Top Korean cosmetics companies are preparing for a beauty expo coming to Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province in September.According to North Chungcheong Province, 81 companies have registered to participate in the Cosmetics & Beauty Expo, Osong Korea 2017, which will take place from Sept. 12-16 at Osong Station. This is the expo’s fourth year.  Buyers receive information about cosmetics at the Cosmetics & Beauty Expo, Osong Korea 2016 (North Chungcheong Province)Major participants include The S

STOCKHOLM -- Lego on Thursday announced record revenues for 2016, but slow profit growth marked the end of years of boost for the inventor of the famous multi-coloured plastic bricks.Revenues jumped by six percent last year compared to 2015, to 37.9 billion kroner (5 billion euros, $5.2 billion),  for a net profit up two percent to 9.4 billion. This is the smallest annual rise since 2007 for both figures. "We have had an almost supernatural growth in recent years. Now we have more sustainable gr

LONDON -- British MPs will meet on Monday to discuss amendments made to a bill empowering Prime Minister Theresa May to trigger Brexit, with further debate possible on Tuesday and Wednesday, the government said.The legislation is a requirement from the Supreme Court, which said that May needs lawmakers' approval to be able to invoke Article 50 of the EU's Lisbon Treaty, the formal procedure for leaving the bloc.The House of Commons will discuss changes to the bill made by the House of Lords, par

The Court of Justice of the European Union on Thursday upheld a 1.8 trillion won ($1.55 billion) fine slapped on Samsung SDI Co. over allegations of rigging prices for parts used in computer and TV screens.In December 2012, the European Commission imposed the penalty on Samsung SDI, the battery-making arm of South Korea's top conglomerate, and its Malaysian and German affiliates for allegedly fixing prices and allocating customers between themselves from 1996 to 2006 in the television and comput

The state-run Korea Gas Corp. has filed a compensation suit against 13 construction companies over allegations they fixed prices for building its storage tanks, the companies said Thursday.The world's largest LNG importer filed the some 200 billion won($172 million) suit with the Daegu District Court on Feb. 16, according to the announcement made by Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co., Daewoo Engineering & Construction Co. and Daelim Industrial Co.  The logo of KOGAS (KOGAS)In April last year

South Korea said Thursday that it raised the alert level against cyberattacks by one notch in a bid to better fend off an expected increase in cyberattacks from North Korea and others on the country's major agencies and businesses.The Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning raised its alert level to its second-highest level as of 6:00 p.m.The country's cyberalert system consists of a five-notch scale, with the third-highest level issued when an attack is detected.The ministry said hacking a

A road in the center of a new suburb near Santa Cruz, Bolivia, has been named “Avenida Corea” (Korea Avenue) to recognize Korea‘s help in building the city, according to the Transport Ministry Thursday.The new city, modeled after Korea’s suburban apartment communities, will be about 56 square kilometers, or three times the size of Seoul’s major suburb Bundang. According to the Transport Ministry, Korea provided consulting on the project to create an eco-friendly suburb with applications of smart

H&M Group’s fashion brand & Other Stories has come to Korea, with the first store to open in Seoul on Friday. On Wednesday, the brand revealed its first store in the Apgujeong shopping district in Seoul. The 660square-meter store is made up of three floors and will feature the brand’s global launch of its Gift Shop stationery and lifestyle products collection. & Other Stories' Apgujeong store (& Other Stories)

Lotte Group continues to be the target of government inspections in China, as tensions rise between the country and Korea over the deployment of a US anti-missile system here.On Wednesday, Lotte Shanghai Food Corp.’s chocolate factory was directed to shut down for one month after a building safety inspection Monday.  (Yonhap)The corporation is a 50-50 joint venture between Lotte Confectionery and US-based candy maker Hershey’s. “In cooperation with the government, as of March 8, the LSFC factory

(Boeing)Boeing said Wednesday that it revealed its first 737 Max 9 on Tuesday in the US. The model is the second plane in the 737 Max series and can carry 220 passengers over 6,510 kilometers. The 737 Max 9 will begin servicing flights next year. (Boeing)

