the July-September period as its luxury-focused operation survived the overall domestic consumption slump. In a reg..

GS Caltex partners with global oil majors in new exchange for ADNOC’s Murban crude South Korea’s leading oil refiner GS Caltex Corp. will join global energy majors as a founding member of a new exchange that International Exchange Inc. (ICE) aims to launch next year in Abu Dhabi to ..

Hyundai Motor demonstrates first successful truck platooning on highway South Korea’s Hyundai Motor Company said on Tuesday it has successfully tested out the country’s first platooning of two trailer-connected Xcient trucks, a new autonomous driving technology that could..

Samsung Bioepis to generate profit for first time this year since inception: CEO (Corrections on some contents made on Nov. 13) Samsung Bioepis Co. Ltd., a biosimilar-focused joint-venture of Samsung Biologics and Biogen of the U.S, expects to see its first profit since founding..

Samsung Elec’s Galaxy S11 to feature lossless zooming technology Samsung Electronics Co.’s next flagship smartphone Galaxy S11 scheduled for launch in February next year is expected to feature a new proprietary technology called ‘Space Zoom’ that allows extensive z..

Posco Chemical to invest $108 mn in Li-ion battery anode material output expansion Posco Chemical Co., a unit of South Korean steel giant Posco, will invest 125.4 billion won ($107.7 million) to ramp up annual production capacity of lithium-ion secondary battery anode materials to 6..

Twenty out of 30 top Korean firms expect economy to grow less than 2.0% in 2020 Twenty out of Korea’s top 30 companies expected the 2020 economy to perform similar to this year or even worse – lower than 2 percent -, boding badly for investment and hiring prospects.Accordin..

S. Korean shipyards cement lead in global orders with 86% share in Oct. South Korean names swept up nearly nine out of 10 new vessel orders placed worldwide in October, retaining world’s No. 1 rank in shipbuilding. Korean shipbuilders in October bagged combined 17 contra..

HDC-Mirae Asset consortium named preferred bidder of Asiana Airlines The consortium of Hyundai Development Co. (HDC) and Mirae Asset Daewoo has been named the preferred bidder of Korea’s No. 2 full-service carrier Asiana Airlines Inc. after handing in the highest bid o..

Honestbee’s crisis nearly ends, early investor Brian Koo says Honestbee, a Singapore-based grocery delivery startup, is on track to attract additional investment after striking a stock-conversion deal with investors who chipped in $170 million in convertible not..

No industry is safe in Korea, with cost-saving efforts becoming a must Restructuring and rationalization have become a must for Korean companies across the industry. Posco, top steelmaker, set out to cut general expenses by 30 percent this year amid a slowdown in global..

Hyundai Motor’s signature sedans regain popularity under younger look Teenagers practice their hip hop dance moves over a railway, with their CD player playing the tune of Korean legendary dance group Deux in the year of 1993. One poses a question to his dancing friend:..

Korean hotels, retailers double down on VVIP marketing South Korean hotel chains and retailers are competing in the super-rich category against stagnating consumer demand.Westin Chosun Hotel has arranged and already sold out 450 tickets of the annual live..

Hanwha Q Cells steps up R&D on perovskite solar cells South Korea’s solar power company Hanwha Q Cells Corp. has been ramping up its research and development on perovskite, a material emerging as the future solar cell for its high efficiency and cheap ma..

Iljin Materials attracts investment to boost elecfoil capacity in Malaysia South Korea’s Iljin Materials said on Wednesday it will boost the capacity of its lithium battery material plant in Malaysia with a new investment of about 600 billion won ($513 million) pulled from a..

SK Hynix sets up image sensor R&D center in Tokyo to challenge Sony’s dominance South Korea’s SK Hynix has set up an image sensor research center in Japan, a powerhouse in the field of imaging sensor chips led by Sony Corporation. The world’s No. 2 memory chip maker aims to lever..

