South Korea's largest hydrogen center begins operation SEOUL, November 11 (AJP) - A joint venture between Lotte Chemical and Air Liquide has opened South Korea’s largest high-pressure hydrogen shipping center. The facility, located in the Daesan Petrochemical Complex in South Chungcheong Province and operated by Lotte-Air Liquide Ener’Hy, a joint venture established in 2022, will supply high-pressure hydrogen across South Korea’s central region, including Seoul. It is expected to play a key role in fueling hydrogen-powered commercial vehicles such as buses and trucks — a crucial step toward building a viable hydrogen economy. Executives from both companies were joined for the opening ceremony on Tuesday by government and industry officials, including An Se-chang, director of climate energy policy at the Ministry of Climate and Environment, Seosan Mayor Lee Wan-seop, Air Liquide Asia-Pacific head Ronnie Chalmers, Lotte Chemical chief executive Lee Young-jun and Hyundai Motor vice president Ken Ramirez. Backed by the government’s hydrogen shipping center initiative and leveraging Lotte Chemical’s byproduct hydrogen output, the Daesan facility is capable of producing hydrogen at 450 bar, or roughly twice the pressure of conventional systems. According to the company, that capacity is enough to supply fuel for about 4,200 passenger vehicles or 1,100 commercial buses a day. The introduction of advanced high-pressure tube trailers will also improve logistics efficiency, allowing each vehicle to transport about 3.5 times more hydrogen than older 200-bar systems, the company said. “The completion of the Daesan center demonstrates our commitment to a sustainable energy future in South Korea,” said Kim So-mi, chief executive of Lotte-Air Liquide Ener’Hy. “We aim to accelerate hydrogen mobility adoption and contribute to the country’s ambitious hydrogen ecosystem goals.” Lee, Lotte Chemical’s chief executive, said the new facility marks an important step in turning industrial byproduct hydrogen into a high-value energy source. “The Daesan center represents a milestone in our journey toward carbon neutrality,” he said. “We will continue to lead in hydrogen innovation and expand new energy businesses.” South Korea has set a goal of becoming one of the world’s leading hydrogen economies by 2035, with plans to deploy more than 200,000 hydrogen-powered commercial vehicles and establish nationwide refueling infrastructure. * This article, published by Aju Business Daily, was translated by AI and edited by AJP. 2025-11-11 13:49:39

KOSPI and Nikkei remain bellwethers in Asia, recharged by U.S. market easing SEOUL, November 11 (AJP) - Korean and Japanese equities extended their coupled strength on Tuesday, lifted by easing concerns over the U.S. government shutdown and renewed confidence that recent warnings over an AI bubble may have been overstated. South Korea’s benchmark KOSPI climbed as much as 2.6 percent to 4,179.51 in early trading, while the tech-heavy KOSDAQ rose 1 percent to 897.31. Large-cap shares led the advance: Samsung Electronics gained 3.8 percent to 104,400 won ($71), SK hynix added nearly 4 percent to 629,000 won, Hyundai Motor rose 1.1 percent to 273,500 won, LG Energy Solution jumped 4.9 percent to 488,250 won, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries increased 1.7 percent to 547,000 won, and Naver climbed 3.5 percent to 269,000 won. SK Square surged 11 percent to 322,000 won, breaking into the 300,000-won range for the first time. NH Investment & Securities raised its target price to 350,000 won from 165,000 won, citing a sharp increase in the company’s net asset value driven by the rally in its chipmaking affiliate. “With SK hynix accounting for the largest share of NAV, the steep rise in its stock price is driving SK Square’s rally,” said Ahn Jae-min, an analyst at NH Investment & Securities. Doosan Corp. jumped 12.5 percent to 1,056,000 won amid expectations of record fourth-quarter earnings. Eugene Investment & Securities analyst Lee Joo-hyung projected that Doosan’s electronics business will post fourth-quarter revenue of 549.9 billion won ($376 million), up 64 percent on year, and operating profit of 165.2 billion won, up 269 percent, supported by stable output of its GB300 rack servers and higher weekly production of its GB200 servers. U.S. stocks closed higher Monday on optimism that Washington was moving toward reopening the federal government after the prolonged budget standoff. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.8 percent to 47,368.63, the S&P 500 climbed 1.5 percent to 6,832.43, and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 2.3 percent to 23,527.17. Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 0.8 percent to 51,326.60, with most blue-chip names extending gains. Toyota Motor edged up 1 percent to 3,163 yen ($20.5), Fast Retailing rose 2 percent to 59,400 yen, and SoftBank Group surged 5.4 percent to 23,455 yen. Strong foreign inflows remain the backbone of Japan’s rally, supported by the revival of the yen carry trade—borrowing in near-zero-yielding yen to chase higher returns abroad. Goldman Sachs said Monday that U.S. capital inflows into Japan have accelerated to the fastest pace since the height of Abenomics. “U.S. investor participation in the Japanese equity market is at its highest since October 2022,” said Bruce Kirk, chief strategist at Goldman Sachs. Analysts cite Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s stimulus measures and the yen’s depreciation as key tailwinds. While the S&P 500 is up about 14 percent this year, the Nikkei has surged roughly 30 percent. Goldman Sachs noted that U.S. buyers have concentrated on Japanese technology and AI-related stocks. According to Japan Exchange Group data, foreign investors purchased a net 284 billion yen ($1.8 billion) of Japanese equities—spot and futures combined—over the final two weeks of last month. Kirk said global allocations to Japanese equities “remain low, suggesting further room for inflows,” while cautioning that “after the recent sharp rally, a period of consolidation could follow.” Elsewhere in the region, China’s Shanghai Composite Index slipped 0.01 percent to 4,018.36, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 0.3 percent to 26,722.73. 2025-11-11 11:19:41

