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Tag: Korea

  • First duty-free space in Hyundai Department Store

    First duty-free space in Hyundai Department Store

    South Korea’s retail conglomerate Hyundai Department Store Group opens its first duty-free store at its branch in Samseong-dong, southern Seoul, on November 1 as a newcomer into the lucrative duty-free race dominated by two other retail names, Lotte and Shinsegae.

    The new 14,250-square-meter duty-free store will open inside Hyundai Department Store’s Trade Center branch in Samseong-dong, an affluent business district in southern Seoul.

    It will take up three floors at the branch and offer 420 domestic and foreign brands.

    The outlet will be the first to have an official Alexander McQueen store. It will also have a separate foreign fashion zone offering Max Mara and Versace brands.

    Luxury brands will be based on the eight floor, while the ninth floor is reserved for beauty products and fashion stores.

    The 10th floor will have a more various selection of products from character goods to food like red ginseng and dried seaweed that is popular with foreign duty-free shoppers.

    The project is a huge one for Hyundai Department Store, which has been relatively conservative in the last decade regarding business expansions.

    Other department store rivals Lotte and Shinsegae have already established a stable foothold in the duty-free industry.

    In a press conference held at the new store on October 31, Hwang Hae-yeon, president of Hyundai Department Store Duty Free Co., said that it will provide high-quality life-style duty-free store service to consumers by escaping existing business practices and introducing new perspective.

    Hwang said the new store is expected to raise 670 billion won (US$588.2 million) in sales next year and over 1 trillion won in 2020.

    Hyundai Department Store Group will also create a digital-exclusive space to provide differentiated customer experience.

    It will invest 10 billion won to install the country’s largest 37-meter-wide and 36-meter-high light-emitting diode digital signage on the exterior wall of Hyundai Department Store’s Trade Center branch in December.

    The retailer also plans to promote diverse marketing by linking other businesses in retail, fashion, and travel, with its duty-free store to solidify its presence as a comprehensive retailer.

    The new addition will be the fourth duty-free store in the Gangnam area, along with Lotte Duty Free stores in the Lotte World Tower in Songpa District and in COEX and the Shinsegae Duty Free near the Express Bus Terminal.

    Being closer to other duty-free stores has tended to work as an advantage in the past, as tourists, especially those in large groups, can visit all of the different venues in one outing.

    In the past, duty-free stores inside Seoul were mainly clustered the North of the river, but the recent shift toward the Gangnam area suggests that a new duty-free destination could develop in the south of the city.

    Hwang also expressed confidence in the Gangnam location beside COEX as the operation’s “main differentiation point.”

    The venue is located near three high-end hotels, an underground mall, a casino and a convention center that regularly hosts international fairs. SM Town, a well-known destination among K-pop fans that also sells SM Entertainment products, is also nearby.

    The launch of Hyundai’s duty-free store comes at a complicated time: Chinese group tours to Korea – which once accounted for 70 percent of local duty free revenue – haven’t fully recovered after the U.S.-led antimissile system Thaad deployment last year.

    There are mounting concerns that duty-free stores are in fierce competition for commission fees in order to attract Chinese resellers that purchase in bundles.

    “There’s excessive competition in the market now – I want it to normalize and we’re going to try to stay away from [contributing to] it,” said Hwang.

    “There are many challenges, including regulations in China, but things are getting better. Chinese resellers can’t be ignored at the moment but in the long run, our plan is to focus on attracting ordinary tourists.”

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  • KT increases fixed-line network speed tenfold, to 10Gbps

    KT increases fixed-line network speed tenfold, to 10Gbps

    KT announced Wednesday it will introduce a fixed-line network 10 times faster than its current offerings in Seoul as well as six major Korean cities.  The launch of Korea’s first home internet with speeds of up to 10 gigabits per second (Gbps) comes about four years after the mobile carrier launched wired internet with 1-Gbps speed.

    According to the company, Korea’s largest fixed-line internet service provider, a faster home internet has become a necessity as the number of independent content creators, like YouTubers and dedicated Esports players, has grown explosively.