Medytox denies its botulinum toxin is under regulatory review in China after stock crash Korean botulinum toxin maker Medytox denied speculation about the ongoing regulatory review of its product Neuronox in China that sent its Kosdaq stock crashing on Monday, saying it continues discussi..

Sindoh releases biggest industrial 3D printer in Korea Sindoh, a South Korean office solution provider, has developed a new stereolithography 3D printer, the biggest of its kind, which uses photocurable resin, making a stride into the country’s burgeoning..

Truxima to hit US market next week as first rituximab biosimilar Truxima, a rituximab biosimilar developed by South Korea’s major biopharmaceutical company Celltrion, will debut in the United States next week, marking the first optional addition to the country’s cl..

Samsung Bioepis, Biogen enter marketing agreement for ophthalmology biosimilars South Korea’s Samsung Bioepis Co. and its American half parent Biogen Inc. signed into a deal of $370 million for commercializing two ophthalmology biosimilars under development by the Korean biotech ..

Korea completes world’s biggest moon simulator that recreates lunar conditions South Korea has created an accurate simulation of the moon’s surface and local environment, which can serve essential needs in the development of new space exploration technology and testing of space ..

Ildong Pharm shares soar by daily 30% limit on FDA’s migraine drug approval Ildong Pharm shares stayed strong on Wednesday after hitting the day’s 30 percent upper limit in early trade on news its U.S. partner Eli Lilly received approval of lasmiditan an innovative migraine t..

Korea’s LS C&S, KEPCO commercialize superconducting cables as world’s first South Korea’s leading cable maker LS Cable & Systems Ltd. (LS C&S) together with state-run utility company Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) has succeeded in commercializing superconducting cable tec..

U.S. sales of Korea’s home-grown neurotoxin Nabota hit $13.2 mn in Q3 Daewoong Pharm’s Nabota, the only home-grown Korean botulinum toxin approved and sold in the U.S., generated $13.2 million in sales in the third quarter, which is the first full quarter result of the ..

KT, Hyundai Rotem co-develop 5G autonomous driving for civilian and military use South Korea’s leading telco KT Corp. said on Tuesday it has signed a partnership agreement with Hyundai Rotem, a train and armored vehicle maker affiliated with Hyundai Motor Group, to develop 5G-base..

Korea’s hottest stock HLB to file NDA for cancer drug rivoceranib in US next April South Korea’s HLB will file its planned new drug application (NDA) with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration late April next year, said HLB Chairman Jin Yang-gon in a recent interview with Maeil Busi..

Samsung Elec invites world’s best AI experts to its AI Forum Samsung Electronics Co. keen on building artificial intelligence (AI) power has invited AI experts around the globe to its AI Forum for this year. Samsung AI Forum 2019 kicked off on Monday as a two-d..

AI medical solution provider JLK seeks IPO, pricing due Nov.27 South Korea’s JLK Inspection is seeking initial public offering (IPO) in the local market under a special rule enabling money-losing yet promising startups to go public. The artificial intelligence..

Samsung Elec teases new clamshell concept foldable phone South Korea’s Samsung Electronics Co. showed off its latest flexible screen technology by unveiling a slightly tweaked clamshell design for its Galaxy Fold follow-up. The world’s largest smartphone m..

LG Uplus demonstrates remote-controlled tractor operation for farming on 5G South Korea’s mobile carrier LG Uplus Corp. Tuesday demonstrated unmanned field cultivation with a tractor remotely controlled over the 5G network in a show of 5G applications in future smart farming...

Korea’s Naver to create worldwide AI research network Korean internet giant Naver Corp. envisions artificial intelligence research networking from Asia to Europe to take on the United States and China in the race towards automated age. Seok Sang-ok, he..

Korean botox entry to China put on hold for nearly two years The Chinese market proved to be hard nut to crack for Korean botulinum toxin producers whose entry has been stalled for nearly two years by China’s health authorities who appear to be buying time for ..