Hyundai Motor to supply electric buses to Indonesia's Bali SEOUL, November 11 (AJP) - Hyundai Motor said on Tuesday that it had been selected as the final contractor to supply electric buses to Bali, Indonesia. The South Korean automaker won the contract through an international bidding process organized by the Global Green Growth Institute, or GGGI, an environmental organization backed by the South Korean government. The project is part of Indonesia’s broader push to promote sustainable mobility and reduce carbon emissions in tourism-heavy regions. The initiative follows a memorandum of understanding signed in April between South Korea’s Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment and the Indonesian government to collaborate on what is called the Bali e-Mobility Project, an official development assistance program. The project aims to transition Bali’s public transport network to electric vehicles and serve as a model for other Indonesian cities. Under the agreement, Hyundai will supply 10 units of its County electric buses for Bali’s public transport system — the first time electric buses will be used on the island. Hyundai had previously provided the same model to Surabaya, Indonesia’s second-largest city, in 2023. “Supplying electric buses to Bali, a destination for tourists worldwide, is significant,” said Kim Seong-nam, executive vice president at Hyundai’s Asia-Pacific headquarters. “We plan to continue supporting the development of eco-friendly public transportation in major Indonesian cities.” * This article, published by Aju Business Daily, was translated by AI and edited by AJP. 2025-11-11 11:02:37

TV personality Park Kyung-lim donates 200 million won to support children in need SEOUL, November 11 (AJP) - Versatile TV personality Park Kyung-lim has donated 200 million Korean won (or about US$136,000) to support children from underprivileged families, a charity agency run by the Seoul Metropolitan Government said on Tuesday. The donation came just a few months after she invited around 1,000 children and young people to her musical "Again Dream High," supporting them in pursuing their dreams and fostering their career development. At that time, she expressed her willingness to help them, saying, "Many helped me when I had nothing but passion. Now I want to help someone achieve his or her dreams." Park's philanthropic efforts and generous donations are nothing new, as she has participated in various campaigns and activities as a promotional ambassador for charity organization Save the Children since 2006, donating multiple times through different charities to support young children in need and those who suffer from rare diseases. * This article, published by Aju Business Daily, was translated by AI and edited by AJP. 2025-11-11 10:59:26

