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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Opposition-led Assembly unilaterally passes bill to probe Marine's death
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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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Illit, mired in controversy, remains on Billboard charts for 5th week
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On May Day, labor unions blast Yoon's foreign nanny proposal
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Golden chance to liquidate babies’ gold rings?
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Competition for KB Kookmin Bank presidency heats up
As KB Financial Group picked Lim Young-rok as its new chairman on Wednesday, attention is being paid to who will head the nation’s No. 2 bank under the financial group.KB Kookmin Bank president and CEO Min Byong-deok offered to resign from the post after running unsuccessfully for the chairmanship.Currently, KB Kookmin Card CEO Choi Gi-eui, KB Financial Group vice president Yoon Jong-kyu and KB Kookmin Bank vice president Kim Ok-chan are the strongest candidates for the top post, bank sources sa
June 6, 2013
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Ex-vice finance minister tapped as NH Financial chairman
Nonghyup Financial Group said Thursday that the group has named former senior government official Lim Jong-ryong as its chairman.Lim’s chairmanship will go through final verification the following day at the board of directors’ meeting, the group said. Lim, 54, served as the vice minister of the Ministry of Strategy and Finance in April 2010, before leading the Prime Minister’s Office from September 2011. Despite concerns about the group’s general exclusiveness for outsiders, NongHyup Financial
June 6, 2013
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Middle East market still attractive to Korean firms
Despite the rise of Southeast Asia, the Middle East market is still big, important and rich enough to attract Korean firms, especially medium-sized ones seeking to expand their business overseas, according to a senior partner of a top Arabic law firm.“The business potential in the United Arab Emirates is very much ongoing,” Stephen Forster, a partner at Al Tamimi, the largest and the most influential law firm in the Middle Eastern region, told The Korea Herald.The senior lawyer, who is also the
June 6, 2013
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‘No unapproved GMO wheat, flour from U.S.’
South Korea’s food watchdog said Wednesday that it has found no unapproved genetically modified wheat and flour in shipments from the U.S. state of Oregon.The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety made the announcement after inspecting a 1-kilogram sample from each shipment of U.S. wheat and flour being stored by South Korean importers and milling companies.The move comes days after the U.S. Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service confirmed unapproved genetically modified wheat had been found in a
June 6, 2013
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Revised capital rule dents installment purchases in Q1
Credit card installment purchases fell to a 10-quarter low in the first quarter as a revised financial rule and the economic slump dampened consumers’ sentiment, data showed Wednesday.According to the data compiled by the Bank of Korea, the country’s credit card installment buying came to 20.2 trillion won ($18.1 billion) in the January-March period, down 17.1 percent from three months earlier.In contrast, the amount of single payment purchases edged down 1.9 percent over the cited period to rea
June 6, 2013
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U.S. auto magazine picks Kia Cadenza as best sedan
LOS ANGELES (Yonhap News) ― A leading U.S. auto magazine has picked the Kia Cadenza as the best sedan among its American and Japanese rivals, a move that South Korea’s second-largest automaker Kia Motors Corp. will boost its sales in the United States.“A huge value proposition, solid fuel efficiency, near-luxury ride, and pretty sheetmetal make the Kia our near-unanimous choice for first place,” Motor Trend, an automobile magazine, said in its July edition posted on its website.The magazine comp
June 6, 2013
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Bank holding firms’ capital slips in Q1
The capital adequacy ratio of South Korean bank holding companies fell in the first quarter of this year from three months earlier, largely due to a decrease in the amount of capital set aside to counter risk, the financial regulator said Thursday. The average capital adequacy ratio of 10 local bank holding companies, including top player Woori Finance Holdings Co., stood at 13.11 percent as of the end of March, down 0.12 percentage point from three months earlier, according to the Financial Sup
June 6, 2013
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What are colonic polyps?
