SEOUL, Sept. 14 (Korea Bizwire) — Middle Eastern tourists accounted for more than 20 percent of big-spending foreign visitors to South Korea last year with their per-capita spending reaching over US$16,000, a poll showed Thursday. The survey on the top 1 percent high-spending foreign tourists, taken by the Korea Culture & Tourism Institute, showed that [...]
SEOUL, Apr. 6 (Korea Bizwire) — Hyundai Motor Co. is eyeing opportunities to expand into the Middle Eastern luxury car market by showcasing its luxury Genesis sedans at a local conference, the company said Wednesday. Hyundai will provide four G90 top-of-the-line full-size sedans and another four G80 executive cars as official vehicles for the Conde [...]
SEOUL, Nov. 24 (Korea Bizwire) – South Korea’s SK Group will work with oil producers of the Middle East to find new business models beyond developing petroleum products, the conglomerate said Thursday. The group’s chairman Chey Tae-won, visiting the region this week, met with CEOs of sovereign funds, oil companies and other partner firms, and [...]
SEOUL, June 10 (Korea Bizwire) – North Korea has been sending active duty soldiers to Middle East countries by disguising them as civilian laborers, as the reclusive country tries to earn foreign currency, a U.S.-based media outlet said Friday. Quoting sources in the Middle East, the Radio Free Asia (RFA) added that the North Korean [...]
BUSAN, May 25 (Korea Bizwire) – An annual Arab film festival will be held simultaneously in Seoul and Busan later this week, providing a rare chance for a South Korean audience to better understand the Arab world, a co-organizer said Wednesday. The 5th Arab Film Festival will feature 15 films from 10 Arab nations, including [...]
SEJONG, March 22 (Korea Bizwire) – A recent survey has revealed that the tourists spending the largest sums while visiting Korea were from the Middle East. A large portion of the spending was related to shopping and medical services including cosmetic surgery. According to OECD data, 14.2 million tourists visited Korea in 2014, for a [...]
SEOUL, Feb. 2 (Korea Bizwire) – South Korea will step up efforts to improve its ties with the Middle East as “true partners,” with the two sides confronted with “different but similar” security crises, a top Seoul diplomat said Tuesday. While struggling to cope with troubles from its nuclear-armed neighbor, South Korea is endeavoring to [...]
SEOUL, Dec.22 (Korea Bizwire) – Korean cosmetics brands are making a push to enter the Middle-Eastern market. Korean companies are focused on the fact that even though Middle-Eastern women seem to be far from makeup as they typically wear a hijab, they have an urge to express themselves through eye makeup, and have a high [...]
SEOUL, March 19 (Korea Bizwire) – LG Electronics, South Korea’s second-largest smartphone maker, said Thursday it will start selling its latest character smartphone in neighboring countries this week, before gradually expanding to the Middle East. The Aka phone comes with four different, detachable casings that each has its own personality, shown in digital eyes placed [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 21 (Korea Bizwire) – Visitors from the Middle East spent the largest amount of money on medical treatment per person in South Korea last year, with those from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) topping the list, the state-run Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) said Wednesday. Visitors from the UAE spent an average of 17.7 [...]