It’s Thursday

🌥️High 21C and Low 8

Feeling very cold and I love it!

Where is the best place to enjoy Korea in winter?

Here is the answer 👇️ 

 👀 Today’s Email about:

• Student suicides in Korea have doubled over the past eight years.

• Israel-Hezbollah war remains a risk to Korea cooling inflation

• YENA has made a comeback with her catchy electro-dance single "NEMONEMO.".

NEWS 📰

Kakao Mobility faces $54 million fine for abusing dominant position

Kakao Mobility has been fined 72.4 billion won ($54.93 million) by Korea's Fair Trade Commission (FTC) for abusing its dominant market position and coercing rival taxi-hailing services, including Uber Taxi and Tada, into providing key operational data. The FTC revealed that unless they complied, Kakao Mobility threatened to block taxi drivers affiliated with these competitors from receiving calls via Kakao T, its flagship taxi-hailing app.

Kakao Mobility holds a 96% market share as of late 2022, making its actions a clear violation of fair competition laws, according to the FTC. The company used its market dominance to demand confidential business information from rivals to enhance its own services and formulate sales strategies. The FTC has classified this practice as an infringement of the Monopoly Regulation and Fair Trade Act, which Kakao Mobility violated between May 2021 and September 2024, generating an estimated 1.4 trillion won in sales during that period.

FTC Chairman Han Ki-jeong emphasized the seriousness of the violation, justifying the fine as 5% of the company's sales. The fine is the fourth-largest ever imposed in South Korea for market dominance abuse. The case has also been referred to prosecutors for further investigation.

In response, Kakao Mobility has stated its intent to file an administrative suit to challenge the ruling, asserting that it did not violate any laws. The company claims the data-sharing partnerships were intended to reduce user inconvenience, and denies using the collected information to its own advantage. Despite this, Kakao Mobility apologized for the concerns raised by the sanction.

This is the second major penalty imposed on Kakao Mobility, following a 25.7 billion won fine last year for manipulating its algorithm to favor franchise taxis over independent drivers. The FTC hopes the sanctions will encourage fair competition within the platform economy.

The ongoing Israel-Hezbollah conflict poses a potential risk to Korea's cooling inflation, threatening to disrupt the current downward trend.

Korea's inflation, which recently eased to its lowest level in nearly four years, could face setbacks due to the escalating conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, potentially driving up global oil prices. In September, consumer prices in Korea rose by 1.6% year-on-year, the slowest pace since February 2021, largely due to a 7.6% drop in petroleum product prices amid stabilized global oil prices.

However, analysts warn that the Israel-Hezbollah conflict, exacerbated by Iran's missile attack on Israel in retaliation for the country's actions in Lebanon, poses a risk to Korea’s inflation outlook. Global oil prices have already reacted, with Brent crude futures increasing by 2.6% and U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude climbing 2.4%.

Economist Ha Joon-kyung from Hanyang University noted that the conflict could impede Korea’s progress toward achieving its midterm inflation target of 2%. While Mirae Asset Securities analyst Suh Sang-young downplayed the likelihood of a full-scale war, he warned that further military escalation, especially if Israeli strikes target Iranian oil facilities, could disrupt oil production by over a million barrels per day, increasing volatility in the market.

In response, Korea's Deputy Prime Minister Choi Sang-mok emphasized the government's commitment to closely monitoring the situation and preparing to respond to potential economic and financial impacts. The government will cooperate with relevant agencies to mitigate the effects of heightened tensions in the Middle East on the Korean economy.

ENTERTAINMENT 🌄

YENA has made a comeback with her catchy electro-dance single "NEMONEMO."

K-pop singer YENA, whose full name is Choi Ye-na, has made her long-awaited comeback by releasing her new single "NEMONEMO." This marks her first music release in eight months since her third mini-album, Good Morning, in January. During a media showcase in Seoul, YENA expressed her excitement about returning to the stage, despite her busy schedule in various entertainment fields.

The new single, NEMONEMO, features three tracks: the title song of the same name, "Sugar," and "It Was Love." The title track is an electronic dance song that uses the metaphor of a square's sharp edges to depict the ups and downs of a lovers' feud. The song's lyrics were co-written by rapper and producer Zico, a close friend of YENA's brother.

YENA shared that the album revolves around different expressions of love, and she was particularly drawn to the playful and nostalgic 2010s K-pop dance music sound that the track embodies. She wanted to capture the same energetic vibe reminiscent of groups like T-ara and Orange Caramel.

Working with a new composer team for this album, YENA said they crafted a sound that played to her strengths. However, she faced a challenge with the song's lyrics until she sought help from Zico. His creative metaphor of a square helped shape the song's concept, which eventually came together just days before recording.

In defining the "square" herself, YENA compared it to life, highlighting how we encounter "square situations" or people that challenge us, representing moments when life doesn’t flow as smoothly as expected. Through this metaphor, she emphasizes that life, like love, has its sharp edges.

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