Six months after autonomous trucks began hauling freight on South Korean expressways, the operational efficiency gains are still limited, the industry says. While highway driving is stabilising, duplicate staffing remains because safety personnel must still ride in the cab. Challenges also persist off the road, including terminal entry, docking for loading and unloading, and clarifying liability when accidents occur. Companies are accelerating commercial plans despite calls for faster regulatory and procedural fixes.

Lotte said on Tuesday it will make early payments of 949.5 billion won to about 12,000 partner firms ahead of the Chuseok holiday to ease funding strains. The programme involves 27 affiliates including Lotte Department Store, Lotte Engineering & Construction, Lotte Global Logistics and Lotte Home Shopping, with payments brought forward by an average of 8 days. Lotte said it has made early payments annually since 2013 and also runs co-prosperity financing and overseas expansion support programmes.