South Korea’s largest steelmaker Posco plans to support small steel companies to build their smart factories, investing 20 billion won ($16.9 million) over the next five years, according to the company on Sunday. A total of 30 billion won in investment -- including 10 billion won from the Ministry of SMEs and Startups -- will be injected to help around 500 selected companies, Posco said.  Through the project, companies willing to build smart factories will be provided with up to 100 m

South Korea’s increasingly stringent environmental regulations are hobbling its steel industry, already beset by falling sales and rising raw material prices. Last week, three regional governments representing South Chungcheong Province, North Gyeongsang Province and South Jeolla Province insisted that local steel companies Posco and Hyundai Steel halt their steel mills for 10 days over violations of the Clean Air Conservation Act.  The provincial governments said Posco’s steel

Will robots replace human workforce?That is a question constantly raised with the advancement of new technologies that make robots smarter and more autonomous. That is, however, “undue concern,” says the chief of South Korea’s state-run robot institute, who has been in the industry for more than 30 years. “Technological developments to make a human-like robot is still in the early stages worldwide,” Korea Institute for Robot Industry Advancement President Moon Jeon-

President Moon Jae-in on Wednesday joined a test drive of the nation’s first city bus powered by hydrogen and developed for commercial use, demonstrating his administration’s drive to nurture the development of fuel-cell electric vehicles. The president took the nation’s first hydrogen bus planned for regular intracity bus service at an event held on the sidelines of World Environment Day in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province. It was the third test drive of hydrogen cars for M

South Korea will toughen sanctions on habitual tax delinquents who owe huge sums, amid growing public criticism over the problem. “The government plans to toughen sanctions on taxpayers who habitually owe taxes despite being (financially) capable of paying, as public anger grows over the individuals who conceal their assets and live in luxury,” said a joint statement issued Wednesday by the ministries of finance, safety, health, law, justice, tax and customs. Beginning next year

Korea International Trade Association Chairman Kim Young-ju (left) and Industry Minister Sung Yun-mo attend the opening ceremony of Startup Branch on Tuesday at Coex in southern Seoul.  The space, divided into four areas -- offices, a pitching center, a consultation area and a cafeteria -- is designed to run programs that help local startups advance overseas. 

South Korea’s largest job fair for foreign companies began on Tuesday at Coex in Seoul, with 159 firms readying to recruit young job seekers. The two-day annual career expo with the largest number of participating companies this year is co-hosted by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and Seoul Metropolitan Government and co-organized by Korea Trade Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) and Financial Supervisory Service. The companies include Hewlett Packard Korea, Tokyo Electron Kore

Shareholders of Hyundai Heavy Industries on Friday approved a split-up plan of the company amid intense opposition from the labor union.The split is the first step for the country’s largest shipbuilder to carry out its proposed merger with runner-up Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering.In March this year, HHI signed a deal with Korea Development Bank to acquire DSME for 2 trillion won ($1.7 billion). The state-run bank is the largest shareholder of cash-strapped DSME, with a 55.7 p

Google has changed terms and conditions related to copyright infringement on its video-streaming platform YouTube at the request of South Korea’s antitrust watchdog, the government said Thursday. The Fair Trade Commission said the US tech firm had changed eight terms and conditions in a follow-up to the request in March. The authorities had asked for the revision of clauses that allowed YouTube to arbitrarily delete and reuse videos posted by users.Under the revised terms, if a user’

Protests by the workers of Hyundai Heavy Industries against a tie-up with Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering are escalating, with labor unions of Hyundai Motor and DSME joining the strike on Wednesday. Two days ahead of HHI’s shareholders meeting to decide on modalities of the merger, the workers’ protests intensified by occupying the venue and staging an all-out strike to disrupt the meeting. If the proposal for physical division of the company after merger is passed