    “The 10 times faster network will enable creators to air their content in ultra high-definition quality,” said Lee Pill-jai, senior executive vice president for marketing at KT. “It will also make virtual reality and augmented reality content a norm.”

    In a demonstration Wednesday at KT headquarters in Gwanghwamun, central Seoul, the actual download and upload speeds of the new internet service exceeded 8 Gbps whereas the existing internet achieved speeds of less than 1 Gbps. With the new internet, it takes only 30 seconds to download a 33-gigabyte ultra high-definition movie, according to KT. At 1 Gbps, it takes four minutes and 30 seconds.

    “You also need to think of the many devices that will be connected to home internet in the future,” said Park Hyun-jin, head of the wire and wireless business unit at KT. “I personally use five internet-powered devices, but by 2021, an average person will have 13 devices connected to the internet.”

    According to Park, the connection of numerous devices will slow internet speeds and make a 10-Gbps fixed-line a necessity to maintain tolerable internet speeds on each device.

    Faster fixed-line internet will also support the deployment of the high-speed 5G wireless internet nationwide, according to KT.

    “The 5G network is offered as wireless internet through base stations, but 5G network equipment and base stations need to be connected via a wired backbone network,” a spokesperson from KT said. “Having a 10-Gbps fixed-line network as the 5G’s backbone network will increase the stability of the wireless service.”

    The so-called backbone is a part of a computer network that connects other networks.

    According to KT, its 10-Gbps internet will be able to cover about 60 percent of the country by the early half of next year.

    To subscribe to the 10-Gbps internet, it costs 110,000 won ($96) per month, but if users already subscribe to KT for TV services, the monthly fee could be discounted to 77,000 won on a three-year contract basis.

    The company also released 5-Gbps and 2.5-Gbps internet plans, for those wanting faster but affordable home internet.

    To enable users to get a feel for 10-Gbps internet, KT said it will gradually install the network at 80 Starbucks Reserve shops in Korea and six PC rooms operated by AfreecaTV by this year.

  • Renewable project facing criticism in Korea

    Renewable project facing criticism in Korea

    The government’s plan to build a renewable energy complex at Saemangeum, North Jeolla, is generating controversy as it deviates from plans to develop the reclaimed tidal flat into a regional economic hub and is being pursued without public approval.

    The controversy flared up as President Moon Jae-in announced Tuesday that the government will construct a solar and wind energy complex at Saemangeum.

    The government argues that around 10 trillion won ($8.7 billion) in private investment will flow into the project and that two million workers will be employed annually in the building of the facility.

    Despite the optimistic forecasts, the move is being criticized as an abrupt policy shift.

    When President Moon Jae-in visited Saemangeum last year, he mentioned developing the area into an economic hub for the Yellow Sea region but said nothing of solar or wind power. Opposition lawmakers have raised concerns about the projects.

    “The government’s plan to make Saemangeum, previously touted to be developed into an economic center for the Yellow Sea, into a mecca of renewable energy means a policy change,” said Chung Dong-young, a lawmaker for the Jeolla-based Party for Democracy and Peace. “This is the same as abandoning plans to expedite the development of Saemangeum.”

    The Party for Democracy and Peace, with 14 lawmakers from the Honam region, is especially angry about being bypassed.

    In light of such concerns, the government has explained that plans for Saemangeum’s renewable energy complex, which will cover an area comparable to the size of four nuclear power plants, will not interfere with existing initiatives.

    “The government’s determination to develop Saemangeum into an economic hub of the Yellow Sea area remains unchanged,” Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim Hyun-mee said during the annual audit by lawmakers on Monday.

    A spokesman for the state-run Saemangeum Development and Investment Agency explained that it was not the right time for consultations with local residents and the general public.

    “Taking comments from local residents is done during the construction approval process. We are not yet at the development stage, so we haven’t asked for [comments], but we are obviously planning to do so,” he said.

    Opposition lawmakers and energy experts are suspicious that the plans for Saemangeum were changed to accommodate the Moon administration’s pledge to reduce nuclear power dependency.

