Economy

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  POSCO Chemical finalizes battery material contract with GM SEOUL -- Buoyed by a deal with General Motors, POSCO Chemical, a unit of South Korea's top steel group POSCO, aims to tap Europe and Indonesia as part of its aggressive strategy to build a mass-production base abroad and become a global player in the battery material market. POSCO Chemical and General Motors have agreed to build their joint venture plant in Quebec, Canada, to produce high-nickel cathode active materials. In a regulatory filing on May 27, the Southg Korean compan 2022-05-27
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  CU's mobile convenience stores called back into service at festivals SEOUL -- Mobile convenience stores selling beverages, snacks, instant food and sanitary products were called back into service at outdoor festivals in South Korea, ending more than two years of hibernation forced by a COVID-19 pandemic. Mobile convenience stores are the brainchild of South Korea's convenience store chain CU, which has renovated cargo trucks to meet on-site customers at festivals and other outdoor gatherings. The service began in 2009, gaining popularity, but th 2022-05-26
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  SK E&S secures bridgehead for business expansion in China through Beijing gas company SEOUL -- SK E&S, an energy company affiliated with South Korea's SK Group, secured a bridgehead to expand its business influence in China's natural gas and hydrogen markets, through a strategic alliance with a major gas company based in Beijing. SK E&S said it has signed a strategic collaboration agreement with Beijing Gas Group, a city gas supplier in Beijing and adjacent areas, to establish a strategic partnership in liquefied natural gas (LNG) and hydrogen busin 2022-05-26
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  Global 18-member hydrogen alliance launched under S. Korea's chairmanship SEOUL -- A global alliance grouping hydrogen-related organizations from 18 nations has been launched under the chairmanship of South Korea's private-government body, Hydrogen Convergence Alliance (H2KOREA), to strengthen international cooperation for the early establishment of a hydrogen ecosystem. Hydrogen association representatives from 18 countries participated online and offline in an event in Seoul on May 25 to form the Global Hydrogen Industrial Association Alliance (GHIA 2022-05-26
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  Hankook Tire opens Asia's largest test track to develop tires for electric vehicles and super cars SEOUL -- South Korea's top tire maker, Hankook Tire & Technology, opened what claimed to be Asia's largest test track that enables the performance test of innovative tires for electric vehicles and supercars, along with high-tech research facilities. The test site called "Hankook Technoring" was built in an area of 1.26 million square meters in Taean, about 115 kilometers (71 miles) southwest of Seoul. It has 13 tracks, including the longest test road in Asia a 2022-05-25
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  State gas company partners with U.S. company to develop liquid hydrogen storage tanks SEOUL -- CB&I Storage Solutions, an American storage tank developer involved in the construction of the world's largest liquified hydrogen tank at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, tied up with South Korea's state gas company to develop liquified hydrogen tanks for land storage and marine transportation. Korea Gas Corporation (KOGAS) said the partnership with CB&I would help increase South Korea's competitiveness in the hydrogen market and speed up the develop 2022-05-25
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  Samsung Electronics ties up with Red Hat to develop technologies for next-generation memory solutions SEOUL -- Samsung Electronics tied up with Red Hat, a U.S. provider of open-source software products, to develop technologies for next-generation memory solutions, reflecting its strategy to change its memory paradigm beyond simple semiconductor manufacturing to a total memory solution company. Memory software solutions enable multiple memories to be recognized and operated as one or more efficient use of memory performance. The partnership will focus on the development and validati 2022-05-25
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  SK ecoplant's subsidiary TES works with domestic partner to recycle used mobile phones SEOUL -- TES, a wholly-owned subsidiary of SK ecoplant, will cooperate with Mintit, an ICT recycling company in South Korea, to boost their market share in the recycling of used mobile phones using an AI-based unmanned phone collection platform. TES is a Singapore-based provider of synchronized electronic waste (E-waste) management solutions. Used electronics which are destined for refurbishment, reuse, resale, salvage recycling through material recovery, or disposal are considered 2022-05-25
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  Samsung SDI and Stellantis to build joint battery plant in Indiana SEOUL -- Samsung SDI, the battery-making unit of South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics, will be built its joint venture battery plant with Stellantis N.V., an automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Amsterdam, in Kokomo, Indiana, with an injection of over $2.5 billion. The investment could gradually increase up to $3.1 billion. The Indiana plant aims to have an initial annual production capacity of 23 gigawatts hours (GWh) that can go up to 33 GWh. Production is to 2022-05-25
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  Daewoo shipyard works with U.S. company to produce model ship with 3D printing technology SEOUL -- In partnership with Ingersoll Machine Tools, a U.S.-based supplier of machine tools and automated fiber placement, Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering, a major shipbuilder in South Korea, has produced a test model ship using a composing plastic material and 3D printing technology. For the manufacturing of ships at shipyards, a model ship with a reduced shape is used for performance testing in a large tank, mostly made of wood. Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engi 2022-05-24
