Most Popular
-
1
Korea enters full election mode
-
2
Seoul bus drivers go on general strike, cause morning rush hour delays
-
3
Immigrant woman stabbed to death by Korean husband
-
4
Lee Jong-sup resigns as envoy to Australia
-
5
Official campaigning kicks off for April 10 elections
-
6
Yellow dust engulfs S. Korea, advisory alert issued
-
7
S. Korea to boost support for single-parent families
-
8
Court upholds jail term for man who attempted to murder ex-girlfriend
-
9
Kia EV9 wins world car of year
-
10
Korea misses out on global bond index boost
-
Lotte, Shinsegae wary of drugstore expansion
Lotte and Shinsegae are dawdling over their drugstore business amid criticism that conglomerates are entering it to circumvent regulations against large discount stores and supermarket chains.Lotte Group has delayed the opening of its first drugstore by a month to late April or early May, saying it hasn’t decided on the name yet.Lotte set up a taskforce last year under Lotte Super to prepare the drugstore business, but has continued to postpone its schedule upon unwelcome attention as exorbitant
IndustryMarch 6, 2013
-
Top 20 conglomerates flunk in social responsibility
Conglomerates such as Shinsegae and CJ that provide goods and services directly to retail consumers flunked their evaluations on corporate social responsibility performances.Korea’s Corporate Governance Service said Wednesday that CJ and its subsidiaries earned the lowest score of 5.6 points out of 100 among the top 20 conglomerates and units in running a fair and reliable operation for consumers.Shinsegae, contrary to its close home rival Lotte, which received 53.68 points, earned around 20 poi
March 6, 2013
-
Regulations hit prices of retail, food stocks
South Korean retailers and food makers are suffering falls in their share prices as the new government is tightening regulations on job security and price stabilization, analysts said Wednesday. The analysts, however, predicted the fundamentals of the retailers and food makers including their earnings will set the future direction of their share prices, saying the regulation risk will affect their share prices in the short term. President Park Geun-hye, who took office late last month, has vowed
March 6, 2013
-
Tongyang, Hanwha, Kyobo vie for ING Life
Tongyang Life Insurance said Wednesday that it intended to bid for ING Life Korea, heralding close competition with powerful investors such as Hanwha Life and Kyobo Life.In its regulatory filing on the Korea Exchange, Tongyang Life clarified that it was “considering participating in the coming bidding to take over ING Life Korea, as part of our strategic viewpoint.”The firm’s business policy on the mergers and acquisition market came several weeks after the nation’s No. 2 (Hanwha) and No. 3 (Kyo
March 6, 2013
-
New giant ministry mired in political wrangling
A new powerful ministry dealing with policies on science, information and IT is finding it difficult to set sail due to political wrangling, more than a week after the Park Geun-hye government was inaugurated on Feb. 25.President Park proposed the establishment of the so-called Ministry of Future Planning and Science to embody her vision of a “creative economy.” But the proposal for government reorganization has failed to win approval from the National Assembly in the face of objection by opposi
TechnologyMarch 6, 2013
-
How firms can become ‘social businesses’
There’s a misconception that the transformation into a social business is simply about bringing social networking tools into an enterprise and letting employees have at it. Many organizations are diving into social head first and finding themselves gasping for air. As companies ramp up their investments in social technologies, many are struggling, because of cultural and organizational issues, to weave these innovations into how business is done. A recent IBM survey, The Business of Social Busin
TechnologyMarch 6, 2013
-
China’s electronics titans may threaten Korean firms: report
South Korean electronics companies may be threatened by the emergence of giant Chinese rivals that could be created through a government-led industry-wide restructuring, a report predicted Tuesday.The projection comes as the Chinese government has voiced its firm will to nurture major electronics firms similar to Lenovo, the world’s largest PC maker, by 2015.“There are growing chances that the industry-wide restructuring may lead to the emergence of large electronics companies, amid increasing d
TechnologyMarch 6, 2013
-
K-water CEO awarded by Cambodian government
Kim Keun-ho, the CEO of the state-run Korea Water Resources Corp., or K-water, and four employees received the Royal Order of Sahametrei, a knight-rank medal, by the Cambodian government for their dedication to the water resource management project in Cambodia, the company said on Wednesday. The order is a medal of honor conferred primarily on foreigners who have rendered distinguished services to the King of Cambodia and to the nation. K-water has completed eight water resource management-relat
IndustryMarch 6, 2013
-
Seoul shares edge up on Wall Street rally
South Korean stocks rose 0.2 percent on Wednesday, tracking an overnight rally in U.S. markets spurred by heightening anticipation over an economic recovery, analysts said. The local currency gained against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added4.13 points to finish at 2,020.74. Trading volume was moderate at391.4 million shares worth 4.03 trillion won (US$3.71 billion) with advancers outpacing decliners 414 to 381. "Despite the U.S. rally, the local bours
March 6, 2013
-
Microsoft developing interactive whiteboard
Microsoft said it was developing a whiteboard that completes a diagram or chart based on the user’s drawing, the BBC reported. With the digital whiteboard, users will be able to create diagrams or charts with a simple sketch. For instance, when a teacher draws a simple stick figure and a battery, related data such as population and electricity usage cited in research will be automatically drawn up. “As computers grow more capable of handling massive amounts of data, they also need to become more
TechnologyMarch 6, 2013
-
Giant camel fossil discovered in Arctic
A research team found fossils of an extinct giant camel in Canada’s High Arctic, providing direct evidence linking the animal to modern camels, sources reported.The camel’s 30 fragmented bones were found on Ellesmere Island, where many other mammal fossils have been discovered. The ancient animal was about 30 percent larger than today’s camels, measuring roughly 2.7 meters from foot to shoulder, according to the BBC and Science Daily. The camel fossil found in the High Arctic region came as a su
TechnologyMarch 6, 2013
-
New iPhone 5S this summer?