R&D spending by Korea’s largest firms up 8 percent on year in 2018 Spending on research and development (R&D) by major Korean companies gained nearly 8 percent year on year in 2018, with the top eight players contributing over 60 percent of the total, a state think t..

Samsung Elec, SK Hynix sole Korean names to make global 500 on market cap South Korea’s reliance on chipmakers Samsung Electronics Co. and SK Hynix Inc. has grown stronger than ever as the two are the only Korean names to join the world’s top 500 firms list in terms of mark..

Bid for Sungdong Shipbuilding draws 6 contenders with half meeting requirement The tender for South Korea’s mid-sized shipbuilder Sungdong Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. (Sungdong) has drawn six contenders, raising prospects for its sale after three failures. According to..

Pan Ocean Q3 OP highest in 4 yrs on higher freight rates, outlook also bright South Korea’s bulk carrier Pan Ocean Co. reported a 10.3 percent on-year gain in operating profit for the third quarter, performing its best since going under Harim Group in 2015 thanks to a surge in ..

Korean financial markets to open 1 hour late on Nov. 14 for college entrance exam South Korean financial markets will open and close an hour later than usual on Thursday, a tradition they have kept up on the day for state-administered nationwide college entrance exam. Trading hour..

Human Cell Bio to launch small capital-raising deal South Korea’s Human Cell Bio said on Tuesday it is planning to raise 997.5 million won ($850,000) from the public, adding the small capital raising deal marks its start to go public on the Konex marke..

Institutional investors and foreigners keep selling off Kosdaq shares Institutional and foreign investors net sold 4.7 trillion won ($4 billion) worth shares in the South Korea’s secondary Kosdaq market from the beginning of the year to November 11, the largest sell-off..

NPS makes greater push for shareholder activism South Korea’s largest institutional investor National Pension Service (NPS) is taking steps to play a more aggressive shareholder role by going as far as pushing out board members for wrongdoings or m..

Mirae Asset Global Investments invests $175 mn in U.S. desalination plant Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. has launched a private equity fund worth $175 million to acquire the Claude "Bud" Lewis Carlsbad Desalination Plant, a desalination plant in Carlsbad, California. A..

Sale of Asiana likely to spur M&A in low-cost carrier industry in Korea The sale of full-service carrier Asiana Airlines Inc. is expected to spur M&A wave across the overcrowded passenger aviation market in Korea. Korean Air Lines could feel threatened after its sole ful..

K-OTC trading volume hits record high, driven by popular bio stocks South Korea’s over-the-counter (OTC) market has attracted investors with growing interest in hot bio stocks such as Vivozon, whose investigational non-opioid painkiller is on track for regulatory appr..

Kendall Square Asset buys Amazon’s logistics center in Prague for $155 mn South Korea-based Kendall Square Asset Management Inc. specializing in logistics investment has acquired a logistics center of global e-commerce giant Amazon worth 180 billion won ($155 million) in Pr..

KT Q3 OP up 8.4% on qtr on brisk internet TV, contents biz South Korea’s second largest mobile operator KT Corp. reported a 8.4 percent on-quarter gain in operating profit for the quarter ended September thanks to growth in internet TV and contents revenue de..

Biomarker-based oncology drug developer Medpacto seeks IPO MedPacto said on Thursday it is seeking initial public offering (IPO) in the local market under a special rule enabling money-losing yet promising startups to go public. The Korean biomarker-based an..

Korean Inc. scales back debt offering amid tepid appetite from oversupply The quick cooling in the debt market amid supply glut has added woes for Korean Inc. in fund-raising on top of bearish stock market. According to sources from the investment banking industry on Thurs..

NH Prime REIT readies IPO for $60 mn, pricing on Nov. 14 NH Prime REIT Co., real estate investment trust of South Korea’s Nonghyup Financial Group, is readying an initial public offering (IPO) after successful stock debut of Lotte REIT last month amid soari..

Race over Asiana Airlines boils down to economies of scale vs capital strength The de facto two-way race over Korea’s full-service carrier Asiana Airlines will likely boil down to the choice of the scale of economies over finance as state authorities began scrutinizing over the ..