Resort complex Paradise City is set to open its hotel, casino and convention facilities in April, according to Paradise Sega Sammy on Wednesday.  The main lobby of Paradise Hotel & Resort (Paradise Sega Sammy)The resort is a 1.3 trillion won ($1.14 billion) joint venture between Korean casino operator Paradise Group and Japanese entertainment company Sega Sammy. Standing on 330,000 square meters of land, it began construction in November 2014 in the International Business Center near Incheon Air

The Korean government is contemplating filing a petition with the World Trade Organization over China‘s recent moves allegedly aimed to damage Korean businesses, following Seoul’s decision to bring a US anti-missile system here.Following a meeting between the government and the ruling Liberty Korea Party on Tuesday morning, Lee Hyun-jae, the party’s policy chief, said Korea would “actively” consider the option. (132RF)China has been seen amplifying pressure on Korean businesses that depend heavi

A survey among university students in Korea released Tuesday found that while the majority recognized problems with the irresponsible drinking culture on campuses, few were willing to act to change the culture.The survey was conducted by Diageo Korea, a global premium drinks company, on 2,400 college students. Seven out of 10 students said they saw a problem with the irresponsible drinking culture associated with college parties, but just 20 percent of them said they were willing to actively cha

Asiana Airlines said Monday that it will be expanding its codeshare agreement with United Airlines to include Chicago effective Mar. 17.Under the codeshare agreement, United will be able to place its UA code on Asiana flights connecting Incheon and Chicago‘s O’Hare International Airport. Asiana will put its OZ code on United‘s 16 routes to domestic destinations within the US. (Asiana Airlines)Asiana currently offers five weekly nonstop flights to Chicago. In 2016, the airline filled 83.8 percent

Pizza franchise Papa John‘s has been ranked the top pizza brand in terms of customer satisfaction in a recent survey in South Korea, according to the Korea Consumer Agency Monday.Papa John’s beat other industry leading brands such as Pizza Hut and Domino‘s Pizza to receive highest overall marks on consumer satisfaction.  (123rf)According to the survey, Papa John’s ranked the top in the “taste” category, which is the most important factor considered by consumers when choosing a pizza brand. It ra

Korean companies are bracing to take hits from Beijing and Chinese consumers as repercussions of Seoul’s decision to install an American anti-missile system here begin to take shape both in China and in Korea.Beijing has been ramping up retaliatory measures against Korea, especially since Lotte Group decided to sign a land swap deal with the Defense Ministry to provide land for the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense System here last week. The moves, including an unofficial travel ban to Korea a

The latest trade tension with China comes in the form of a new registration process for certain cosmetics imported from South Korea to China through ports in the Pudong New Area of Shanghai. The measure took effect Wednesday, according to the Korea International Trade Association Thursday.The new cosmetics regulations, which were announced in January, allows certain cosmetics brought in through Pudong to be distributed after a simple registration process before going through the existing license

In line with its 20th anniversary this year, discount retailer Homeplus has launched a special movie-themed promotion, the company said Thursday.Homeplus will be offering discount promotions and sales events that focus on fresh food and items from abroad through March 29 in its offline and online stores.Until recently, Homeplus had considered its establishment date to be in May 1999, when Samsung C&T launched a joint venture with the UK-based retailer Tesco. However, after Tesco’s sale of Homepl

Discount retailer E-mart began exclusively selling the European baby formula brand Aptamil in its stores Wednesday, according to the company.E-mart signed an agreement with Danone Nutricia, the company operating the Aptamil brand, for exclusive rights to sell the popular premium baby formula here. Aptamil, known for its high-quality blend of ingredients, is currently sold in 45 countries worldwide. Aptamil with Pronutra+ Stage 3, which hit E-mart shelves Wednesday. (E-mart)“E-mart decided to imp

Asiana Airlines said Wednesday that it was introducing an upgraded economy class for the first time on its newest planes.The seat class, called Economy Smartium, is the first premium economy class to be launched by a Korean airline and will be featured on the airline’s upcoming fleet of Airbus 350-900 planes. The Airbus 350-900 to be brought in by Asiana Airlines (Asiana Airlines)The upgraded seats will be available to passengers for an additional fee of $30 to $150 depending on distance. They o