Most Popular
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Exports to US reach all-time high, widen gap with China
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Trump rekindles criticism: US forces defending 'wealthy' S. Korea 'free of charge'
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[Music in drama] Rekindle a love that slipped through your fingers
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S. Korea discussed possible participation in AUKUS Pillar 2 with Australia: defense minister
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[New faces of Assembly] Architect behind ‘audacious initiative’ believes in denuclearized North Korea
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Seoul Metro to seek legal action against malicious complaints
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On May Day, labor unions blast Yoon's foreign nanny proposal
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Illit, mired in controversy, remains on Billboard charts for 5th week
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Opposition-led Assembly unilaterally passes bill to probe Marine's death
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[KH Explains] Will alternative trading platform shake up Korean stock market?
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Kakao-Daum tie-up rumored
Rumors are rising that Kakao, the nation’s top mobile messenger provider, and Daum Communications, the nation’s second-largest Internet portal company, are again seeking a tie-up.According to sources in the investment banking industry, the boards of the two tech giants met last Friday to discuss a possible merger through a stock swap.“The deal could offer a new business opportunity to the both companies,” an anonymous stock analyst said.Daum Communications has been seeking to go mobile as a way
IndustryMay 25, 2014
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Cuba’s deputy trade minister to visit Korea for investment talks
Cuba’s deputy trade minister will visit South Korea this week, becoming the highest ranking official from the Latin American country to do so since the countries’ diplomatic ties were severed in 1959, a local trade agency said Sunday. Ileana Nunez Mordoche, deputy minister for foreign trade and investment, will arrive here Monday for an investment fair and hold one-on-one meetings with South Korean firms interested in investing in Cuba, according to the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency.Th
IndustryMay 25, 2014
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North Korea importing large number of digital TVs
North Korea’s imports of digital television sets from China have more than quadrupled this year, a South Korean trade group said Sunday, amid reports that the country is moving to introduce digital TV broadcasting.In the first four months of the year, China shipped digital TVs amounting to some $17.66 million to North Korea, up 338 percent from $4.02 million during the same period last year, according to the Korea International Trade Association.The figure is the fifth-largest amount for any sin
IndustryMay 25, 2014
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Corporate dividends to foreign investors jump 14% in 2013
South Korean companies’ dividend payouts to foreign investors surged nearly 14 percent from a year earlier in 2013, partly reflecting a growth in foreign investment in the local market, related data showed Sunday. According to the Korea Securities Depository, local firms that settle their annual accounts in December paid a combined total of 4.63 trillion won ($4.51 billion) in dividends to foreigners last year, up 13.9 percent from 2012. The increase was largely attributed to the payouts by Sams
May 25, 2014
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Postal banking services suffer network failure
The state-run Korea Post offering postal banking services said on Sunday that it fully recovered from a computer network failure that occurred early Saturday morning. A computer system failure caused suspension in postal banking services for more than two hours on Saturday, officials said.The accident happened around 5 a.m., bringing all Korea Post banking services down, such as withdrawals and deposits through ATMs, money transfers, credit card payments and smartphone banking. Normal services r
IndustryMay 25, 2014
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[Herald Interview] Financial services broaden Mercedes appeal
Adi Ofek, managing director of Mercedes-Benz Financial Services Korea, had no hesitations on joining the Korean team in January. Among several options given to the then-chief risk officer of Daimler in Africa and the Asia-Pacific, Korea was almost her own choice, she recalled. “It was because of the people. I felt very much at home whenever I visited Korea on business trips,” the Israeli CEO said in an interview with The Korea Herald on Friday. “Koreans are hard-working people. They always try t
MobilityMay 25, 2014
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Infiniti aims to build Japan business in three years
Nissan Motor’s Infiniti said it may set up business in Japan within three years as the luxury unit seeks to build its brand.“My personal expectation is that we should be able to introduce Infiniti formally to the Japanese market no later than 2017,” Infiniti president Johan de Nysschen said in an interview on Friday in Hong Kong, where the premium carmaker is based. “The brand needs to be there, and we need to have a very clear global footprint.” The Nissan Infiniti Q50 Eau RougeWhile Infiniti a
MobilityMay 25, 2014
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GM now says 47 crashes tied to defect on ignition switch
General Motors as now linked 47 crashes to small cars with defective ignition switches while saying it hasn’t increased the number of deaths tied to the accidents.“We have done a thorough analysis of all the information available to us and at this time, based on everything we know, there have been 13 fatalities associated with the ignition switch,” Jim Cain, a company spokesman, said Sunday in a telephone interview.GM on Feb. 25 tied 31 frontal crashes to the faulty ignition switches, which can
MobilityMay 25, 2014
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Samsung chairman regains consciousness
Samsung Electronics chairman Lee Kun-hee, being treated in hospital after a heart attack over the past two weeks, has regained consciousness, the company said Sunday.Lee, 72, was operated on at Samsung Medical Center in southern Seoul on May 11 after a heart attack.He was transferred to VIP hospital room on May 19 from an intensive care unit at the hospital, according to the hospital.“Lee was transferred to the ordinary ward and has recovered from an unconscious state. His response to diverse st