GS Holdings Q3 OP up 13% on qtr on earnings recovery in refinery, retail units GS Holdings Corp., the holding company of South Korea’s seventh largest conglomerate GS Group that controls refining, retail, energy, construction and service businesses, reported better-than-expected..

Toss joins hands with Hana Card to launch new kind of credit card South Korea’s money transfer app Toss is in talks with Hana Card to launch a new-concept private label credit card (PLCC). Sources said on Wednesday the store-branded credit card tentatively named ‘To..

KT&G’s Q3 OP down 4.2% on qtr amid waning popularity of e-cig South Korea’s tobacco maker KT&G Corp. reported a 4.2 percent fall in its operating profit for the third quarter ended September from the previous quarter amid waning sales of e-cigarettes due to heal..

Kospi has bottomed out and may aim for 2500 next year: analysts South Korea’s benchmark Kospi has tested its bottom at 1,910 this year and is strong enough to climb to as high as 2,500 next year, according to local analysts. The Kospi outlook for 2020 by nine loc..

Korea’s export prices slip for second straight month in Oct on strong won South Korea’s export prices slipped for the second straight month in October amid the strengthening Korean won and prolonged price slump of its mainstay semiconductors, suggesting no relief in the nea..

KDI slashes Korea’s economic growth outlook to 2.0% for 2019, 2.3% for 2020 South Korea’s state think tank Korea Development Institute (KDI) on Wednesday turned more pessimistic about the country’s economy and slashed its growth outlook for this year to 2.0 percent and next y..

Outdoor seating restricted to special tourism zone to become liberalized in Korea Cafes and restaurant across Korea will become free to add seats outdoors if there are no complaints from their neighborhood, according to a set of deregulation measures to vitalize domestic demand. A..

Korea’s employment hits highest Oct figure in 23 years South Korea’s employment rate hit the highest October figure in 23 years, keeping up its strong pace of job creation for the third straight month. The country added 419,000 jobs in October from a ye..

Korea’s household, corporate loans rise sharply in October from previous month Korea’s household and corporate loans rose sharply in October against the previous month following the second policy rate cut. According to data released by Financial Services Commission, Financial S..

S. Korea’s rice yield hit 39-year low this year amid diet, demographic changes Reflecting demographic and diet changes, South Korea’s crop yield this year hit 39-year low. According to Statistics Korea, Korea produced 3.744 million tons of rice this year, down 3.2 percent from..

Four more Boeing 737 airplanes grounded in Korea, raising total to 13 South Korea suspended four more Boeing 737 Next Generation (NG) after the government found cracks in fuselage, raising the number of grounded airplanes to 13. According to the Ministry of Land, Infra..

Korean chaebol families control 170 affiliates outside holding company system: FTC Owners and families of large business groups in South Korea still commanded over 170 companies outside the corporate family tree even after converting business structure to holding system, according t..

S. Korea’s exports down 20.8% in Nov. 1-10 amid fall in chip demand South Korea’s exports fell 20.8 percent in the first 10 days of November from the same period a year ago amid continued slump in chip demand, data showed Monday. According to data released by Korea C..

Changes after grocery shopping in Korea can be remitted directly to bank accounts Starting next year, loose changes after shopping at grocery and convenience stores in Korea can be remitted directly to bank accounts. The Bank of Korea said on Thursday that it is receiving applicat..

S&P affirms South Korea’s AA rating with stable outlook Standard & Poor’s kept South Korea’s sovereign credit at the third highest on its rating scale with a stable outlook, despite the country’s weaker growth prospects and stalemate in North Korea’s nucle..

S. Korea to reduce recruitment of teachers, draftees to reflect thinning population South Korea will start scaling down recruitment of teachers at public schools and draftees to come to terms with the alarming demographic realities from rapid aging and birth rate at near zero, The p..

