Robert Rosenstein is chairman and founder of Agoda and strategic advisor to the CEO of Booking Holdings. Peter L. Allen is the managing director of Agoda Outside, Agoda’s public affairs division. Agoda is the Asia-based subsidiary of Booking Holdings, the world’s leader in online travel. Allen can b

The top 10 percent income brackets in South Korea took up 50.6 percent of the total income in the nation as of 2017, according to a recent report on the ratio of the highest income released by the Korea Labor Institute (KLI).The institute analyzed 41.82 million of a population aged over 20 as of 201

During the Asian financial crisis in 1997, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) called upon the South Korean government to make the local labor market more flexible before anything else. In response, the government prepared the Act on the Protection of Dispatched Workers in February 1998.Still, the

The stock price of Samsung BioLogics dropped by more than 17% after the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) made an announcement on Samsung BioLogics’ accounting fraud allegations.On May 2, the stock price fell 17.21% or 84,000 won per share and closed at 404,000 won with the daily trading volume sk

Google Korea CEO John Lee, who has been summoned to the National Assembly’s audit this year held at the Science, ICT, Broadcasting, and Communications Committee’s conference room in the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, on October 30, is questioned by lawmakersNaver and Google, which have been ri

South Korean President Moon Jae-in remarked on October 22 that the South Korean government would resume the construction of the fifth and sixth units of the Singori Nuclear Power Plant without delay while adhering to its policy for zero nuclear power generation.He made the remarks in response to the

Kaher Kazem, CEO of GM Korea did not expressly deny a rumor about GM Korea’s withdrawal from Korea and repeatedly answered, "I will do my best to normalize the management.""GM Korea executives are doing its best to normalize the management of GM Korea," CEO Kazem said to a question about GM’s withdr

As a Seoul District Court has ruled that the controversial merger of Samsung's two affiliated companies – Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries – in 2015 is valid, the appeal for Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong is also expected to take a new turn. In particular, the argument that Vice Chai

It was found that Korea’s Fair Trade Commission (FTC)’s order to amend Qualcomm’s unfair contracts with Korean handset makers was virtually invalid.According to data from Jeon Hae-cheol, a lawmaker of the ruling Minjoo Party who belongs to the National Assembly's National Policy Committee, Qualcomm

The market capitalization of companies listed on the South Korean stock market increased by more than 300 trillion won (US$266.15 billion) this year. However, over 60 percent of them were taken up by the listed units of the nation’s top four business groups.According to Chaebol.com on October 16, th

Michael Shellenberger, a prominent environmentalist who has stressed the safety, economical efficiency and excellence of South Korea’s nuclear energy technology, said on October 12, “Kenya and Britain that have sought to import South Korea’s nuclear energy technology have decided to reconsider the i

There are continuing unfair practices of import car companies with no end in sight in Korea. They not only neglect after-sales management after the sale of vehicles but also make unfair profit by raising prices of parts and service charges via collusion. Furthermore, they even evade tax by dodging t

The South Korean government has raised its 2018 budget 7.1 percent from that for this year to 429 trillion won (US$381.1 billion). The Moon Jae-in administration's first proposed budget calls for boosting spending on job creation and social welfare by 12.4 percent and 12.9 percent, respectively, wit

An increasing number of countries are expressing concerns over the South Korean government’s nuclear-free policy.About seven countries, including South Korea, have exported at least one nuclear power plant to another country. At present, China, Russia and South Korea are doing so with nuclear power

A rumor that Hyundai Motor Group, which is considered South Korea’s number two business group after Samsung, is working to convert to the holding company structure is emerging again. This has come after Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) Chairman Kim Sang-jo said during his interview with a foreign

The result of the trial of Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong cannot but affect the stock investment portfolio of the National Pension Service (NPS) of South Korea.It is expected that the result of the trial of Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong cannot but affect the stock in

The result of the first trial regarding the ordinary wage of Kia Motors workers, which has continued for almost six years, is predicted to have a significant impact on the automobile industry of South Korea as a whole. The business community is expressing concerns about the possibility of an additio

The Moon Jae-in administration will start raising the rate of taxation for large businesses next year. Going against the latest trend that many countries are scrambling to lower corporate taxes, the government will increase the top marginal corporate income tax rate by 3 percent points and reduce th

The Moon Jae-in administration will increase the number of electric cars and hydrogen powered cars to 350,000 and 15,000, respectively, by 2022. It will also focus on promoting new industries of the future that can create high added value, such as semiconductor, augmented reality (AR) and virtual re

The Hyundai Avante and Ioniq compacts and the Kia Niro crossover have been recently ordered to recall from the Korean government due to defects of electric power steering motor connector manufactured and supplied by LG Innotek, a components subsidiary of LG Group.The problem is Chinese industrial tr