IndustryMay 25, 2014
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National Pension Fund reaps heavy profit from stock investment in Samsung
South Korea's national pension fund made more than 1 trillion won ($975.1 billion) in two weeks from its Samsung Group stocks, an analysis of its latest investment portfolio indicated Sunday.Samsung Group's share prices have jumped across the board after the conglomerate's chief Lee Kun-hee, who commands the country's top cap business empire, was hospitalized earlier this month after a heart attack. The incident raised investor confidence that Samsung would take pro-shareholder steps as it exped
May 25, 2014
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Foreign investors' dividends jump nearly 14 percent in 2013
South Korean companies' dividend payouts to foreign investors surged nearly 14 percent from a year earlier in 2013, partly reflecting a growth in foreign investment in the local market, related data showed Sunday.According to the Korea Securities Depository, local firms that settle their annual accounts in December paid a combined total of 4.63 trillion won ($4.51 billion) in dividends to foreigners last year, up 13.9 percent from 2012.The increase was largely attributed to the payouts by Samsun
May 25, 2014
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Apple seeks order blocking sale of some Samsung phones
Apple, following a jury verdict that Samsung Electronics infringed three of its patents, is seeking a U.S. sales ban on some older models of the South Korean company’s smartphones.Apple, which on May 2 won $120 million of the $2.2 billion it sought, identified nine devices it wants barred in a filing yesterday with U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh in San Jose, California.Winning a ban may prove difficult for Apple because Koh, who also presided over the companies’ first U.S. trial in 2012, twice rej
BusinessMay 24, 2014
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[Weekender] Accessorize Accessorize Accessorize
“Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening.” -Coco ChanelStyle and fashion. Who can live without them?Especially in an age where people are not shy about expressing themselves and want to advertise what they are all about, having a unique sense of style is certainly a plus.Shoes, purses, ties, watches, rings, earrings and scarves ― these are all items that people use to spice up th
IndustryMay 23, 2014
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[Weekender] Korea still lacks affordable secondary lines
A growing number of global luxury fashion powerhouses are tapping into secondary lines for mass-market consumers.The reason is simple: to offer affordable styles without losing their exclusive status and reputation. Another reason is because if they don’t somehow embrace the part of the population who want high-end and ready-to-wear, their businesses could suffer down the road. However, the trend has not yet caught on in Korea, where more and more shoppers and fashionistas are clamoring for such
IndustryMay 23, 2014
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[Weekender] Brands rush to find middle ground
In the world of fancy footwear and watches, a new philosophy is unfolding: Keep it chic and classic like a Manolo Blahnik or a Rolex, but with cheaper price tags. Traditionally, the accessories market has been divided into either high-end or, well, the low ― indicating products that are largely affordable for the masses. But these days, people are looking for style items that are aesthetically pleasing, yet would not make one’s jaw drop upon seeing the price tag, according to industry watchers.
IndustryMay 23, 2014
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[Weekender] Let the shoes do the talking
Kwon Ji-won, 33, who works as a human resources manager at a local consulting firm, is the certified shoe-buff at her office.“I prefer shoes to other fashion items as a form of expressing myself,” she said, introducing herself as a high-heel maniac. “Anything that has a high heel, I am all for it.”Aside from the stilettos, her collection runs a wide gamut from sneakers and sandals to ballerina flats and thigh-high boots. The price tags also are as diverse as her collection: Some are more than af
IndustryMay 23, 2014
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Hanwha Group ventures into solar power business in Turkey
Hanwha Group has recently established a branch in Turkey in what was seen as a move to grab one of the world’s fastest-growing solar power markets. Hanwha Chemical, responsible for managing the energy unit, said a Turkish branch of Hanwha Q Cells was recently set up. This unit is searching for business opportunities involving installing and distributing solar energy tools and solutions.“Things are still in the early stages but we are seeing a lot of potential in Turkey,” a Hanwha Chemical offici
IndustryMay 23, 2014
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Samsung, LG lead global TV market
Korean tech giants Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics maintained their leadership in flat TV sales in the first quarter of this year with their aggregate market share accounting for almost half of the global market.Samsung posted a 29.6 percent market share, up from 26.8 percent last year, topping the world’s flat TV market for the 33rd consecutive quarter in the January-March period, Samsung said Friday, citing a report by market researcher DisplaySearch.Models look at Samsung Electronics’
TechnologyMay 23, 2014
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Hyundai adopts 2-track pricing strategy for Sonatas in U.S
Hyundai Motor, South Korea’s largest carmaker, has adopted a two-track pricing strategy for its brand new Sonata sedan, asking for a “fair price” for higher trims while strengthening the value proposition for more mainstream models that will be sold in the highly competitive U.S. market, company officials said Friday.The automaker is offering eight trim levels for the 2015 model year Sonata, two more than the outgoing sixth-generation sedan. It said by adding more choices, consumers can pick the
IndustryMay 23, 2014
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Won set to end three-week rally on intervention
The won was set to stall a three-week rally amid speculation South Korean authorities acted to limit the currency’s appreciation.The Bank of Korea and the Finance Ministry probably bought $1.5 billion on May 14 and around half of that amount on May 20 to intervene in the foreign-exchange market, Cliff Tan, the Hong Kong-based East Asian head of global markets research for Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ wrote in a note yesterday. Finance Minister Hyun Oh-seok said this week that policy measures sho
May 23, 2014