Japanese beer wholesalers offer to axe prices of supplies to stores in Korea Faced with near-zero sales in Korea, Japanese beer brands have offered to axe their wholesale prices for supplies to convenient stores in Korea that would accept them. According to retail industry s..

S. Korea’s Sept current account surplus at 11-month high on subdued imports South Korea’s current account surplus rose to an 11-month high in September, mostly because imports stayed subdued due to lackluster domestic demand. According to preliminary data released by the Ban..

KEPCO to hold rate-fixing meeting monthly to address widening losses South Korea’s state utility firm Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) will hold rate-setting board meeting monthly from November, taking steps towards its plan to rationalize power rates amid ballooning..

Japanese cars’ Oct sales drop almost 60% in Korea, Benz benefit most Mercedes-Benz benefited most among foreign car names in Korea as consumers shun Japanese brands among the choices in imported category due to protracted negative sentiment over history and trade issue..

Financial and income state all worsen for the Korean Inc. in 2018 More Korean companies did not earn enough to pay off interests on its debt last year due to worsened business conditions, data showed Tuesday. According to the Bank of Korea’s (BOK) Financial Stateme..

S. Korea’s forex reserves hit record high in Oct on weak U.S. dollar South Korea’s foreign reserves surged to a fresh high last month, helped by the weakening of the U.S. dollar. The country’s foreign exchange reserves reached $406.3 billion as of late October, up $3..

S. Korea’s online shopping transactions reach all-time high in Q3 Korea’s online shopping transaction hit an all-time high in the July-September period as Koreans increasingly rely on deliveries instead of going out for shopping and eating, data showed Monday. Acco..

Korea’s chip export volume, output above 2018 boom year despite downcycle The chip downturn has weighed heavily on Korean exports this year but output and shipments of Korean semiconductors have so far exceeded the levels of 2018, the best-ever year for the country’s chip i..

Negative spread a growing threat to Korean insurers South Korean life insurers suffered negative spread for the first time in over 70 years in June, data showed, raising concerns about reverse margin that could lead companies to suffer losses as they s..

Four out of 10 under-30 Koreans save up more than 30% of their income: survey Contrary to the common belief that the young these days are guided by the You-only-live-once (YOLO) mindset, nearly half of Koreans in their 20s place more than 30 percent of their earnings in savings..

Food, home and savings concern Koreans most in spending Eat, live and invest are the three things that concern South Korean the most, a survey showed. According to a consumption pattern survey conducted by the Korea Consumer Agency on 8,000 Korean adults ..

Seongdong-gu emerging as hotbed of social entrepreneurship in Korea Social entrepreneurship is rapidly gaining ground in South Korea, driven by socially-aware younger generations looking for business solutions to some of society’s biggest challenges. Korea is now ho..

Hotels, convenience stores in Korea capitalize on booming delivery trend Homebodies have become the latest marketing target in Korea as an increasing number of young people enjoy food and entertainment at home. Luxury hotels have joined grocery and convenient stores to c..

Korean millennials willingly give up food for luxury goods amid slowdown A 23-year old university student surnamed Kim spent only 700 won ($0.6) to buy ham and tuna mayonnaise onigiri, a popular but cheap meal option available at all convenience stores, for his lunch. This..

Nearly half of Koreans want ride-sharing service to stay as taxi alternatives Nearly half of South Koreans want ride-sharing alternatives to general cabs, a poll showed, running counter to the prosecution’s latest move that declared the country’s sole car-hailing company Tada i..

Over 14,000 coffee shops newly open in Korea a year, 1 out of 10 makes losses Over 14,000 coffee shops open a year in Korea as the business poses as an easy post-retirement income source, but they do not last long as one out of 10 fails to make a profit, a study showed. Accord..

Korea’s labor ministry classifies delivery app riders as regular employees South Korea’s Ministry of Employment and Labor concluded that delivery couriers working for local food delivery platform Yogiyo are not independent contractors, but regular employees entitled to holid..