LG Electronics was fined 50 million won ($42,000) by South Korea’s antitrust watchdog for false advertisement of one of its home appliances, the government said Tuesday. The Fair Trade Commission said LG falsely advertised that plastic containers inside its Kimchi refrigerators received certification from the US Food and Drug Administration. LG’s Kimchi containers met the safety standards of the FDA but did not receive certification. The FDA certifies only medicines and not plas

South Korea’s minister of trade, industry and energy asked Chinese companies to expand their investment in the nation’s Saemangeum projects during a meeting hosted by China’s Jiangsu government on Monday with the aim of boosting ties in trade and investment. On Monday afternoon, Industry Minister Sung Yun-mo and Jiangsu Party Secretary Lou Qinjian met in Seoul to discuss mutual cooperation in the areas of industry, trade and investment. During the meeting, accompanied by t

South Korea’s micro fuel cell technologies were certified by an international standards organization, becoming the nation’s first hydrogen technologies to receive international certification, according to the government Sunday. The standards on micro fuel cells were certified three years after the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy proposed it to the Geneva-based International Electrotechnical Commission in April of 2016. The approval came after much discussion and verification b

The South Korean antitrust watchdog will be more flexible in enforcing competition laws with the emergence of new services and products in the digital era, its chief said following a meeting with large companies Thursday. Fair Trade Commission Chairman Kim Sang-jo held a closed-door policy meeting with top executives from 15 companies, including Hanjin, CJ, Kumho Asiana, Kolon, OCI and Kakao -- the nation’s largest companies ranking from 11th to 34th by assets.This is the fourth time Kim h

South Korea is negotiating with foreign investors over new investment projects valued at $1.8 billion, according to the government. On Wednesday, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy held a foreign investment policy meeting with 17 regional governments and seven free economic zones. Such meetings are held every quarter to monitor foreign investment and address challenges. The ministry said regional governments and free economic zones are in talks with foreign investors for 29 new inve

Korea Gas Corp. said Wednesday it is carrying out activities to improve workplace safety and prevent industrial accidents, along with regional communities and partner companies. The state-run natural gas company designates the fourth day of every month as the “day of safety inspections.” On the day, it holds campaigns to improve safety awareness among its employees and the public, in collaboration with regional governments and public organizations. It has also formed a team of 1

South Korea has chosen the bio-health industry as one of its three new target growth engines, alongside non-memory chips and future mobility. Through the industry, it aims to capture a 6 percent global market share, reach $50 billion in exports and create 300,000 jobs by 2030. “Bio-health will continue to grow and develop,” said President Moon Jae-in on Wednesday at a ceremony to proclaim the nation’s bio-health vision in Osong Bio Valley, North Chungcheong Province, attended b

South Korea’s largest steelmaker Posco said Tuesday it plans to invest 1 trillion won ($838 million) to nurture promising domestic startups.The core aim of the project is to establish an industrial complex, called Venture Valley, for startups that will aid firms in research and development. It will also launch a startup fund, called Venture Fund, to help a slew of firms in association with the Ministry of SMEs and Startups and the Korean Venture Capital Association.Some 200 billion won will be i

The Korea Institute of Startup and Entrepreneurship Development, a subsidiary of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, recently advertised for a total of 850 promising startups boasting advanced technology but lacking investment. In an announcement earlier this month, the institute vowed to back the selected startups so that they can better attract investment, pioneer markets, protect technologies and develop prototypes. Each company will also be funded up to 100 million won and supported by 53 sel

Following news reports that the US is set to delay its decision on auto tariffs, the Korean car industry heaved a sigh of relief, with their stocks surging in the morning. At 9:06 a.m., the nation’s largest automaker Hyundai Motor’s stock traded as high as 44,300 won ($37), up 5.6 percent from the previous day. Kia Motors’ shares went up as high as 6.32 percent, and Hyundai Mobis’ shares rose 3.99 percent.  (Yonhap)A day earlier, US media outlets reported that US President Donald Trump is set to