Most Popular
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Marine Corps commander summoned by CIO for questioning on alleged influence-peddling case
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Debate rages over ‘overly fatty’ samgyeopsal
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[Weekender] Korean psyche untangled: Musok
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40 flights canceled on Jeju Island due to bad weather
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[Eye Interview] 'If you live to 100, you might as well be happy,' says 88-year-old bestselling essayist
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N. Korea slams US, other countries for seeking alternative to UN sanctions monitoring panel
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Pandemic left Korea more depressed than before: report
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From fake prostitution ring to nonexistent robber, prank calls hamper police
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Missing S. Korean traveler in Paris found safe after 2 weeks
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Defense chiefs of US, Australia, Japan decry NK-Russia military cooperation
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Korea strong-arms retailers in war against inflation
The government summoned executives from three major discount franchises on Thursday to discuss how to improve the distribution system and stabilize prices of manufactured goods.Executives of E-mart, Homeplus and Lotte Mart met with officials at the Ministry of Knowledge Economy at a time when the public is voicing concerns over rising gasoline prices and public utility fees.“We asked the retailers about the factors affecting the pricing of manufactured goods such as the distribution system and p
IndustryMarch 7, 2013
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Experts warn of legal risk of Kakao rumors
Kakao Talk, a mobile messenger highly popular among smartphone users in South Korea, might come off as a closed, private platform that you could safely share critical comments about others with your friends. Think twice: Such comments could get you to real legal trouble. In a recent court ruling, a Korean man who spread rumors to nine people on his Kakao Talk messenger list during the 19th general election was fined 5 million won ($4,600) for violating the Public Official Election Act.In another
TechnologyMarch 7, 2013
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Physicists on Higgs hunt: Nearly there but not yet
WASHINGTON (AP) ― Physicists in Italy said Wednesday they are achingly close to concluding that what they found last year was the Higgs boson, the elusive “God particle.” They need to eliminate one last remote possibility that it’s something else.The long theorized subatomic particle would explain why matter has mass and has been called a missing cornerstone of physics. With new analyses, scientists are closer to being certain they found the crucial Higgs boson. But they want to be 99.9 percent
TechnologyMarch 7, 2013
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Brain conditions
Symptoms related to the brain can include loss of consciousness, headache, dizziness, tingling of the skin, language disturbance, double vision, gait abnormalities, memory loss, sensory loss, and abnormal movements such as tremor and rigidity. Headaches and dizziness can arise from brain disorders, but abnormalities may not present themselves upon examination even with the presence of symptoms. People may feel the need to undergo tests, in particular, a brain MRI to confirm the diagnosis when th
TechnologyMarch 7, 2013
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Yellow dust protection needs more than a mask
Wearing facial masks during sandstorm season is essential to prevent people from inhaling dust particles, but experts say there is more that can be done to prevent diseases such as respiratory infections, eye inflammation and dermatitis often caused by yellow dust blowing in from Inner Mongolia.Recent findings have shown that yellow dust is even more dangerous than previously thought. Yellow dust contains particles of dust and metal, but also germs, researchers said.According to Seoul Health and
TechnologyMarch 7, 2013
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Electrodes implanted in brain treat anorexia
PARIS (AFP) ― Scientists said Thursday they had, for the first time, helped women with severe anorexia through electrodes implanted into their brains.The technique is in an experimental phase and only some patients had improved, but the treatment showed promise, they wrote in the Lancet medical journal.After nine months, three of the six patients in the trial had put on weight and appeared to be in a better state of mind, said the team of specialists from the United States and Canada.For the thr
TechnologyMarch 7, 2013
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[Photo News] Hyundai's new SUV
MobilityMarch 7, 2013
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Soured mortgage loan ratio reaches six-year high at banks
Commercial banks saw the delinquency rate on loans collateralized by apartments climb to the highest level in more than six years, regulatory data showed Thursday.According to the Financial Supervisory Service, the delinquent mortgage loan ratio was 0.94 percent in January, compared with 0.74 percent a month earlier and 0.69 percent a year earlier.Rising sharply to 0.94 percent, last recorded in October 2012, it marked the highest rate in 76 months since the sourced loan ratio reached 1.03 perce
March 7, 2013
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CJ taps former airport chief as vice chairman
CJ Korea Express said on Thursday it tapped Lee Chae-wook, 67, former chief executive of Incheon International Airport Corp., as vice chairman of the entity born through a merger with CJ GLS. The logistics company made the decision with less than a month left to finalize the deal between the two firms scheduled for April 1. The choice came as a surprise, as many had predicted the CEO of CJ Corp. for the job. Lee started his career at Samsung Corp., moving on to head GE’s medical service operatio
IndustryMarch 7, 2013
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Imported car sales jump 14.8% in Feb.
