SEOUL - POSCO Holdings Inc., a leading South Korean steel company, has announced plans to establish an industrial gas production facility at its secondary battery complex in Pohang, a southeastern port city.
According to Yonhap News Agency, The project, involving an investment of 100 billion won (approximately US$76.3 million), will be situated on a 16,500-square-meter site within the complex near Yeongil Bay, 262 kilometers southeast of Seoul. The facility is designed to have an annual production capacity of 250,000 tons. It will feature an oxygen plant and an air separation unit for the separation and purification of oxygen and nitrogen, alongside storage tanks capable of holding up to 2,000 tons of liquid oxygen. The high-purity oxygen and nitrogen produced at this facility are earmarked for use by POSCO Future M, the group's battery materials unit, in the production of cathode materials for secondary batteries.
SEOUL - South Korea experienced a slight deceleration in inflation during November, with the rate remaining above 3 percent for the fourth consecutive month. This persistent inflation is attributed to the high costs of energy and agricultural products, as indicated by recent data.According to Yonhap News Agency, Statistics Korea, consumer prices, a primary indicator of inflation, climbed 3.3 percent last month from a year earlier. This rate marks a decrease compared to the 3.8 percent year-on-year increase observed in the previous month and signifies the first time in four months that the annual price growth has shown signs of easing.
The trend of inflation had previously seen a decline, with the on-year price growth falling below 4 percent in April for the first time in over a year. It continued to decrease, reaching a 25-month low of 2.3 percent in July. However, the inflation rate rebounded to 3.4 percent in August and then to 3.7 percent in September, largely driven by high oil prices and the rising costs of certain agricultural products.
The South Korean government anticipates that inflationary pressures will continue to diminish at a slower pace than previously expected. It is projected that inflation will remain above 3 percent through the end of this year, with the target rate of 2 percent expected to be achieved around the end of 2024.