Just like how the idea of magic rails against common knowledge, Magical Atelier appears to defy the odds, being an unconventional game that transgresses the basic laws of typical Korean mobile games. For busy commuters, mobile games are supposed to be simple and easy to play. Also, they must include elements that can trigger competition among as many users as possible to guarantee profitability. Magical Atelier, developed by Smilegate, meets neither of the two criteria. Released in South K

China has granted a license to a game made by a South Korean company for the first time in nearly four years, finally lifting an implicit ban on Korean games that has persisted since 2017. According to Korean mobile game developer Com2us, Summoners War: Lost Centuria has been given a foreign game service license from China‘s National Press and Publication Administration, the first such license issued since March 2017. In 2017, Korea deployed the US anti-missile Terminal High Altitude D

Posco Group said Thursday its salt lake in Argentina contains 13.5 million metric tons of lithium reserves, more than six times greater than initial calculation of 2.2 million tons. Based on the massive reserves, which are enough for 370 million electric vehicles, the group aims to establish a robust value chain of EV battery raw materials. According to the South Korean steel giant, the latest exploration of the Hombre Muerto salt lake in northern Argentina conducted with a US consulting firm

Government, industry collaborated on monitoring up to the last hour

South Korean cable maker LS Cable & System has recently released a series of new smart cables, including a long-distance Power over Ethernet cable and a hacker-proof optical fiber cable. PoE cables are capable of delivering both data connection and electric power, and are easy to install in places such as in ceilings and between gaps. But their standard distance has remained 100 meters. LS Cable & System’s SimpleWide cable, however, has extended the distance to 200 meters. The c

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. said Thursday that it has won a 282 billion-won ($257 million) order to build three oil tankers from Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. (ADNOC). The vessels will be delivered by the first quarter of 2023, Daewoo Shipbuilding said. The deal has an option to place an order for three additional oil tankers, the shipbuilder said. With the latest deal, Daewoo Shipbuilding has received orders worth $4.6 billion so far this year, achieving about 56 percent

One in 4 companies in South Korea has implemented or is planning restructuring measures this year due to financial difficulties stemming from the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, data showed Thursday. According to a survey of 437 companies carried out by local job search platform Saramin, 27.2 percent of the respondents said they had conducted layoffs or planned to do so. The most common reason given for restructuring was “the worsening business situation due to COVID-19” (69.7 perce

Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co. said Thursday it has clinched a 100 billion won ($91 million) order to build two liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carriers from a Liberian company. The 40,000-cubic meter LPG carriers to be built by Hyundai Mipo Dockyard Co., a unit of Korea Shipbuilding, will be delivered from the second half of 2022, Korea Shipbuilding said in an emailed statement. The company also said it is in talks with the Liberian company for an additional order of the sa

The Korean German Chamber of Commerce and Industry held its 6th KGCCI Innovation Awards ceremony at JW Marriott Dongdaemun Square on Nov. 27. ZEISS Korea was honored as the winner of the “Innovation in Business” for pioneering work in lithography optics using extreme ultraviolet light. EUV technology enables a crucial technological leap forward by significantly reducing the size of semiconductor structures in a cost-effective manner allowing the successful continuation of Moore&rsqu

Shares in Samsung Electronics Co. continued to surge on the Seoul bourse Thursday on the back of rosy outlook for its semiconductor business. Samsung shares advanced 0.29 percent to close at a new all-time high of 69,700 won ($63). During the session, Samsung shares surpassed the 70,000-won mark for the first time, reaching as high as 70,500 won at one point. Shares in Samsung have been skyrocketing recently with massive foreign buying on expectations of a big boom in the chip industry next y

The average life expectancy for those born here in 2019 came to 83.3, up by over eight years from 20 years ago, data from Statistics Korea showed. As of last year, the life expectancy for those aged 40 would be 41.3 more years for men and 47.1 more years for women, according to the agency.  (khnews@heraldcorp.com)

South Korea’s exports will recover next year to invigorate economic growth, which has been slowed in 2020 by the COVID-19 pandemic, a trade association chief said Wednesday. Speaking at a press conference, Korea International Trade Association Chairman Kim Young-ju said the organization foresaw export growth of more than 6 percent, and that the country’s trade volume will recover back above the $1 trillion mark next year. “OECD predicted Korea’s economy to grow 2.8 p

South Korean actors Jung Woo-sung (left) and Lee Jung-jae pose for a picture at a pop-up shop designed to promote Ballantine’s Single Malt Whisky at cultural complex KOTE in Insa-dong, central Seoul, last Friday.  The two actors, official models for the Scotch whisky brand, had a film shoot the same day.  The pop-up shop will be open to the public for free until Sunday and offers six single-malt whiskies, according to the brand. Visitors must wear masks. The shop is also limit

Samsung Electronics Co. was the top global smartphone manufacturer in the third quarter of the year, a report showed Wednesday, as demand for its mobile devices increased in advanced markets amid the pandemic. Samsung led the industry in terms of smartphone production with 78 million units in the July-September period, up 42 percent from a quarter earlier, and accounted for 23.2 percent of the total share, according to market researcher TrendForce. "This result reflects Samsung's continu

Posco International said Wednesday that it has partnered with the Korea Institute of Startup & Entrepreneurship Development to support small and midsized ventures and startup companies in entering overseas markets. Posco International and the institute held an online conference on the day to offer business consultations to 25 startup companies in fields including artificial intelligence, smart cities and the environment, the company said. From the business experience and global networks