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Jeju Samdasoo, Korea's top bottled water brand, eyes global expansion
SEOUL, October 02 (AJP) - For nearly three decades, Jeju Samdasoo has dominated South Korea’s bottled water market. Now, the company is turning to international markets in search of growth, as competition at home intensifies and consumer habits shift. Baek Kyung-hoon, chief executive of Jeju Development Corporation, which produces Samdasoo, said the company is targeting 600 billion won, or about $435 million, in revenue by 2035. “Domestically, our real competitors
October 2, 2025
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Posco International opens EV material plant in Poland
SEOUL, October 02 (AJP) - Posco International has opened a new factory in Poland to produce drive motor cores, a critical component for electric vehicles. The plant, located on a 100,000-square-meter site, will begin trial production this month, with full-scale operations scheduled for December. Drive motor cores, often described as the “heart” of an electric vehicle, form the core of the motor that powers the car. Posco International’s version incorporate
October 2, 2025
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South Korea logs record C/A surplus for Aug, extends 28-mo gain
SEOUL, October 02 (AJP) -South Korea posted a current account surplus of $9.15 billion in August, extending its black streak to 28 consecutive months, as a sharp fall in energy imports offset weaker exports to key markets including the United States and China. According to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea on Thursday, the August surplus was down from $10.78 billion in July but marked the largest for the month on record. The cumulative surplus for January–August
October 2, 2025
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Kakao Games sells golf subsidiary to refocus on global gaming push
SEOUL, October 02 (AJP) - Kakao Games has sold its golf subsidiary, Kakao VX, in a deal that will provide the company with more than $156 million in fresh capital as it shifts its focus toward big-budget video game development for international markets. The company said Thursday that its board approved the sale of 100 percent of Kakao VX shares to IVG, a subsidiary of Kakao Investment, in a transaction valued between $210 million and $250 million. Before transferring full own
October 2, 2025
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INTERVIEW: South Korean start-up bets on AI to transform learning
Long before the recent surge in artificial intelligence triggered by OpenAI in 2023, Ellis Group had been quietly embedding AI tools into education. Founded a decade ago by a team of researchers from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, the company now counts more than 9,500 institutions and 2.75 million users on its AI education platform, EllisLXP. The Seoul-based firm has become a leader in South Korea’s AI education sector, providing software for u
October 2, 2025
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South Korea's inflation rises back above 2 percent in September
SEOUL, October 02 (AJP) - Consumer prices in South Korea rose 2.1 percent in September from a year earlier, returning to the 2 percent range after two months of slower growth, according to government data released on Thursday. The uptick was driven largely by higher costs for processed foods and livestock products, the National Data Office said. The consumer price index climbed to 117.06, rebounding from a 1.7 percent increase in August, when a temporary reduction in telecom fee
October 2, 2025
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S. Korea must race to grab US-bound talents for leap in AI race: IFEZ czar
SEOUL, October 01 (AJP) - Brain power defines the AI era, and the possibility of a brain drain in Silicon Valley from the U.S. imposition of hefty fees on skilled-worker visas offers an "enormous" opportunity for South Korea, said the nation’s foreign direct investment (FDI) czar. "This is a windfall, and we must move fast in hosting roadshows to draw global brains here," said Incheon Free Economic Zone (IFEZ) Commissioner Yun Won-sok in an exclusive inte
October 2, 2025
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Korean retailers double down on SE Asian foray amid weak demand at home
SEOUL, October 1 (AJP) - Faced with lengthy depression in domestic demand at home, Korean retailers have been aggressive in their outreach and expansion in the Asian market, riding on the popularity of Korean contents and food. Pivot Asia has become the common strategy for Korean retailers spanning from fashion houses to convenience stores. Lotte Shopping is accelerating its overseas business with 'Lotte Mall Westlake Hanoi', based in Hanoi, Vietnam. Since opening two y
October 1, 2025
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Samsung Elec's watershed tri-fold display to share APEC spotlight
SEOUL, October 01 (AJP) - Samsung Electronics will seize the global stage of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in South Korea to unveil the world’s first tri-fold smartphone. Tentatively named the Galaxy G Fold, the device features a 9.96-inch infolding display, up to 16 gigabytes of RAM, and as much as 1 terabyte of storage, according to market sources. It runs on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset and comes with a 200-megapixel main camera, along
October 1, 2025
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From BTS to global idol incubator: HYBE's next chapter
Editor's Note: This article is the 38th installment in our series on Asia's top 100 companies, exploring the strategies, challenges, and innovations driving the region's most influential corporations. SEOUL, October 1 (AJP) - HYBE, the Korean entertainment powerhouse behind BTS, has become a defining force in the global music industry. What began as Big Hit Music under founder Bang Si-hyuk has grown into a multi-label empire that not only produces K-pop superstars bu
October 1, 2025