S. Korea joins 14 nations in forging ahead with Asia-Pacific trade deal South Korea and 14 neighboring countries from the Asia-Pacific region on Monday agreed on the final terms of China-backed Asia-Pacific trade deal, moving a step closer towards signing the deal next ye..

N. Korea-related stocks buoyed on possible Kim-Trump summit in Dec South Korean stocks related to inter-Korean operations rose Tuesday on news that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is pushing for a third summit with U.S. President Donald Trump in December, raising hop..

Korea’s discount extravaganza revives consumers’ shopping appetite South Korean consumers who have refrained from spending for most of this year amid the economic downturn finally opened up their wallets to grab great discounts on everything ranging from foods to fas..

Actresses, stars no longer can be face of soju under new anti-drinking policy in Korea Korean female celebrities can no longer go on labels of soju and beer bottles as the government becomes wary of the country’s notorious booze habit. The Ministry of Health and Welfare said Monday tha..

Korean President Moon champions free trade at ASEAN summit, meets Abe South Korean President Moon Jae-in urged Asian peers to join forces to protect free trade order at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Bangkok, Thailand, on Monday.“There is o..

Korea officially requests U.S. to mediate Seoul-Tokyo dispute The South Korean government asked the United States to play an active role in improving the soured relations between Korea and Japan as the diplomatic tensions of the two neighboring countries are sho..

Juul Labs CEO to visit Korea after vaping sales suspension over health concerns K.C. Crosthwaite, new chief executive of global vaping powerhouse Juul Labs Inc., is due in Seoul after Korean retailers decided to stop selling flavored e-liquid products following the government’s “..

Korean govt officials voice belated regret over dilly-dallying on mobility conflict Senior government officials belatedly expressed regret over state inaction in refereeing between new and traditional mobility services after executives of the ride-hailing business Tada were indicted ..

S. Korea passes world’s first law dedicated to P2P lenders South Korea has passed a new law dedicated to specifically peer-to-peer or marketplace lending, clearing up the legal gray areas for the practice of lending money to individuals or businesses through ..

Recollection on key messages from the 20th WKF Global leaders across the board got together at Maekyung Media Group’s 20th World Knowledge Forum held in September 25-27 in Seoul, South Korea to share their insights and discuss various issues under..

World Bank VP calls for S. Korea’s active role to aid developing nations with 5G edge South Korea is best positioned to aid developing nations to keep up with the global transition toward mobile age with its 5G technology prowess and “leapfrogging” expertise in technological developmen..

Power shortages again in dry season, says prime minister Cambodia will face power shortages again from the end of this year throughout the dry season, Prime Minister Hun Sen said on Thursday. Speaking at the official launch of the National Strategic Develo..

Myanmar lags as ASEAN sees record FDI Foreign direct investment (FDI) into Myanmar still lags other countries in ASEAN, according to a report issued by the ASEAN Secretariat last week. The report ASEAN Investment Report 2019: FDI in Serv..

Foreign investors turned net buyers of Malaysia`s debt securities Foreign investors turned net buyers of Malaysia`s debt securities in September with total foreign holdings expanded to RM189.1 billion. This is after FTSE Russell decided to keep the country in the..

Viet Nam, Cambodia issue joint statement Viet Nam and Cambodia have issued a joint statement on the occasion of the Viet Nam visit by Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Akka Moha Sena Padei Techo Hun Sen from October 4-5 at the invitation of h..

Myanmar, Thailand accelerate plans to link, electrify Dawei SEZ Myanmar and Thailand will speed up development of a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) and deep sea port at Dawei in Tanintharyi Region, officials said during the 9th Myanmar - Thailand Joint Coordinating Co..

BoT optimistic about Q3 growth on tourism, stimulus Thailand`s economic growth in the third quarter is likely to improve from the second quarter`s reading, mainly thanks to positive tourism growth and the government`s economic stimulus measures, says t..