Polyps are lumps (tumors) that protrude from the lining of the colon. They can be categorized into adenomas or hyperplastic polyps. Hyperplastic polyps are generally not associated with colon cancer, and are not causes of concern. The concerning type of polyps are adenomas, which are benign tumors that can become malignant with time and hence become colon cancer.The risk of adenomas depends on the microscopic histology and the size of the polyp. Polyps that are smaller than 1 centimeter have a 1
TechnologyJune 6, 2013
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Job stress blamed for rise in young bipolar patients
Bipolar disorder is increasingly affecting Korean youths struggling with job-related stress, with patients among workers in their 20s surging 10 percent annually in recent years, study showed. The number of people treated for the mood disorder grew 26.1 percent from 46,000 in 2007 to 58,000 in 2011, according to a report released by the National Health Insurance Service. Over the same period, medical expenses related to psychosomatic illness increased from 55 billion won ($48.6 million) to 77 bi
TechnologyJune 6, 2013
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Meet distant cousin: Tiny hyperactive primate
New fossil evidence of the earliest complete skeleton of an ancient primate suggests it was a hyperactive, wide-eyed creature so small you could hold a couple of them in your hand _ if only they would stay still long enough.The 55 million-year-old fossil dug up in central China is one of our first primate relatives and it gives scientists a better understanding of the complex evolution that eventually led to humans. This tiny monkey-like creature weighed an ounce (28 grams) or less and was not a
TechnologyJune 6, 2013
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BS Financial chief pressured to resign
Financial authorities recently urged Busan-based BS Financial Group chief executive Lee Jang-ho to step down from his post voluntarily before his term expires in March 2014, according to market insiders on Wednesday.The alleged pressure on the provincial financial firm from regulators has come under spotlight after most chairmen of the nation’s major financial groups were replaced over the past few months.The Financial Supervisory Service, in a statement earlier in the day, said that BS Financia
June 6, 2013
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U.S. extends Iran sanctions exception for S. Korea
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Wednesday announced the renewal of Iran sanctions exceptions for South Korea and eight other nations.The nine nations will be able to continue purchasing reduced amount of Iranian crude oil for the coming 180 days without any penalties under the National Defense Authorization Act."The United States and the international community stand shoulder to shoulder in maintaining pressure on the Iranian regime until it fully addresses concerns about its nuclear progr
June 6, 2013
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Agencies team up to probe offshore investors
The nation’s three investigative agencies on financial transactions and the central bank will collaborate on inquiries into alleged corporate tax evaders via investment in overseas tax havens.Officials at the Financial Supervisory Service said the regulator plans to actively exchange a variety of information on offshore investors with the National Tax Service, the Korea Customs Service and the Bank of Korea.This is the first time in about eight years since 2005 for the agencies to seek joint inv
June 5, 2013
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Korea to improve venture ecosystem
The Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning said Wednesday that it would lay the foundations for a sound venture ecosystem that can give every Korean the opportunity to turn innovative and creative ideas into lucrative businesses.Science and ICT Minister Choi Mun-kee said that the government’s incentives and deregulations to promote start-ups would boost job creation and national competitiveness.The Science and ICT ministry said it hoped to create about 650,000 jobs through these measures s
June 5, 2013
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[Photo News] Memorial day
Social AffairsJune 5, 2013
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[Newsmaker] Inspection firm targeted in nuclear scandal
At the heart of the nuclear reactors’ shutdown and subsequent electricity shortage was a quality inspection company that neglected its role for the sake of its own interests.Earlier in the week, the prosecution summoned the head of Saehan TEP for allegedly forging the quality certificate papers on substandard signal cables used in the recently suspended nuclear reactors.A senior employee of JS Cable, too, was questioned on charges of supplying faulty parts and exerting pressure on Saehan TEP to
June 5, 2013
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[Graphic News] Korea more dependent on foreign investment
The nation’s reliance on foreign capital has been rapidly increasing, indicating that its economy could be greatly swayed by external shocks, data showed Wednesday.According to a report from the private Nonghyup Economic Research Institute, the ratio of foreign investment to gross domestic product came to 81.9 percent in March. This was a 16.6 percentage points increase from December 2008.The ratio soared dramatically during the global recession in 2008 and 2009. It gradually dropped to 75.1 per
June 5, 2013
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Starbucks launches first online academy
Starbucks Korea launched Wednesday the world’s first online Starbucks Academy to educate some 5,000 employees here and support better communication between them, anytime and anywhere. It is the first time that the Seattle-based coffee house has introduced an online academy. The company currently has cafes in some 60 countries. The key feature of the membership website, coming together with a mobile app, is the interactive experience. That is best represented by a Wiki-style dictionary for the St
IndustryJune 5, 2013
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Samsung unveils W1.2tr support plan for partners
Samsung Group, the country’s top conglomerate, said Wednesday that it will spend 1.2 trillion won ($1.07 billion) over the next five years to help its business partners and subcontractors.This year alone, Samsung, which has Samsung Electronics and Samsung Display Co. under its wing, will spend 327 billion won for the co-prosperity scheme, it said.Under the group’s plan, technology and financing support will be provided to its business partners. Also, its 11 affiliates such as Samsung Electronics
IndustryJune 5, 2013
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Lotte, Shilla vie for top spot in global duty-free market
Duty-free shops have been the biggest cash cows of Lotte Hotel and Hotel Shilla for years, thanks to the sharp increase in tourists from China and Southeast Asia.But with political movements to make duty-free shops donate 1 percent of their revenue as public funds and restrict conglomerates’ further expansion in the business, Lotte and Shilla are turning their eyes abroad. Lotte Hotel and Hotel Shilla netted over 80 percent of their revenue last year, which topped 3 trillion won and 2 trillion w
IndustryJune 5, 2013