    The new Saemangeum initiative is part of the government’s 3020 renewable energy plan, which established a renewable target of 20 percent by 2030. With current renewable energy output at just 8 percent of the total, the government is in need of more solar and wind power plants.

    “[The government] seems to be developing Saemangeum as there aren’t vast plots of land in the country suitable for solar or wind power complexes,” said a professor of nuclear energy who requested anonymity.

    Questions regarding the feasibility of the energy project have also been raised.

    “The electrical output produced by the energy complex will be little, at around 60 percent of a nuclear power plant,” said Kim Sam-hwa, a lawmaker for minor opposition Bareunmirae Party. “If it means building six-tenths of a nuclear power plant by spending 10 trillion won, wouldn’t it just be better to continue operating the Wolsong 1 plant?”

    Wolsong 1 is a nuclear plant set to be decommissioned.

    At the moment, renewable energy is less economical when compared with nuclear energy, explained Roh Dong-seok, a senior researcher at the Korea Energy Economics Institute. As the efficiency rate for solar power is about 15 percent, the actual production output of solar power plants is much lower than their rated capacity.

    The government’s promise to return the plots of land to their original state after operating solar and wind power plants at the location for 20 years is in doubt as the energy produced will have to be replaced.

    Local residents remain divided over the new project.

    “Even if it’s a government project, I can’t accept something that is pushed without prior notice,” said Ko Yoon-seok, a local leader of a town adjacent to the tidal flat. “There isn’t enough information to determine whether it’s right or wrong, but it’s difficult to say that everyone is against it.”

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  • N°21 signs with Lee & Han for South Korean distribution

    N°21 signs with Lee & Han for South Korean distribution

    N°21 has major expansion plans in South Korea. The Italian fashion label designed and led by Alessandro Dell’Acqua has signed a distribution agreement with Lee & Han, a Korean distributor managing a broad portfolio of lifestyle brands, and plans to open 18 stores in the country in the next five years.

    N°21 had already opened a series of retail corners in the country, but it is now stepping up the pace of its growth.

    The first stage of N°21’s expansion strategy was the opening of a flagship store of over 300 square metres, the brand’s largest, in the Cheongdam district of Seoul, a hub for fashion labels.

    The store extends on two levels and showcases N°21’s ready-to-wear, footwear and accessories collections for men and women.

    The store’s interior design replicates that of N°21’s Milan flagship: the chromatic contrast of black and white on the marble floor, the polycarbonate and raw concrete ceilings, and plenty of mirrors, steel and aluminium.

    The store’s façade is entirely black, riffing on that of the label’s Omotesando store in Tokyo and of its new Milanese headquarters.

    The South Korean partner chosen by N°21 to support its expansion the country is a shareholder and licensee of Converse and Kappa, and is very active in the multibrand retail business (with Han Style, Han Style Men, Han Style Kids and Han Style Shoe) and as an exclusive distributor of international fashion labels like Delvaux, Giambattista Valli, Emilio Pucci, Nina Ricci, MSGM, Mr & Mrs Italy, Premiata, and others.

    N°21 is distributed by the Gilmar group in over 600 multibrand stores worldwide, and in Asia it currently operates monobrand stores in Tokyo, Hong Kong and Beijing.

    In 2016, the latest year for which figures are available, N°21 generated a revenue of €52 million, up 117% compared to 2015.

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  • Make Vietnam your largest strategic base, PM urges Samsung

    Make Vietnam your largest strategic base, PM urges Samsung

    PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc has suggested that Samsung expands its scale to make Vietnam the group’s largest strategic base. Receiving Lee Jae Yong, vice chairman of Samsung Group, in Hanoi on Tuesday, Phuc said Samsung should not just stop at making Vietnam its largest smartphone production base.

    He suggested the South Korean giant expands its business to other major fields like semiconductors, infrastructure and energy in Vietnam rather than focusing mainly on manufacturing and assembling electronic products, as it has been doing so far.

