Most Popular
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Blinken calls on China to press N. Korea to end its 'dangerous' behavior
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New celebrity-endorsed therapy for face contouring requires only a pair of rubber bands
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Tensions heighten ahead of first president-opposition chief meeting
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Seoul to provide housing subsidy to married couples with newborns
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[Weekender] How DDP emerged as an icon of Seoul
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Rapper jailed after public street fight with another rapper
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Woman gets suspended term for injuring boyfriend with knife
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[KH Explains] No more 'Michael' at Kakao Games
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Doctor group's incoming head renews call for govt. to scrap medical school quota hike for dialogue
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NewJeans pops out ‘Bubble Gum’ video amid troubles at agency
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AgriVogue brings Canada’s Saskatoon berries to Korea
Saskatoon berries, Canada’s indigenous superfruit, will soon become available to South Korean consumers for the first time.Prairie Berries’ Saskatoon berry spread, syrup and topping as well as its dried berries will have their official market debut during the Lunar New Year holidays at Shinsegae Department Store branches in Seoul, said AgriVogue, the local representative of Prairie Berries.“Saskatoon berries will present South Korean consumers with a new culinary taste and joyful experience of C
IndustryJan. 23, 2015
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Hanwha Q Cells closes solar plant in Germany
Hanwha Q Cells, a Germany-based solar power business unit of Hanwha Group, announced Thursday that it would end its production operations in Germany from March 1 and relocate them to Malaysia. The solar photovoltaic-maker will maintain its research and development operations in Germany.“Behind the decision is weakening demand for solar cells and modules in Europe and higher labor costs than other regions,’’ a Hanwha Group official said. The group added the restructuring of Hanwha Q Cells would h
IndustryJan. 23, 2015
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Naver, Daum Kakao see sharp rise in search warrants
The number of requests by investigative agencies for information from the nation’s Web-portal giants ― Naver and Daum Kakao ― have steadily increased over the years, raising public concern about the government’s infringement on users’ privacy online.The number of search and seizure warrants for user information increased 6.3 times from 1,487 in 2012 to 9,342 in 2014, according to a transparency report released by Naver on Thursday. Around 9,244 warrants were issued in 2013. “The requests for war
TechnologyJan. 23, 2015
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Court bans SK Telecom ad over LTE service
A Seoul court has banned an SK Telecom advertisement, saying Friday that it falsely claimed SKT was the first to commercialize triband Long Term Evolution services.“SK Telecom’s ad includes false and exaggerated information since it did not commercialize the triband LTE services,” the Seoul Central District Court said in its ruling.The court also said this sort of deceptive ad could be used to secure the top position of the mobile carrier in the domestic market and could damage the market order.
TechnologyJan. 23, 2015
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Seoul shares up 0.79 pct on ECB step
South Korean stocks closed higher Friday as investors cheered the stimulus plan by the European Central Bank released overnight to revitalize the moribund eurozone economy, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 15.27 points, or 0.79 percent, to close at 1,936.09. Trading volume was moderate at 359.36 million shares worth 4.57 trillion won ($4.22 billion), with gainers outpacing losers 460 to 330.The ECB said it would
Jan. 23, 2015
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Hyundai E&C net up 3 pct in 2014 on overseas orders
Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co., South Korea's No. 2 builder, said Friday its 2014 net profit advanced 3 percent from a year earlier as it won major construction projects overseas.The bottom line came to 586.7 billion won ($541.1 million), up from 569.6 billion won in 2013, while operating profit and sales both jumped 20.9 percent and 24.7 percent, respectively, the company said in a regulatory filing."Hyundai E&C has logged a remarkable earnings record despite difficult business conditio
IndustryJan. 23, 2015
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Overseas direct purchases by S. Koreans reach new high in 2014
Overseas direct purchases made by South Koreans reached an all-time annual high of $1.54 billion in 2014, as consumers sought better bargains and a wider choice of products, the customs service said Friday.The total represents a 39 percent increase compared to $1.04 billion brought in from abroad in 2013, the Korea Customs Service said. It said the total number of items purchased last year reached 15,530 from 11,159 in 2013.Most direct purchases are made on overseas online shopping malls and mar
IndustryJan. 23, 2015
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Kia Motor's 2014 net profit drops 21.6 pct
Kia Motors Corp., South Korea's second-largest automaker, said Friday its net profit dropped 21.6 percent on-year in 2014 as profitability worsened from the strong won and unfavorable business conditions in global markets.Net income came to 2.99 trillion won ($2.75 billion) last year, compared with 3.82 trillion won reported a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing.Operating profit also fell 19 percent on-year to 2.57 trillion won, the lowest in four years, while sales edged down
MobilityJan. 23, 2015
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Seoul shares up 0.7 pct in late morning
South Korean stocks traded 0.7 percent higher late Friday morning as investor sentiment was boosted by the European Central Bank's stimulus plan released overnight, analysts said.The Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 13.46 points to 1,934.28 as of 11:20 a.m.Blue-chip shares rose across the board, with Samsung Electronics rising 0.44 percent and top automaker Hyundai Motor climbing 1.19 percent. SK hynix also added 1.28 percent.Shipbuilders were also winners, with Hyundai Heavy Industries mo
Jan. 23, 2015
