SEOUL, Aug. 29 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korean companies are choosing to reduce the issuance of corporate bonds and are instead turning to bank loans to secure funds during an unexpectedly prolonged period of high interest rates, data showed Monday. Net repayments in the corporate bond market have shown a consistent upward trend, with the [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 1 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s IT industry is exploring ways to survive in a prolonged economic slump, with no clear signs of improvement in sight. The labor union of Kakao Corp., the operator of South Korea’s dominant messaging app KakaoTalk, recently held its first rally since its establishment in October 2018 as [...]
SEOUL, July 17 (Korea Bizwire) — As the paradigm of car use shifts from ownership to service, an increasing number of South Korean firms are embracing car-sharing services to minimize costs. Car-sharing platform operator SOCAR Inc. has established some 4,800 SOCAR zones nationwide and deployed around 20,000 vehicles. This allows companies to utilize these vehicles [...]
SEOUL, July 11 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korean firms prefer to reemploy seniors instead of simply letting them retire, a major business association said Monday. The Korea Enterprises Federation conducted a survey of 1,047 companies employing over 30 individuals, of which 67.9 percent expressed a preference for reemploying retiring personnel. In contrast, 25 percent chose [...]
SEOUL, June 13 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korean companies’ sales growth slowed and their profitability narrowed last year, central bank data showed Tuesday, as higher borrowing costs and increased prices of raw materials ate into their bottom line. Corporate sales increased 16.9 percent last year from a year earlier, slowing from 17.7 percent growth the [...]
SEOUL, May 25 (Korea Bizwire) — The quality of jobs in South Korea is deteriorating as the number of regular positions at major companies remains stagnant, while the number of non-regular jobs is increasing, a corporate tracker said Wednesday. The Leaders Index analyzed quarterly reports from 334 companies, which are among the top 500 in [...]
SEOUL, April 17 (Korea Bizwire) — As the government pushes to create a work-life balance environment as part of its efforts to cope with the low fertility rate and population aging, South Korea’s major companies are accelerating their efforts to support their employees’ work-life balance. Samsung Electronics Co. offers paid paternity leave of 15 days (20 days [...]
SEOUL, April 3 (Korea Bizwire) — Concerns are growing among South Korean companies over the potential abuse of ChatGPT and the risk of confidential information leakage. Samsung Electronics Co.’s Device eXperience (DX) division, which handles mobile devices and appliances, currently conducting a survey of its employees regarding the use of ChatGPT. The survey includes questions [...]
SEOUL, Feb. 13 (Korea Bizwire) — Several more South Korean big companies joined the nationwide efforts Monday to help Turkey and Syria recover from the devastating earthquakes. Hanwha Group, an energy-to-defense conglomerate, said it was donating US$700,000 to the two countries through the Korean Red Cross to help support the recovery efforts. S-Oil Corp., a [...]
SEOUL, Feb. 1 (Korea Bizwire) — As the South Korean pet market continues to expand, various firms are jumping into the market to compete. The pet food market is particularly attractive not only among food producers but also to fried chicken franchises. In recent years, pet food made with alternative meat and vegan ingredients are [...]