    A statement posted on the government’s website cited the prime minister as saying that Samsung should work towards building its largest strategic base in the country.

    He also wanted Samsung to continue providing practical support in terms of training and technology transfer to assist Vietnam’s supporting industry.

    As Samsung is making a significant contribution to developing e-government in South Korea, the PM suggested it does the same for Vietnam.

    He promised that the Vietnamese government will keep creating favorable conditions for Samsung’s operations in the country.

    Samsung Electronics Co. has invested $17.3 billion in eight factories and one research and development center in Vietnam, creating jobs for more than 160,000 locals.

    Exports from Samsung Electronics’ factories in Vietnam totaled $54 billion last year, it said.

    In April, CEO Koh Dong-jin of Samsung Electronics told PM Phuc that the company was determined to further expand production in Vietnam.

    He said Samsung will recruit more Vietnamese employees and develop electronics in smart cities in Bac Ninh province in the northern region and other places.

    Samsung is the largest foreign investor in Vietnam and accounts for around a quarter of the country’s total export revenue. It operates two cellphone factories in Bac Ninh and Thai Nguyen provinces in northern Vietnam.

    The factories produce around half of all the cellphones that Samsung supplies to the global market.

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  • Shinsegae plans ‘Korean Amazon’

    Shinsegae plans ‘Korean Amazon’

    Shinsegae has secured investment worth 1 trillion won ($877.8 million) to build a separate company dedicated to its online business, finally giving wings to Vice Chairman Chung Yong-jin’s ambitious plan to create a “Korean version of Amazon.”

    Shinsegae said Wednesday that it succeeded in attracting funds worth 1 trillion won from two global private equity firms, BlueRun Ventures and Affinity Equity Partners, to launch a separate company that will comprehensively handle the retail giant’s online business.

    The investment plan was revealed in January, but the detailed conditions have been finalized after nine months of negotiation.

    “Shinsegae Department Store and Emart have led growth within the group until now,” said Chung. “But from now on, the new entity dedicated to online business will lead growth. All capacity within the group will be concentrated on the online business.”

    The retailer will spin off the online business from Shinsegae and Emart and merge them into a separate entity. Shinsegae is mainly in charge of its department store business while Emart is in charge of the eponymous discount chain and warehouse-style mart Traders, among others.

    Of the 1 trillion won investment, 700 billion won will be used to establish the new company, which is scheduled to launch in the first quarter of 2019. The name of the new entity hasn’t been decided. The remaining 300 billion won investment will follow at a later date.

    “Shinsegae’s new online business-dedicated entity is expected to help it grow into a core company in Korea’s e-commerce industry,” the company said in a statement.

    Shinsegae has been running an integrated online platform called SSG.com, which encompasses several online malls such as Shinsegae Mall, Shinsegae Department Store, Emart Mall and Traders, all either run by Shinsegae or its discount chain affiliate Emart.

    The soon-to-launch company will operate these online malls.

    “A complete integration of the online platform will enable comprehensive investment, simplified decision making and enhanced proficiency,” the company said.

    Shinsegae plans to concentrate investment in the online mall’s logistics service and infrastructure to begin with. It said it plans to invest 1.7 trillion won in logistics centers and related technology and achieve revenue of 10 trillion won for the online business by 2023.

    Shinsegae currently runs two logistics centers dedicated to online malls in Bojeong and Gimpo in Gyeonggi. The retailer is building a third one in Gimpo, which is scheduled to start operating by the latter half of next year.

    SSG.com launched as an integrated site in 2014 and has been recording an average 20 to 30 percent growth each year. It reached 2 trillion won in revenue last year and turned to profit making in the first half of this year

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  • Amorepacific profits slump

    Amorepacific profits slump

    Amorepacific Group announced lower-than-expected results for the third quarter on Monday with operating profits dropping 36 percent year on year. The fall comes as a stark contrast to rival LG Household & Health Care, which saw operating profits in its beauty business soar 30 percent during the same period.

