DAEJEON, July 18 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea is seeing a sharp rise in baking-related patents, driven by growing consumer demand for bread and a cultural shift toward Western-style diets, according to the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO). Over the past two decades, more than 3,500 patent applications have been filed in the baking sector, [...]
SEOUL, July 18 (Korea Bizwire) — As in vitro fertilization (IVF) becomes increasingly mainstream in South Korea, the number of embryos created annually has approached 800,000 — with over 500,000 discarded each year — prompting renewed debate over embryo management and ethical oversight. According to data released Thursday by Rep. Kim Yoon of the Democratic [...]
SEOUL, July 17 (Korea Bizwire) – A leading government-affiliated research institute has issued a stark warning against adopting a defined contribution (DC) pension model as an alternative to South Korea’s current national pension system, calling it a “poisoned chalice” ill-suited to the country’s demographic and economic realities. The report, released Wednesday by the National Pension [...]
SEOUL, July 17 (Korea Bizwire) — As South Korea grapples with deepening youth unemployment, a new study reveals that the share of employees in their 20s at the country’s top conglomerates has plummeted over the past two years—raising concerns about a generational imbalance in the corporate workforce. According to a report released Wednesday by CEO [...]
SEOUL, July 16 (Korea Bizwire) — One in nine South Korean civil servants recently participated in the long-criticized custom of subordinates treating senior officials to meals, underscoring the persistence of outdated hierarchical practices within the public sector despite reform efforts. A joint survey released Friday by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the [...]
SEOUL, July 16 (Korea Bizwire) — A new study has revealed that the trading strategies of South Korea’s National Pension Service (NPS), which oversees more than 1,000 trillion won ($730 billion) in assets, can significantly affect market volatility and transaction costs—particularly when investments are outsourced to external managers. According to a report released Tuesday by [...]
SEOUL, July 16 (Korea Bizwire) — The share of intra-group transactions among South Korea’s major conglomerates rose sharply in 2023, with nearly 40 percent of their total domestic revenue derived from internal dealings, raising fresh concerns about potential abuses of market power and opaque business practices. According to a report released Monday by corporate research [...]
SEOUL, July 15 (Korea Bizwire) — Samsung Electronics Co. maintained its lead in the global smartphone market in the second quarter, supported by sales of its competitively priced Galaxy A models, industry data showed Tuesday. According to the data from market tracker Canalys, Samsung accounted for 19 percent of the global smartphone market in terms [...]
SEOUL, July 15 (Korea Bizwire) — Apartment sales in Seoul have surged to a record-high share of the housing market in 2024, as concerns over rental fraud and weakening demand for non-apartment housing deepen a long-standing shift toward high-rise units. According to data released July 14 by South Korea’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, [...]
SEOUL, July 15 (Korea Bizwire) — Despite a sluggish economy, South Korea’s health supplement industry posted double-digit growth in 2023, becoming the only segment of the country’s biohealth sector to do so, according to new government data. A report released July 13 by the Korea Health Industry Development Institute (KHIDI) showed that the health supplement [...]