The next iPhone, likely to be dubbed the iPhone 5S, will arrive this summer, probably in August, an Apple-watching website reported.The website iMore, citing “sources familiar with the plans,” said the 5S will retain the form factor and size of the iPhone 5 but will be equipped with an improved camera and an advanced processor.The source also said Apple could also be releasing an updated line of iPads, including an iPad 5 and a second generation of the smaller iPad Mini even earlier, possible in
TechnologyMarch 6, 2013
-
The key to fight obesity is unveiled: study
The absence of a gene related to storing fat and controlling metabolism is found to prevent obesity, according to a study conducted in the U.S. The research team at the University of Colorado School of Medicine have created mice without the PLIN2 gene, which produces the protein perilipin to regulate fat storage and metabolism. The observation of the mice found that the size of their fat cells is 20 percent smaller than the average size. Moreover, they ate less but were more active and did not s
TechnologyMarch 6, 2013
-
Seoul shares up 0.26 pct in late-morning trade
South Korean stocks traded 0.26 percent higher late Wednesday morning, led by gains in financial firms and shipbuilders, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 5.20 points to 2,021.81 as of 11:20 a.m.No. 2 lender KB Financial Group rose 1.8 percent, with Hyundai Heavy Industries, the world's largest shipyard, jumping more than 3 percent. In contrast, auto-related shares trended lower. Kia Motors, a Hyundai Motor affiliate, slid 2 percent, with Hyundai's auto
March 6, 2013
-
S. Korea imports beef from Chile for first time
The first-ever shipment of beef from Chile arrived in South Korea last month, a government agency said Wednesday, raising expectations imports will likely grow steadily due to a bilateral free trade deal.A 25.84-ton shipment of Chilean beef arrived here early last month, according to the Animal, Plant and Fisheries Quarantine and Inspection Agency.South Korea and Chile implemented a bilateral free trade agreement in 2004, under which Seoul agreed to completely remove import taxes on up to 400 to
March 6, 2013
-
Seoul shares open sharply higher on Wall Street rally
South Korean stocks started off sharply higher Wednesday on an overnight Wall Street rally fueled by heightening anticipations of economic recovery, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) soared15.84 points, or 0.79 percent to 2,032.45 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Shares moved upward across the board, with tech blue-chips and brokerage houses fueling the main index. Top-cap tech giant Samsung Electronics rose 1.23 percent and leading brokerage firm KDB Daew
March 6, 2013
-
Samsung set to buy 3% stake in Sharp: report
South Korean electronics giant Samsung is set to buy a three-percent stake in struggling Japanese rival Sharp via a capital increase, a press report said Tuesday, a deal that would give Samsung greater access to smartphone and tablet computer screens.The Japanese economic newspaper Nikkei said in its online edition that Sharp would sell Samsung new shares worth around 10 billion yen (83 million euros, $108 million), and use the funds it earned to bolster its bottom line.An official announcement
IndustryMarch 6, 2013
-
S. Korean central bank buys more gold in Feb.
South Korea's central bank said Wednesday it increased its holding of gold in three months in February in a bid to diversify the portfolio of its foreign exchange reserves worth more than US$320 billion.The Bank of Korea (BOK) said it bought 20 tons of gold, raising the central bank's gold holdings to 104.4 tons valued at US$4.79 billion as of end-February.The move marked the BOK's fifth purchase of the yellow metal since July 2011 when the bank bought gold for the first time in 13 years. It als
March 6, 2013
-
Asset managers face staff cuts on capital erosion
An increasing number of domestic asset management and investment advisory service companies are faced with capital erosion and inevitable restructuring due to weakening profitability, according to the Financial Supervisory Service and the Korea Financial Investment Association.Securities companies have been downsizing their units and staff levels as the global slowdown has weighed down their brokerage and investment banking businesses.Financial regulators are expected to clean up and shut down t
March 5, 2013
-
Lotte Liquor BG files damages suit against Jinro
Lotte Liquor BG Co., a South Korean alcoholic beverage maker, said Tuesday that it has filed a 10 billion won ($9.2 million) damages lawsuit against its rival Hite Jinro Co. for harming its image and causing sales losses. According to Lotte Liquor BG, Hite Jinro spread slanderous gossip about “Cheoumcheorum,” the flagship soju brand of Lotte Liquor BG, after an Internet broadcasting station aired false information saying that the product is harmful to humans in March 2012. Soju is South Korea’s
March 5, 2013