Incheon Airport successfully achieved the role of a transport hub during the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics and Paralympics in February and March, the airport said, citing feedback from Olympics athletes and related officials.  Incheon International Airport CEO Chung Il-young (left) shakes hand with International Paralympic Committee President Andrew Parsons at Incheon Airport in March. (IIAC)South Korea‘s main gateway operated special arrival and departure services exclusively for Olympics te

South Korea’s top conglomerate Samsung Group is likely to make an “irreversible” change after uncertainty over the fate of its de facto head is cleared, the head of the nation’s antitrust watchdog said Tuesday, referring to an upper court’s ruling on Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong.FTC Chairman Kim Sang-jo (Yonhap)The Supreme Court has been reviewing Lee’s case since last month. It is expected to take up to about six months to hand down the final ruling on Lee, who was freed on a

Korea Yakult, a household name in the yogurt and fermented dairy product market in Korea, said it achieved sales of 1 trillion won ($940 million) in 2017, five years after it spun off its instant noodle division Paldo.  Korea Yakult’s fermented milk products (Korea Yakult)In 2012, Korea Yakult spun off Paldo following the release of its hit chicken-based instant noodles Kkokkomyeon in 2011. Korea Yakult’s sales after the spin-off dwindled to around 900 billion won. According to data from the Fin

GS Engineering & Construction said Monday that its first-quarter operating profit jumped more than fivefold compared to its profit on-year.From January 1 to March 31, the company made a total of 380 billion won ($356 million) of operating profit, a 554.75 percent jump from the previous year, according to GS E&C. Its operating profit has been showing a positive figure for 16 consecutive quarters, it added. The company said a sharp increase in operating profit is attributable to constant gain from

Air purifiers are the most wanted home appliance electronics this year amid escalating concerns over bad levels of fine dust and indoor air pollution, industry watchers said, forecasting its sales to reach up to 3 million units by the end of this year.Sales of air purifiers have been increasing since 2014. A total of 1.4 million units of air purifiers were sold last year, up from 1 million in 2016, 870,000 units in 2015 and 500,000 in 2014. The sales rise is expected to continue as the South Kor

Since 2016 when Shinsegae Vice Chairman Chung Yong-jin separated and began to run the management of E-Mart, a retail unit of Shinsegae group, E-Mart and its private brand products have never been so ubiquitous in the everyday lives of South Koreans. Shinsegae Group Vice Chairman Chung Yong-jin (Yonhap)While the number of E-Mart stores decreased by two to 145 in 2017 compared to the previous year, its product lineups became more diversified with launches of packaged ready-to-eat food brand Peacoc

South Korean food and beverage company Nongshim’s best-selling Shin Ramyun is now available at the top of the Matterhorn in Switzerland. Tourists pose with Shin Ramyun at Jungfrau in Switzerland. (Nongshim)Sources said that a kiosk in Matterhorn’s Gornergrat observatory began selling Shin Ramyun last month, upon the request of the Switzerland tourism office covering the canton of Valais.In May 2016, the tourism authority allowed the sale of Korean instant noodle maker Ottogi’s Jin Ramen there, f

Discount chain E-mart’s Electro Mart said Tuesday that it would open 10 more outlets and achieve 500 billion won ($470 million) in sales by the end of this year.Electro Mart, which specializes in electronics, was launched in 2015 and currently runs 20 outlets across the country, including one in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, slated to open Friday. The company said its sales reached 337 billion won last year, rising twofold over just a year. Officials said they expect sales to hit 500 bill

Annual sales of South Korean e-commerce company WeMakePrice jumped 28 percent last year to 473 billion won ($445 million), well exceeding its competitors’ sales growth average of 19.2 percent, the company said Tuesday. WeMakePrice (WeMakePrice)The increase in sales has been attributed to reducing operating losses, as it logged 41.7 billion in losses, a 34.4 percent drop from last year.Its operating loss rate, calculated by net loss divided by turnover, recorded 8.8 percent, in the single digits

Starbucks Coffee Korea said Tuesday that customers are now able to order menu items via voice commands to Bixby, Samsung’s artificial-intelligence based virtual assistant, which has been linked to Starbucks Coffee Korea’s mobile order and payment app Siren Order. A model orders from the Starbucks menu via Samsung’s Bixby. (Starbucks Coffee Korea)“Customers can order as if they are talking to a barista at our Starbucks store, such as asking for more syrup or extra whipping cream,” said a Starbuck