OPINION: Debates over raising retirement age emerge as South Korea becomes super-aged society SEOUL, November 11 (AJP) - With South Korea now officially a "super-aged society," concerns are mounting over how to secure stable income for its rapidly growing elderly population. This has reignited discussions about further raising the retirement age, a decade after it was last set at 60 in 2013. Proposals to raise the retirement age to 65 have sparked mixed reactions, exposing generational and social divides over how and when such changes should take effect. The ruling Democratic Party (DP) aims to pass a bill this year to gradually raise the retirement age from 60 to 65, sparking heated debate as labor unions call for a unified implementation while employers voice concerns over rising labor costs. Major labor unions want the extension without wage cuts, as it is intended to help secure stable income for skilled senior workers. Employers, on the other hand, fear that raising the retirement age could increase labor costs and reduce employment opportunities for younger workers. With more older employees remaining in the workforce, companies may cut back on new hires to manage costs, which could disadvantage young job seekers. Statistical data reflect these concerns. The proportion of workers in their 20s among new hires has declined from 51.4 percent in the first quarter of 2022 to 46.9 percent during the same period this year, remaining below 50 percent for eight straight quarters. Employment for those aged 15 to 29, which peaked with an increase of 119,000 in 2022, fell by 144,000 last year. Small businesses, whose labor costs account for 18.1 percent of total sales, compared with 9.4 percent for large companies, face a heavier financial burden. Extending the retirement age without adequate preparation could generate friction among generations, labor unions, and employers. Such a change is more than a numerical adjustment, requiring careful consideration of multiple factors including business conditions, hiring capacity, wage structures, and opportunities for younger workers. Amid the country's ultra-low birthrates and aging population, delaying retirement is becoming increasingly inevitable. However, policies implemented hastily could lead to unintended consequences. It is crucial to reconcile the differing views of labor and management and build broad social consensus. With the labor market rapidly evolving in the era of artificial intelligence (AI), various forms of employment including remote work, part-time or reduced-hour work, and other flexible arrangements should be considered. Rather than fixating on setting the retirement age at 65, what matters is providing work opportunities for those who wish to continue working to maintain a steady income after retirement. The government, labor, and management should work together to ensure that extending the retirement age neither curtails opportunities for young workers nor burdens small businesses. * This article, published by Aju Business Daily, was translated by AI and edited by AJP. 2025-11-11 10:20:10

CJ CheilJedang's 3Q dips nearly 27% on cost spike related to raw materials and FX SEOUL, November 11 (AJP) - South Korea's food giant CJ CheilJedang on Tuesday reported double-digit fall in its third-quarter earnings as the global popularity of K-food was outweighed by money-losing bio and feed operations. According to its disclosure, its operating profit plunged 25.6 percent on year to 203 billion won on revenue of 4.5 trillion won ($3.08 billion) for the quarter ended September. Including CJ Logistics, consolidated revenue inched up 0.3 percent on year to 7.43 trillion won, while operating profit still dropped 15.9 percent to 346.5 billion won. The drag was attributed to the Bio division and the Feed & Care (livestock and animal feed) business. The Bio unit posted revenue of 979 billion won, down 8 percent on year, while operating profit tumbled 72 percent to 22 billion won. The company cited intensified competition in high-value amino acids such as tryptophan and arginine, which drove down margins and pressured overall market conditions. Feed & Care revenue fell 2 percent to 569 billion won, while operating profit slumped 63 percent to 12 billion won, weighed down by declining livestock prices in Vietnam, one of its key sourcing markets. The core food remained resilient on robust overseas demand, but its bottom line was hurt by ongoing U.S.-China trade tensions that hurt food inputs like soybeans. The unit generated revenue of 2.98 trillion won, up slightly from a year earlier, while operating profit rose 4 percent to 168.5 billion won. CJ CheilJedang said reduced holiday gift-set sales were offset by stronger sales of Global Strategy Products (GSP) such as mandu dumplings and instant rice. The company added that soaring soybean prices in North America, sharp foreign exchange fluctuations, and increased promotional spending in Europe pushed up costs, but domestic processed-food sales helped cushion profitability. Revenue rose across all major overseas markets — the Americas, Japan, China, Oceania, and Europe — with Europe, a relatively new market for the company, delivering a robust 13 percent on-year increase. In contrast, domestic revenue slipped 3 percent due to weaker Chuseok gift-set sales. CJ Logistics helped offset some of the group’s earnings weakness. The subsidiary reported revenue of 3.67 trillion won, up 3 percent on year, while operating profit rose 4 percent to 148 billion won, supported by expanding domestic parcel volumes and increased orders from third-party logistics (3PL) clients. CJ CheilJedang was trading at 227,000 won as of 9:40 a.m., down 1.3 percent, as the outlook on trade environment remains foggy. CJ CheilJedang estimated modest top-line growth but projects its operating margin to decline from 5.6 percent in the third quarter to around 3 percent due to costs related to surging soybean prices in North America. It was buoyant about expansion across Asia and Oceania and plans to keep up the European momentum by implementing region-specific strategies. 2025-11-11 10:17:27