    Amorepacific Group’s operating profit between July and September was 84.7 billion won ($74.2 million), down 36 percent compared to the same period last year. Its revenue rose 3.1 percent year on year to 1.46 trillion won. This was lower than the three-month analyst consensus of 1.56 trillion won in quarterly revenue and 166.9 billion won in operating profits, compiled by stock information provider FnGuide.

    The company explained in a statement that the main reason for the low profitability was the increase of costs in human resources and marketing expenditure.

    “Despite growing competition in the beauty market in and outside the country, Amorepacific continued investments to enforce brand competence and secure future growth engines,” the company said in a statement.

    The group’s main affiliate, also called Amorepacific, saw sales increase 6 percent year on year to 1.28 trillion won in the third quarter. Amorepacific’s sales success was thanks to the popularity of its brands, including Sulwhasoo, Hera, Iope and Laneige, with tourists and duty-free shoppers. However, the sales increase was nullified by a rise in costs, resulting in a sharp 24 percent fall in operating profit to 76.5 billion won.

    The results were grim for the smaller single-brand stores under the group as well: Etude House remained in the red while revenue dropped 23 percent year on year. Innisfree sales slightly increased by 3 percent, but operating profit steeply dropped 29 percent year on year. Espoir saw operating losses once again while revenue slightly rose by 1 percent.

    The good news for Amorepacific was the 36 percent year-on-year rise in revenue in the United States, thanks to strong performances from Laneige and Innisfree. Although its foothold there is still small compared to Asia, the company has been making efforts to diversify its global business, which used to heavily rely on China.

    LG Household & Health Care, on the other hand, recorded its highest-ever profit for the 54th quarter in a row. Between July and September, revenue generated from its three business sectors – beauty, daily necessities and beverages – was 1.73 trillion won, up 10.6 percent from the same period last year, while operating profit was up 9.8 percent to 277.5 billion won.

    The year-on-year jump was even higher in its beauty business: operating profit soared 30.6 percent to 184 billion won while revenue increased 23.5 percent to 954.2 billion won in the year’s third quarter. Its high-priced luxury brands, which were relatively unaffected by the Thaad row, were once again huge contributors.

    “With its high brand loyalty, The History of Whoo hit a quarterly sales record once again,” the company said.

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  • Beccos plans expansion in India with 50 new stores

    Beccos plans expansion in India with 50 new stores

    Chinese-owned ‘South Korean designer brand’ Beccos says it plans to launch 50 stores in India. Scheduled to be opened by the middle of next year, the stores will require an investment of ₹100 crore (US$13.67 million) and are expected to return a revenue of around ₹200-250 crore ($27.35–34.18 million) in the next financial year based on the potential of the market.

    Like rival chain Mumuso, the store is positioned as Korean and using Korean design influence in its products, but is actually Chinese.

    The Hong Kong-based firm will also be investigating the potential of online sales in the region next year.

    Beccos global CEO Dabin Wang said: “We see tremendous potential in the Indian market… The company would have stores on company-owned-company-operated and franchise patterns. We would have a mix of both franchised and company-operated stores.”

    Beccos has started the expansion by opening its first few stores in Kamala Nagar.

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  • GM chairman might visit Korean facility

    GM chairman might visit Korean facility

    General Motors Chairman and CEO Mary Barra hinted at visiting Korea soon amid conflict over the spinning off of the Korean unit’s R&D division. If the trip happens, it would be Barra’s first visit to the Korean operations since she became chairman in 2016.

    GM Korea head Kaher Kazem reiterated the company’s commitment to the market during a government audit held Monday. “I would like to visit our Korea operations at some point soon,” Barra wrote in a letter sent to labor union head Lim Han-taek on Oct. 24.

    Lim had requested a meeting with Barra over GM’s decision to spin off the R&D division.

    Since July, GM has been pushing to build a separate R&D center tentatively named GM Korea Technical Center. Management says it will raise work efficiency and competitiveness.

    The labor union has opposed the idea, claiming a separate R&D center will eventually result in the ending of production in Korea, resulting in massive layoffs. On Oct. 19, the automaker approved the plan in a board meeting despite the opposition.