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  ​Lotte Confectionery releases non-sugar snack brand targeting domestic market SEOUL -- Lotte Confectionery, the confectionary wing of South Korea’s conglomerate Lotte, released a non-sugar snack brand targeting the country's rapidly growing domestic zero-sugar product market. South Korea's sugar consumption has significantly decreased during the last decade thanks to increased awareness of health. According to Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation, retail sales of sugar decreased by about 27 percent to 161.4 billion won ($127.1 mill 2022-05-23
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  Pulmuone opens vegan restaurant at major shopping mall in southern Seoul SEOUL -- Pulmuone Food & Culture, the cafeteria service management wing of Seoul-based food company Pulmuone, opened a vegan restaurant inside a gigantic shopping mall complex in Gangnam District, Seoul's heart of fashion and finance targeting South Korea's steadily growing vegan population. The number of vegans has gradually increased in South Korea thanks to increased awareness of health and well-being. According to the Korea Vegetarian Union, the number of vegans sha 2022-05-23
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  Zara adopts AR technology for customers to wear various makeup SEOUL -- Augmented reality technology was adopted at a store run by Zara, a Spanish apparel retailer, where customers can try on different types of makeup through three-dimensional simulation. The store located at a shopping complex in southern Seoul is Zara's fourth experimental store after Spain's Madrid, Japan's Ginza, and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. Augmented reality (AR) filters are computer-generated effects overlapped with the actual images displayed by th 2022-05-20
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  SK ecoplant secured 30% stake in Malaysia's waste management company Cenviro SEOUL -- SK ecoplant secured a 30 percent stake in Cenviro, a waste management service provider in Malaysia, to cement its competitiveness as an environmental and energy solution provider and secure its foothold in Southeast Asia. Financial terms were not disclosed, but the deal reflects SK ecoplant's active push for business expansion abroad. Cenviro, which operates Malaysia's first integrated waste management center, specializes in solid waste management and public cleansi 2022-05-20
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  Convenience store chain CU partners with drone developer to help communities SEOUL -- BGF Retail, the operator of South Korea's largest convenience store chain CU will adopt drone technology to help communities in case of disasters in cooperation with a domestic drone developer. BGF Retail will create relief goods and use its delivery vehicles as charging stations for drones. Drones designed for rescue purposes are equipped with various optical equipment such as cameras, radars and thermal imaging sensors. Some drones carry out structural safety checks 2022-05-19
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  SK Biopharmaceuticals partners with U.S. biotech company Cala to fuel innovation in neurology SEOUL -- SK Biopharmaceuticals and its parent investment company, SK Inc., will make an unspecified amount of investment in Cala Health, a Silicon Valley-based bioelectronic medicine company, to secure opportunities for potential technology collaboration and explore solutions for new indications in neurology. The two SK Group units have participated in a Series D funding round for Cala, the leader in non-invasive bioelectronic therapy via a wearable device that is proven to reduce e 2022-05-19
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  Business alliance launched to speed up commercialization of self-driving robots SEOUL -- A business alliance involving LG Electronics and 17 other companies was launched to speed up the commercialization of intelligent self-driving robots, which have expanded their use in South Korea's service, delivery and other sectors thanks to rapid technological development. The self-driving robot alliance headed by the Korea Association of Robot Industry was formed on May 18 in an event sponsored by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy at an exhibition center in 2022-05-18
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  SK Chemical establishes business platform for recycled plastic circulation ecosystem SEOUL -- SK Chemical has established a business platform for a recycled plastic circulation ecosystem that connects producers, partners, and brands online. It is a green platform that provides experience in recycling materials and AI-based digital marketing channel services. The platform will be released to the public on May 30. SK Chemicals would provide a material experience kit made of its sustainable packing solution (SPS) material to brand companies. AI image search services a 2022-05-18
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  SK Group ties up with U.S. company TerraPower for SMR cooperation SEOUL -- South Korea's SK Group tied up with TerraPower, an American nuclear reactor design and development engineering company, for comprehensive business cooperation in the development and commercialization of next-generation mall modular reactor technology. Small modular reactors (SMRs) can address the limitations of light-water reactors using low-enriched uranium that cost a lot to replace nuclear fuel and require a vast emergency evacuation zone, nonproliferation and waste 2022-05-17
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  SeAH Besteel allies with American partner Orano for cooperation in nuclear fuel dry storage SEOUL -- Orano TN, an American provider of total system solutions for used nuclear fuel and radioactive waste management, forged a business alliance with two South Korean companies to find new business opportunities in the dry storage of spent nuclear fuel from nuclear power stations. SeAH Besteel, a special steel producer in South Korea, signed a memorandum of understanding with its American partner, Orano, and KEPCO E&C, the power plant design and engineering wing of South Ko 2022-05-17