Vietnam GDP in first three quarters climbs to 9-year high Local gross domestic product (GDP) climbed nearly 7 per cent in the first three quarters of 2019, reaching its highest level for the last nine years. Director General of the General Statistics Of..

Evergrande partners with global leading automotive firms to bolster new energy vehicle dev. China`s conglomerate China Evergrande Group has joined hands with the world`s five leading automotive engineering and technology enterprises to further optimize its industrial chain layout in the new ..

Myanmar launches workplace guide to respecting local culture Foreign executives and managers in Myanmar can now rely on a handbook about respecting the local culture in the workplace when it comes to defusing possible cross-cultural misunderstandings and potent..

Myanmar vows to take stricter action on illegal trade Myanmar will take strict action against illegal trade with the aim of substantially reducing the volume of fake or illegal products entering the market, said U Soe Win, Minister of Planning and Financ..

Thailand hosts 37th ASEAN Ministers on Energy Meeting Country Thailand`s Ministry of Energy has showcased its success in nominating Thai enterprises to win ASEAN Energy Awards 2019, with a total of 23 qualifying firms, setting a record for the highest number of ..

Cambodia Government unveils tourism masterplan to increase visitors The government is set to roll out the Four-Strategic Plan for Tourism Development aimed at reviving tourism in the Kingdom`s northern provinces, an inter-ministerial committee meeting has decided. ..

Malaysia eyes higher electricity output from renewable sources Plans for the development of solar and other renewables remain less well developed in Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines, accoridmng to The Economist Intelligence Unit. Indonesia and Malaysia ..

VN, Cuba seek to expand investment, trade ties Trade and investment ties between Viet Nam and Cuba are not commensurate with their potential and there is a lot of room for them to grow, a seminar on business co-operation opportunities between the ..

Viet Nam`s PMI falls to 51.4 in August The Vietnam Manufacturing Purchasing Managers` Index (PMI) posted 51.4 in August, remaining above the 50.0 no-change mark, but falling from 52.6 in July to signal a weaker overall improvement in busin..

Myanmar steps up on company director accountability Company directors in Myanmar now face legal repercussions if they fail in their corporate duties under the new Myanmar Companies Law, which came into force last August. Articles 165-172 of the Comp..

South Korea-Thai MoUs set for signing Thailand is scheduled to clinch six memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with South Korea on Monday on smart cities; Industry 4.0; education; water development; rail, transport and infrastructure devel..

CIMB Group targets up to 7.0 pct loan growth this year CIMB Group Holdings Bhd has targeted a six per cent to seven per cent loan growth this year. Group chief executive officer Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Aziz said for the first six months of the year, C..

Viet Nam, Malaysia agree to deepen strategic partnership Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and his Malaysian counterpart Mahathir Mohamad agreed to further deepen the Viet Nam-Malaysia strategic partnership during their talks in Ha Noi on Tuesday. The talk..

Myanmar woos Thai investors in Bangkok Myanmar is participating in regional connectivity initiatives in efforts to improve bilateral ties with its neighbours and promote investment and trade. Myanmar has implemented a number of signific..

Forty-four indie game publishers sponsored by Google to seek global entry at G-STAR South Korea’s small-sized game publishers supported by the government and the world’s biggest search engine Google will set up a joint booth at the country’s largest game show G-STAR 2019 that will ru..

2019 Kartrider League Season 2 finishes with a live-stream watched by 40,000 The 2019 Kartrider League Season 2, this year’s championship tournament for Korea’s iconic race game Crazyracing Kartrider published by Nexon Co., has concluded Saturday with winners of Lee Jae-hyeok ..

League of Legends’ new virtual group ready to wow audience at finals K-pop is out to take cyberspace by storm, with a new virtual band representing the characters of the massively popular PC game League of Legends to debut at the game’s world championship on Nov. 10 in..

Producers of popular K-pop audition show arrested on vote-rigging charges Producers of “Produce X 101,” the wildly popular K-pop audition TV show in South Korea, were arrested Tuesday on charges of rigging votes in favor of some contestants, shaking the credibility of the c..