    In the letter, Barra emphasized GM’s dedication to its Korean operations.

    “The specialized unit will benefit from focused management, increased transparency on cost and improved operational efficiency,” Barra wrote in the letter.

    “We think the demerger is an important step to allow both the engineering services company and the manufacturing unit to stand on their own as profitable, viable businesses.”

    During a government audit held Monday at the National Assembly, GM Korea CEO Kazem said the company “has no plan to withdraw from Korea.” His comments assured lawmakers the spinoff is part of GM’s plan to stay in Korea longer than the initially promised 10 years.

    “In fact, we are establishing a long-term commitment to GM Korea. [Building a separate R&D center enables] us to not only upgrade but also introduce new models. We are committed to building a very long-term future for GM Korea,” Kazem said. “The framework agreement says 10 years, but we are looking at longer than that.”

    Kazem added that the company is engaging a number of parties on the possible redevelopment of the currently shut-down Gunsan factory, but he didn’t reveal details. He said he would “review” whether the plan for the Gunsan factory site could be included in the initial framework agreement.

    GM abruptly shut down the Gunsan factory in May. GM Korea has since been beset by speculation of completely shutting down in the country.

    The company and the Korean government have decided to jointly invest 7.7 trillion won ($6.7 billion) to save the ailing unit. GM also promised to stay in the country for the next 10 years.

    A GM Korea official said that Barra’s visit to the country is not yet confirmed.

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  • Equity gains see SK Telecom record good quarterly results

    Equity gains see SK Telecom record good quarterly results

    SK Telecom, Korea’s top mobile carrier, said Tuesday that its third quarter net profit rose 32.4 percent from a year earlier.

    Net income reached a record high of 1.04 trillion won ($910.4 million) in the July-September period, compared with a profit of 793 billion won for the same period the previous year, the company said in a regulatory filing.

    SK Telecom said shareholding gains from SK Hynix. gave a boost to its quarterly bottom line. SK Telecom holds a controlling 20.1 percent stake in the world’s second-biggest chipmaker by sales.

    SK Hynix’s third quarter net profit surged 53.6 percent on-year to 4.69 trillion won on record sales of 11.4 trillion won.

    Still, SK Telecom said its operating profit fell 22.5 percent on-year to 304.1 billion won in the third quarter, while sales dropped 5.77 percent to 4.18 trillion won over the cited period.

    Shares in SK Telecom fell 2.54 percent to 269,000 won.

  • Kia swings to profit in third quarter after 2017 one-off

    Kia swings to profit in third quarter after 2017 one-off

    Kia Motors Friday reported a swing to profit in the third quarter from a loss a year earlier. For the three months ending Sept. 30, Kia posted a net profit of 297.74 billion won ($262 million) from a net loss of 291.77 billion won a year ago, the company said in a statement.

    “In the third quarter of 2017, a one-off cost of 864.1 billion won was reflected in the bottom line when a local court ordered the company to retroactively make an overdue payment to employees,” a company spokesman said.

    According to the court ruling issued in August last year, regular bonuses are to be included in the “ordinary wage” used as the basis for calculating overtime, severance and other payments.

    The won’s strength against the dollar and currencies in emerging markets also weighed on the quarterly net results, the company said.

    Kia reported an operating profit of 117.28 billion won in the third quarter from an operating loss of 427.02 billion won a year earlier. Sales fell 0.24 percent to 14.074 trillion won from 14.108 trillion won over the same period, it said.

  • Xiaomi’s Pocophone F1 to go on sale next month in Korea

    Xiaomi’s Pocophone F1 to go on sale next month in Korea

    Xiaomi’s affordable smartphone Pocophone F1 is arriving in Korea next month. The Pocophone F1, the first smartphone from Xiaomi’s sub-brand Poco Global, was first unveiled in early August. The F1 will cost 429,000 won ($376) here, around one-third of the price of an Apple iPhone XS and half the price of Samsung Electronics’ Galaxy Note 9.