Celltrion completes regulatory approvals for acquisition of Eli Lilly plant in US SEOUL, November 11 (AJP) - South Korean biopharmaceutical company Celltrion said on Tuesday that it had finalized the acquisition of Eli Lilly’s production facility in Branchburg, New Jersey. The deal, which recently cleared all regulatory hurdles in the United States and Ireland, positions Celltrion to expand its presence in the world’s largest pharmaceutical market. The company said it expects to close the transaction by the end of the year. Regulatory approval in the United States came through the Federal Trade Commission’s pre-merger notification process under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act, which assesses potential impacts on competition. Ireland’s approval was granted on Oct. 31, given the company’s significant business operations there. The Branchburg plant — covering about 148,800 square meters — will become Celltrion’s first major manufacturing site in the United States. The company plans to invest more than 700 billion won, or roughly $520 million, to expand the facility by an additional 36,400 square meters, ultimately bringing its capacity to about one and a half times that of Celltrion’s second plant in Songdo, South Korea. “The completion of all merger reviews for the U.S. facility acquisition lays the groundwork for accelerating our global market expansion,” Celltrion said in a statement. “We aim to strengthen our production and supply competitiveness while creating value for shareholders.” The company intends to use the Branchburg site as both a production hub and a platform for contract manufacturing. Celltrion expects the facility to generate revenue immediately after the deal closes, thanks to an existing supply agreement with Lilly. It also plans to pursue new manufacturing contracts, anticipating steady growth in demand for biologics and biosimilars. The move could help Celltrion mitigate tariff risks, diversify its production bases and reduce its reliance on facilities in South Korea, where most of its biologic manufacturing is currently concentrated. Founded in 2002, Celltrion has grown rapidly on the strength of its biosimilar portfolio — lower-cost versions of biologic drugs — and has sought to expand its presence in the U.S. and Europe. The acquisition of the Branchburg plant gives the company a stronger foothold in a market increasingly focused on securing local supply chains for critical pharmaceuticals, Celltrion officials said. * This article, published by Aju Business Daily, was translated by AI and edited by AJP. 2025-11-11 10:12:48

OPINION: Behind EV boom lies growing pile of battery waste The global shift to electric vehicles has hit a temporary slowdown. Sales have cooled, incentives are waning, and skeptics are asking whether the EV boom has peaked. Yet the slowdown is likely to last only a few years. The market will recover as costs fall and technology improves. What deserves far more attention, however, is what happens after the battery runs out. Batteries make up roughly 40 percent of an electric vehicle’s cost. They are the beating heart of the EV revolution — and its biggest environmental challenge. While nations race to improve battery performance, the recycling and disposal of used batteries remain dangerously behind. If governments and manufacturers fail to prepare, the world could soon face a wave of hazardous battery waste. A quiet but consequential competition is now unfolding between two dominant battery technologies: lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries, led by China, and nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM) lithium-ion batteries, favored in South Korea and Japan. LFP batteries are cheaper and increasingly popular, but they hold little value at the end of their life. Only about 15 percent of their materials can be recovered through recycling, compared with as much as 95 percent for NCM batteries. In China, where more than 80 percent of EVs use LFP batteries, reports suggest that many used batteries end up buried — a practice that threatens soil and groundwater contamination. South Korea, known for its stringent environmental standards, risks falling into a similar trap if it does not act decisively. Burying used batteries is not an option for a country as densely populated and land-scarce as South Korea. Yet recycling remains expensive, and government policy has not kept pace with the industry’s growth. South Korea's Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment — recently reorganized to oversee green industries — has been urged to introduce an extended producer responsibility system, requiring manufacturers to take charge of collecting and recycling spent batteries. But progress has been slow. This is more than a waste management issue; it is an industrial and environmental test of leadership. Countries that develop cost-effective recycling systems will not only prevent pollution but also secure access to critical minerals like lithium, nickel and cobalt — resources that are increasingly vital and politically fraught. South Korea, home to some of the world’s most advanced battery makers, has an opportunity to lead. A strong policy framework could turn battery recycling from a looming liability into a new pillar of green growth. The question is whether policymakers will move fast enough before the first wave of used batteries becomes an environmental burden. The EV revolution was never only about cleaner cars. It was about building a cleaner economy. If the world hopes to realize that vision, the next great innovation must happen not in the lab or on the road — but in the recycling plant. * This article, published by Aju Business Daily, was translated by AI and edited by AJP. 2025-11-11 09:46:03