SM Entertainment joins hands with CAA for more K-pop push in America K-pop powerhouse SM Entertainment Co. has joined hands with the largest entertainment and sports agency in the United States to promote its artists to a global stage. SM Entertainment said on Tuesday..

2019 LoL World Championship to be live-streamed on major theaters in Korea South Korean gamers will be able to watch this year’s League of Legends World Championship to be held in Europe on cinema screens at major theaters across the country. The country’s two multiplex ci..

Nine out of 10 K-pop fans across the world wish to visit Korea Nine out of 10 K-pop fans outside Korea wish to visit the homeland of their idol stars, mostly BTS, survey showed. According to survey conducted by the Korea Tourism Organization on 12,663 K-pop fan..

Webcomics pose as new power behind K-wave with revenue to near $1 bn next year Webtoons have joined the K-wave power with the contents eying revenue of 1 trillion won ($855 million) next year, a local study showed. According to the KT Economics and Management Research Institute,..

Korean spending on mobile games tops $1 billion in Q3 South Koreans spent more than $1 billion on mobile games and made 143.7 million downloads in the third quarter, with most of the spending devoted to massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MM..

BTS claims Guinness World Record for fastest time to hit 1 mn TikTok followers K-pop sensation BTS kept up its record-breaking streak this year, landing the Guinness World Record for the fastest time to reach one million followers on the video-sharing platform TikTok. The Gui..

NCSoft to empower game characters with AI in the coming Lineage 2M label South Korea’s leading online game developer and publisher NCSoft Corp. will enhance artificial intelligence-based non-player characters with responsive, adaptive and intelligent behaviors in its much-..

Big Hit makes clear that no BTS member is headed for military this year Big Hit Entertainment, the management label of South Korean boyband BTS, confirmed no one from the K-pop superstar group is headed for military service this year, responding to viral rumors triggered ..

Seoul sponsors K-wave fair in Dubai to expand Korean soft power in Middle East South Korean culture and business fair has kicked off in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates to help Korean small and medium-sized corporate inroads into the Middle Eastern market on the back of K-beauty ..

SuperM’s debut album scores No. 1 on Billboard 200 albums chart in first week New K-pop act SuperM has zoomed up to No. 1 on Billboard 200 albums chart. ‘SuperM: The 1st Mini Album,’ the first mini-album of SuperM, sold 168,000 equivalent album units in the first week since O..

SM Enter’s “Avengers” SuperM makes US TV debut through Ellen Show K-pop boy group SuperM consisting of some of the most popular faces of South Korea’s SM Entertainment made their American television debut through NBC popular talk show ‘The Ellen DeGeneres Show’ on W..

K-pop icon BTS to sport Fila brand from next year K-pop superstar BTS has become the new face of sportwear brand Fila. Fila Korea announced Tuesday that the seven-member boyband will work together as its new global brand ambassador. Their collaborat..

SM Entertainment to create K-pop inspired contents with Marvel K-pop stars will be converted into heroes with the help of Hollywood names Marvel Entertainment and CAA, according to Lee Soo-man, the founding chairman and executive producer of South Korea’s leading..

BTS’s “Blood Sweat & Tears” music video gathers 500 mn views, the group’s 8th The music video for “Blood Sweat & Tears,” a 2016 song by South Korean boy group BTS, has surpassed 500 million views on YouTube on Wednesday, becoming the group’s eighth video to hit the threshold. ..

Naver Webtoon tops global online comic charts, sales to hit $502 mn this year Naver Webtoon, online comic publisher under Korea’s top internet platform Naver, eyes global revenue of 600 billion won ($502 million) this year as it sweeps comic rankings across the world. The co..

BTS producer Big Hit to go on a global search to debut a girl group in 2021 Big Hit Entertainment Co., South Korean agency behind K-pop superstar BTS, will go on a global search to put together a female version of the K-pop boy band BTS by 2021. Big Hit Entertainment said on..