    The phone has already proved to be a success in other markets, especially in India, where it raised 30 billion won in sales within the first five minutes.

    The F1 comes with six gigabytes of RAM and three storage options: 64, 128 or 256 gigabytes. In Korea, only the 64 gigabytes will be available for purchase. SK Telecom, KT and LG U+ will start receiving preorders from Nov. 12.

    Jay Mani, the head of product for Poco Global, said the core motivation for developing the Pocophone F1 was the market trend where fierce competition drives manufacturers to add all kinds of new functions and features that aren’t relevant to everybody.

    “So the phones you have today – they have all these new functions but many do not appreciate them, nor are they excited about them, and yet the prices have come up to the current level,” he said in a press conference held in southern Seoul on Monday. “We wanted to buck this trend.”

    The Pocophone F1 focuses on performance. Inside its plastic body, the F1 uses the same processor chip as the Galaxy Note9 and LG Electronics’ latest V40: the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845. Its battery storage is 4,000-milliampere hour, larger than most phones released this year and equivalent to the Note9. To ensure its high speed, the F1 has a cooling system that keeps the phone’s temperature down. The hotter a device, the slower it gets, said Mani.

    However, it also adds some of the core features used in competitors’ top phones today. For example, the artificial intelligence-embedded camera can add 25 filters while taking a photo by automatically perceiving what the object is, while a camera on the front of the device allows for face recognition.

    “Reaching out to loyalists, that’s something that takes time, but there are also a lot of people who we can make think: ‘Does [my phone and its price] make sense?’” said Mani.

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  • Hyundai to set up $100 million hydrogen fund in China

    Hyundai to set up $100 million hydrogen fund in China

    Hyundai Motor has partnered with a Chinese institute to set up a $100 million fund for local investments in hydrogen technologies and related industrial infrastructure, the company said Monday. Hyundai Motor and the Beijing-Tsinghua Industrial R&D Institute have kicked off the Hydrogen Energy Fund, with venture capitalists from Asia, Europe and the United States expected to join as investors, Korea’s largest carmaker said in a statement.

    “The fund, once fully set up, will be used in the infrastructure needed for the hydrogen industry and venture startups with core hydrogen technologies,” the statement said.

    Yield Capital, an investment organization under the Chinese institute, will be responsible for raising funds and managing them, it said.

    Hyundai has expanded investments in hydrogen fuel-cell electric vehicles, such as Nexo, while expanding partnerships with global companies to gain a share in the next-generation car markets.

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  • Starbucks Coffee Korea boosts cashless store ranks

    Starbucks Coffee Korea boosts cashless store ranks

    Starbucks Coffee Korea is adding 300 more ‘cashless shops’ in addition to the 103 stores currently in operation, starting on Monday. Cashless stores require customers use a means of payment other than cash. The company noted that adding 300 more cashless stores would amount to one-third of the 1200 Starbucks shops in South Korea.

    “Instead of cash, customers will be asked to use credit cards, Starbucks cards, mobile transactions and other means of payment,” a company representative added.

    Over the past three months, Starbucks reduced the ratio of cash transactions at its stores from 3.4 per cent to 0.2 per cent on average. The average number of cash transactions per store dropped from 19 to 1.1 per day.

    “Cashless stores can better focus on customer satisfaction since employees don’t have to spend time going to the bank to balance cash,” Starbucks Coffee Korea said.

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  • LG Electronics starts venture to make in-cabin electronics

    LG Electronics starts venture to make in-cabin electronics

    LG Electronics said Thursday it will establish a joint venture with Germany’s Lufthansa Technik, which will be devoted to developing in-cabin electronics systems. The new venture, whose name has not yet been decided, will focus on developing in-cabin solutions utilizing LG Electronics’ technologies, including its OLED displays.

    Lufthansa Technik is a subsidiary of Deutsche Lufthansa AG, Germany’s largest air carrier.

    The new company will kick off in the first half of 2019, and will be based in Hamburg, Germany. LG did not reveal detailed conditions of the agreement, including the size of the deal.

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