OPINION: South Korea's 260,000 GPUs and vision for AI hub As artificial intelligence becomes the engine of global competition, nations are racing to secure not only the technology but also the computing power that makes it possible. South Korea’s recent partnership with NVIDIA — acquiring 260,000 of the latest AI graphics processing units — is more than a technical upgrade. It is a statement of intent that the country aims to be a serious player in the new digital order. The deal has quadrupled South Korea's national AI computing capacity, boosting its GPU count from roughly 65,000 to more than 300,000. That is no small feat at a time when even global tech giants are struggling to source high-end chips. In the geopolitical economy of artificial intelligence, where GPUs are the new oil, South Korea has just secured a significant reserve. The implications are profound. For years, the country’s researchers and startups have faced a bottleneck — not a lack of talent or ambition, but of access to large-scale computing infrastructure. Now, with this expanded capacity, South Korea can train its own foundation models rather than relying on foreign systems. It is a crucial step toward technological sovereignty in an era when data and algorithms define national power. This progress is anchored by the National AI Research Center, established last year with support from the government and the Institute for Information & Communications Technology Planning and Evaluation. The consortium brings together the nation’s top universities — KAIST, POSTECH, Korea University and Yonsei University — and links them with international partners in the United States, Canada, France and the United Arab Emirates. That kind of collaboration is exactly what’s needed to turn computing power into meaningful innovation. But what makes this move especially significant is its emphasis on openness. The government is not building a closed fortress of technology. Instead, it is opening public AI cloud resources to startups, researchers and small enterprises. That approach reflects a belief that creativity does not reside only in big corporations — and that innovation thrives when access barriers fall. South Korea’s leadership of this year’s APEC forum has also given it a platform to push for global cooperation in AI. At the meeting, Seoul called for joint efforts to expand access to computing infrastructure and nurture AI talent across economies. This is an important recognition that the benefits of AI must be shared — that intelligence, like information, should not become another fault line of inequality. Still, ambition alone is not enough. Building a truly global AI hub will require sustained investment, trust in open ecosystems, and safeguards to ensure ethical and responsible use. The challenge is to balance competitiveness with inclusivity — to lead without dominating, to innovate without excluding. South Korea’s latest achievement is a reminder that in the age of AI, nations can chart their own course. By combining technological investment with openness and cooperation, the country is showing what responsible ambition can look like. If the future of AI is to be shared, not siloed, it will be built by those who understand that intelligence grows strongest when it is connected. * This article, published by Aju Business Daily, was translated by AI and edited by AJP. 2025-11-11 08:58:46

Korea's National Dance Company "Double Bill" blends the worlds of discipline and freedom SEOUL, November 10 (AJP) - What looks like total chaos — fourteen dancers leaping, crawling, and tossing one another in midair amid tightly arranged metal tables — is, in fact, a work of meticulous control. A single misstep could mean a ruined sequence or even a serious injury. Discipline is the axis of American choreographer William Forsythe’s “One Flat Thing, Reproduced.” The tables impose strict rules: confined space, exact timing, predetermined pathways. The dancers must sense one another with the precision of orchestra players, never missing a cue. “Choreography,” Forsythe once said, “is not the same as dance. It is the architecture of the desire to dance.” That philosophy surfaced in every moment — a balance of control and risk, rule and release. Within its rigidity, the work radiated beauty, revealing how the body seeks freedom even inside the tightest constraints. It showed how far movement can reach within limits, how precision and trust can generate their own kind of emotion. When the lights rose again, the stage transformed for Kim Sungyong’s “Crawl,” a work built around the opposite idea: freedom. Open space replaced the rows of tables. Rolling and flexing bodies moved with a breath-like rhythm, expanding and contracting as if discovering the stage anew. Created through Kim’s collaborative method, Process Init, the piece emerged not from instruction but from improvisation. “Sometimes the process felt like walking backward,” Kim said. “But through those pauses and restarts, the work found its own direction.” He fed the dancers simple cues — “heat,” “patience,” “silence” — allowing movement to grow from sensation rather than steps. The result felt spontaneous yet interconnected, a choreography that wrote itself in real time. Audience member Lee Hae-rin, 27, captured the contrast. “Forsythe’s piece felt like every second mattered — like watching precision under pressure. But Crawl was completely different. It felt fluid.” Together, the two works delivered a message that dance does not need to be explained through theory. It can simply display what the body can do — how rules strengthen it, how freedom exposes emotion — leaving room for each viewer’s own interpretation. According to the National Dance Company, about 1,600 people attended the two-day run, a strong turnout for the National Theater. “The contrast between the two pieces was what audiences talked about most,” an official said. “Forsythe is a name you usually see in history books, and this was the first time ‘One Flat Thing, Reproduced’ was performed by Korean dancers — that alone made it special.” For the National Dance Company of Korea, the program was more than a pairing of two works. It demonstrated how discipline and freedom — seemingly opposite forces — can meet onstage and speak the same language. 2025-11-10 19:17:00