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China Factor In series
An analytical series on how China’s rise is reshaping competition across Korea’s key industries
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China Factor In series
An analytical series on how China’s rise is reshaping competition across Korea’s key industries
Would you like to subscribe?
Why Korean investors are piling into China robotics ETFs
As Korean companies try to reduce exposure to China amid rising geopolitical tensions, Korean retail investors are doing the opposite — increasing their bets on China’s humanoid robotics industry. The contrast highlights a widening gap between corporate strategy and investor sentiment, as many investors see China’s dominance in manufacturing and supply chains as a key advantage in the emerging robotics economy. Humanoid robotics has quickly become one of the most closely watched technology battl
March 12, 2026 - 15:11:45
Korea has five years to act on AI gap with China: KAIST professor
As China accelerates its advance in foundation models, South Korea is not far behind in frontier model performance, according to Shin Jin-woo, ICT endowed chair professor at the Kim Jaechul Graduate School of AI at KAIST. But performance is not the real issue. “The technology gap is often exaggerated,” Shin said in a recent interview with The Korea Herald in Seoul. “Based on the time required to absorb and reproduce publicly released technologies, the difference is closer to half a year.” Becaus
March 10, 2026 - 15:06:48
After DeepSeek: China shifts from breakthrough to AI scale
One year after DeepSeek unsettled the global AI landscape and signaled that China had narrowed the gap with the US in generative artificial intelligence, the question is no longer whether China can compete. It is whether China is beginning to define the architecture of the next AI order. “The difference between adopting AI and defining its architecture is huge,” said Ahn Jun-mo, a professor of public administration at Korea University. “Countries that set the standards have the power to shape ec
March 10, 2026 - 15:06:07
‘Buy European’ push highlights reliance on China EV supply chain
The European Union’s newly proposed Industrial Accelerator Act — often described as Europe’s answer to the US Inflation Reduction Act — appears less aggressive toward Chinese electric vehicles than expected. Rather than curbing China’s grip on the EV supply chain, the policy highlights how difficult it may be for Europe to reduce its reliance on Chinese batteries and components — a reality that could create fresh challenges for Korean automakers and battery makers in the world’s second-largest E
March 5, 2026 - 15:32:02
China scales biotech, Korea carves a niche
China’s biopharmaceutical rise is no longer incremental — it is structural, accelerated and globally consequential. So formidable has China’s biotech sector become that the US National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology recently warned policymakers they have a three-year window to act decisively if the US hopes to retain global leadership. For South Korea, which has designated biotechnology as one of three “game changers” for scientific sovereignty, the message is sobering. The gap wi
Feb. 23, 2026 - 11:51:14
China rules the yards, but Korea leads in high-end ships, geopolitics
China now controls nearly two-thirds of global ship orders, but for South Korea, the real concern is not volume alone — it is that its remaining edge is no longer purely technological, but geopolitical, ecosystem-driven and increasingly time-limited. In 2025, Chinese shipyards accounted for 63 percent of global new vessel orders, far ahead of South Korea's 21 percent and Japan's 5 percent, according to London-based Clarkson Research Services. Chinese state data put the figure even higher at 69 p
Feb. 10, 2026 - 13:42:48
‘The gap is more than five years’: Why China still trails in memory
As China’s rapid advance in memory chips fuels concerns over a potential challenge to market leaders such as Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, a veteran DRAM expert says the technology gap remains far wider than commonly perceived — and may be growing rather than narrowing. “The gap is not two or three years. In my view, it is more than five,” said Shim Dae-yong, an electrical engineering professor at Dong-A University, in an interview with The Korea Herald. “In DRAM, especially advanced memory,
Feb. 2, 2026 - 15:02:54
Korea’s memory fortress under pressure as China advances — but the lead still holds
China Factor examines how China’s rise is redrawing the competitive map for Korea’s key industries, and what that means for the global supply chain order. This is the second installment. — Ed. Long dismissed as years behind its global rivals, China’s memory-chip industry is advancing faster than expected, unsettling competitors in South Korea and the US. Massive state backing and a looming initial public offering by China’s top DRAM maker have raised fresh questions over how quickly the country’
Feb. 2, 2026 - 15:02:43
China factor: How Beijing’s tech rise is testing Korea’s export engine
For decades, high-tech excellence has been the bedrock of South Korea’s export-reliant economy, with its semiconductors, smartphones and electronics recognized for their competitiveness. But recent industry data reveals that dominance has been challenged. According to the Federation of Korean Industries in November, South Korean companies projected that China is on track to not only close the gap but potentially overtake Korea across 10 major export industries. As of 2025, China is ahead of Kore
Jan. 2, 2026 - 09:00:00
