Stocks plunge; stronger won against U.S. dollar feared to hurt exporters Fears of potential fallout from the U.S. credit downgrade quickly materialized in a Korean stock freefall on Monday. The drop reflected the panicky sentiment among local investors amid growing concerns about the overall Korean economy, widely seen as vulnerable to outside risks. Investors in Korea and elsewhere in Asia ha...

Imports of Korean staple rise by almost 40% on-year As prices of locally-produced napa cabbages soared, kimchi exports decreased by more than 10 percent this year, while imports increased by nearly 40 percent, government data found Monday. This year’s outbound shipment of kimchi amounted to 15,614 tons as of July, a 10.7 percent decline compared to the same period last year, according to the Mi...

Lotte Mart struggled Monday to quell market speculation that the nation’s second-largest retail chain is considering moving its headquarters to China in the near future. According to news reports, Lotte Mart CEO Noh Byung-yong hinted at a potential move to China in a recent meeting with company officials. “When our overseas sales exceed domestic sales, we could move the head office to China,” N...

Company reviewing contract on whether Iraq can legally retract accord on plant STX Heavy Industries is in danger of losing a 3 trillion won ($2.8 billion) plant construction contract in Iraq due to political turmoil in the Middle Eastern country, industry sources and news reports said Monday. STX, whose main area of expertise is manufacturing ship engines, said it was looking into the situation...

The Federation of Korean Industries is facing mounting public backlash after the discovery that it pushed companies to lobby politicians to curb anti-corporate legislation. The country’s central mouthpiece for conglomerates was recently found to have paired some of the nation’s largest companies with prominent politicians such as Democratic Party leader Sohn Hak-kyu and floor leader Kim Jin-pyo ...

As some restaurants serve up the dish for the summer ... In Western countries, where people regard a dog as a friend, people don’t understand why Koreans slaughter dogs and eat them. Thus, Koreans’ eating of dog has become an object of criticism and debate. I have written six theses, two books and one comic book related to dog meat, and have pointed out through my homepage (wolf.ok.ac.kr/~annyg...

NEW YORK ― The Great Recession of 2008 has morphed into the North Atlantic Recession: it is mainly Europe and the United States, not the major emerging markets, that have become mired in slow growth and high unemployment. And it is Europe and America that are marching, alone and together, to the denouement of a grand debacle. A busted bubble led to a massive Keynesian stimulus that averted a much...