Incheon International Airport celebrated its 17th anniversary last week, vowing to become an airport of smart technology and handle up to 130 million passengers by 2027. Incheon International Airport (IIAC)The ceremony, held on Thursday, was attended by some 400 airport employees, officials from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport as well as airlines and partner companies.Incheon International Airport CEO Chung Il-young said “Incheon International Airport was able to take a leap a

South Korean confectionery company Orion said Monday that it has recently won a trademark suit against a Vietnamese company for its signature product Choco Pie.  Orion’s Choco Pie sold in Vietnam (Orion)According to Orion, a Vietnamese confectionery company was found to have been using Choco Pie trademark for their products in 2015. Orion has been using Choco Pie trademark since 1994 in Vietnam. Orion reported the case to the Vietnam Intellectual Property Research Institute as trademark infringe

Following a Los Angeles judge’s ruling that coffee companies including Starbucks should carry a cancer warning label due to a chemical produced in the roasting process, leading coffee chains operating in South Korea remained cautious while civic activists called for alert. Consumers were mostly confused.A local subsidiary of US coffeehouse chain Starbucks Coffee Korea said that the matter is impacting the entire US coffee industry, not just limited to Starbucks.“We understand that around 90 coff

To begin a relationship, there are many things to consider about a potential partner, from age to personality, occupation and, for some, blood type.According to a survey conducted by Dooit Survey in January, the majority of 3,768 Koreans ranked personality as the priority when choosing a partner. Men ranked appearance and health as the second priority and occupation as third. Women put occupation and economic ability in the second spot, followed by appearance. The time-consuming process and limi

Debate has been reignited over whether it was timely or too soon for Korean Air heiress Cho Hyun-ah, known for her “nut rage” tantrum that sparked international uproar in 2014, to make an official comeback to work after three years and four months this week.Former Korean Air Vice President Cho Hyun-ah (Korean Air)According to KAL Hotel Network, a subsidiary of Korean Air under Hanjin Group, 44-year-old Cho was approved as its president during a shareholders meeting held Thursday. Cho, the former

Shinsegae Group Vice Chairman Chung Yong-jin announced Wednesday that the retail giant -- flourishing in the Korean market but with meager global prominence -- will open the high-end grocery store PK Market in the US by May next year.  Shinsegae Group Vice Chairman Chung Yong-jin (center) and the Employment and Labor Minister Kim Young-joo look around the booths at the Shinsegae Group and Partners Job Fair held in Seoul on Wednesday. (Yonhap)Chung was attending the Shinsegae Group and Partners J

Homeplus, South Korea’s No. 2 discount chain by store locations, will expand overseas sourcing by working together with European suppliers and revolutionizing the operations system, the company CEO said Tuesday.  Homeplus CEO Lim Il-soon speaks at a press conference in Seoul on Tuesday. (Homeplus)“Retail industry, both domestically and globally, faces unprecedented uncertainties. Our vision, at this critical moment, is to become the most loved and trusted retail company across the country,” said

Dozens of flights have been delayed at Incheon’s international airport due to bad weather conditions, the Incheon Airport said Monday.(Yonhap)The airport said smog had hampered flights from taking off or landing, with around 100-200 meters visibility recorded since Sunday evening. A warning on low visibility has been issued at 7:50 p.m. on Sunday and has not been lifted off as of 1 p.m. Monday, the airport said. The Seoul Regional Aviation Administration issues warnings when the visibility falls

The Korea Development Bank, the main creditor of the ailing Kumho Tire, said Sunday that it has never received or offered an acquisition deal involving a local company, denying claims by unionized workers at the tiremaker.Unionized workers hold a protest in Gwangju on Saturday. (Yonhap)“Since opening Doublestar’s intention to invest, the KDB has neither contacted any Korean companies to attract investment, nor was it offered a takeover deal from local firms,” it said in a statement. “If interest

South Korean retail giant Lotte Corp. said Sunday that it will host its first Non-Deal Roadshow as a holding company in Hong Kong and Singapore next week. Lotte Corp.Arranged by Nomura Securities and HSBC Fund Services, the NDR session is the first to be held by the conglomerate after it adopted a holding company structure in October.The NDR is a type of event held for investment, where executives hold discussions with current and potential investors. Nothing is offered for sale.Lotte’s interim