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Search warrants on Daum Kakao user data grow fourfold in 2 years
Search warrants on user data of Daum Kakao Corp., South Korea's Internet portal and mobile messenger venture, grew fourfold in the last two years, the company said in its transparency report released Friday, amid heightening public concerns over privacy violations by authorities.Daum Kakao received 8,636 court orders to submit dialogues, sign-in logs and ID addresses in 2014, compared with 2,174 tallied in 2012.The disclosure comes after its rival Naver Corp., the operator of South Korea's No. 1
IndustryJan. 23, 2015
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KB Financial's takeover of local insurer hits snag over price
A move by KB Financial Group to acquire a local insurer has reached an impasse despite a recent long-awaited approval from the financial regulator, industry sources said Friday.In June, South Korea's second-largest banking group preliminarily agreed to buy a 19.47 percent stake in LIG Insurance Co., the country's fourth-largest insurer, for 685 billion won ($632 million). Last month, the Financial Services Commission, the country's financial regulator, gave its nod to the deal, paving the way fo
Jan. 23, 2015
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Korean investors flock to Chinese stocks after Shanghai-Hong Kong
Korean investors have been increasingly setting their eyes on Chinese stocks after the launch of a Shanghai-Hong Kong stock connect program in search of higher returns amid the tepid local stock market, the nation's financial watchdog said Friday.The combined transaction volume in the cross-border trading program by local investors via 13 Korean brokerage houses reached 1.16 trillion won ($1.07 billion) during 39 trading sessions between Nov. 17 and Jan. 15, according to data compiled by the Fin
Jan. 23, 2015
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ETFs' net asset value hits record high
South Korea's exchange-traded funds have sucked in money from investors who are looking for safe investment vehicles that come with decent returns amid increased volatility, data showed on Friday.According to the Korea Financial Investment Association, the net asset value of local ETFs reached 20.41 trillion won ($18.78 billion) on Wednesday, the highest on record. The figure topped the 20-trillion won mark on Dec. 23 for the first time, the data showed.An ETF refers to an investment fund traded
Jan. 23, 2015
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ECB quantitative easing in line with market forecast: BOK chief
The additional quantitative easing by the European Central Bank is likely to have limited impact on the South Korean financial market as the measure has mostly been priced in, the central bank chief said Friday."The ECB's measure was already factored in the market," Bank of Korea Gov. Lee Ju-yeol said in a financial consultative meeting with local bank heads."It could have caused a shock if the move diverged from expectation, but it was mostly in line with expectation," said Lee, adding the cent
Jan. 23, 2015
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Seoul shares open higher on ECB push
South Korean stocks opened higher Friday on the European Central Bank's announcement of a massive stimulus for the eurozone, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index advanced 18.26 points, or 0.95 percent, to 1,939.08 in the first 15 minutes of trading.The ECB said it will purchase more than 60 billion euros ($68.1 billion) worth of bonds from March, a decision intended to turn around stagnation in the eurozone economies.Tech shares traded higher, with Samsung Electronics ad
Jan. 23, 2015
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S. Korea's Q4 economic growth slowest in 2 yrs
The South Korean economy expanded at the slowest pace in more than two years in the fourth quarter, central bank data showed Friday, raising concerns over faltering growth.Asia's fourth-largest economy grew 0.4 percent during the October-December period, sharply decelerating from the 0.9 percent on-quarter growth in the July-September period, according to the Bank of Korea. The figures are seasonally adjusted.The fourth-quarter expansion marks the lowest on a quarterly basis since the 0.4 percen
Jan. 23, 2015
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BOK prioritizes financial stability
Bank of Korea Gov. Lee Ju-yeol stressed Thursday that the central bank’s main priority was maintaining stability by paying close attention to rising household debt and the possibility of quantitative easing by the European Central Bank.In a meeting with foreign press in Seoul, South Korea’s top monetary policymaker said that it was necessary to manage risk and come up with countermeasures for high household debt and market volatility expected from eurozone stimulus. The ECB is expected to begin
Jan. 22, 2015
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[Graphic News] Korean firms’ profitability drops sharply
South Korean companies have dropped in profitability from last three years, according to industry data released on Monday.The ratio of net income to sales at South Korean businesses from 2012-2014 fell 2.9 percentage points. It stood at 5.5 percent on average in 2014, far lower than the world’s average (7.9 percent) and emerging countries (average 5.9 percent). Meanwhile, the global average ratio from 2012 to 2014 rose by around 0.24 percentage point.Japan marked the highest rise of 1.3 percenta
Jan. 22, 2015
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AbbVie’s new hepatitis C treatment gets approval in EU
TRENTON, New Jersey (AP) ― Drugmaker AbbVie Inc. said its new, all-pill hepatitis C combo treatment has been approved for patients in the 28 European Union member countries.The company said the European Commission had granted marketing authorization for the combination of Viekirax and Exviera. Viekirax itself is a combination pill containing antiviral drugs ombitasvir, paritaprevir and ritonavir; Exviera is a single pill containing dasabuvir. It’s already approved in EU nonmembers Switzerland, N
TechnologyJan. 22, 2015
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Foods that can help you give up smoking
Compared to nonsmokers, most smokers tend to consume more alcohol and high caloric food ― such as fatty foods. They also have lower intake of antioxidant vitamins (vitamins C, E and A) from healthy vegetables and fruits, thereby having a higher risk of atherosclerosis and various cancers. Most smokers tend to consume more coffee (3-10 cups per day) and have irregular dietary habits.Changes in serum lipid levelsNicotine in cigarettes increases the free fatty acid levels in the serum, to raise the
TechnologyJan. 22, 2015