Sales of imported vehicles in South Korea jumped 14.8 percent in February from a year earlier, a trade association said Thursday, amid slumping sales of local cars.A total 10,556 units of foreign brand cars were sold here last month, compared with 9,196 units sold a year earlier, according to the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association.The sales figure marked a stark contrast to a 12.5 percent drop in sales of domestic cars in February when the five local carmakers sold a total o
March 7, 2013
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POSCO appoints first female overseas head
POSCO, Korea’s largest steelmaker, said Thursday that it has appointed Liang Ho-young as its first female executive, to head the company’s overseas subsidiary Qingdao Pohang Stainless Steel in China.Liang, who was in charge of sales of hot-rolled stainless steel in Korea, was promoted to the job of overseeing POSCO’s Qingdao unit due to her fluency in Chinese and long-standing experience in overseas marketing of stainless steel.The Korean steel giant also promoted another female executive Choi E
March 7, 2013
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GM Korea to offer new cars after accidents
GM Korea CEO Sergio Rocha unveiled a surprise sales program in which the automaker will offer customers new cars if they get into a car accident within three years of their purchase.His pledge came during his remarks at a media conference to celebrate the second anniversary of the introduction of the Chevrolet brand.While GM Korea has pushed the releases of new lineups over the past few years, the CEO’s commitment means that the company will prioritize customer services. If the customer is less
IndustryMarch 7, 2013
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U.S. fiscal gridlock weighs on global economy: ministry
SEJONG (Yonhap News) ― The gridlock surrounding deficit reduction and other fiscal issues in the United States continues to serve as a downside risk to the global economy, the finance ministry here said Thursday.The U.S. Congress and political leaders have been in a stalemate over how to resolve their deficit reduction problems. A failure to reach a compromise led to the automatic across-the-board budget cuts known in the market as a “sequester.”A failure in passing a budget this month could res
March 7, 2013
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Domestic banks have few women at the top
The number of female employees at domestic banks is nearly equal that of their male peers, but only a few reach high-ranking positions, according to banks and news reports. The reports said about 48.8 percent of workers at six major domestic banks were female but only 4.4 percent of bank executives were women.Even at Hana Bank, Korea Exchange Bank and Industrial Bank of Korea ― whose proportion of female employees exceeded 50 percent ― female executives were scarce, fueling concerns that gender
March 7, 2013
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Samsung, Sharp tie-up ‘win-win’: analysts
Samsung Electronics’ surprise decision to invest in Japanese rival Sharp will provide a win-win opportunity to both companies, analysts and industry experts said Thursday.“Samsung and Sharp have long been rivals, but Sharp has apparently determined that forming an alliance with its rival in flat-screen TVs and mobile phone handsets is required to improve its performance and financial standing,” said David Hsieh of industry market research firm NPD DisplaySearch.Samsung announced on Wednesday tha
IndustryMarch 7, 2013
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Small companies’ overseas investment slumps in 2012
Overseas direct investment by South Korean small and medium enterprises lagged far behind that of big companies in 2012 as they were reluctant to invest due to worsening profitability, a research institute said Thursday.The Korea Eximbank Overseas Economic Research Institute said local SMEs invested a combined $3.6 billion in foreign countries last year, or a mere 18.9 percent of the $19 billion overseas direct investment made by large companies. The ratio reached 58.2 percent in 2005 but it beg
March 7, 2013
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Retail sales forecast to have improved in February
SEJONG (Yonhap News) ― South Korea’s retail sales are expected to have improved slightly in February, driven in part by increased sales at department stores and discount shops, a report showed Thursday.Sales at department stores are estimated to have risen 1.1 percent on-year in February, a turnaround from the previous month’s 8.2 percent decline, the finance ministry said in a report that assesses the latest economic conditions.Sales at discount store chains are also presumed to have jumped 10.
March 7, 2013
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Korean-Indonesian firm signs highway contract
Vogo Kora, a joint Korean-Indonesian company, has signed a project management contract on the construction of a highway in Sumatra, Indonesia.Its key officials, including Setia Budhy Algamar, senior advisor to the public works minister, visited Korea late last month to sign the contract and to tour Korea’s key public organizations, company officials said.The $13.3 billion contract involves the construction of a four-lane, 2,727-kilometer-long highway in the Aceh district.Together with the Korea
IndustryMarch 7, 2013
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Korean Air takeover of Czech Airlines to boost global ranking
Korean Air’s potential acquisition of a stake in Czech Airlines appears to be a bigger deal than expected.The 44 percent stake in the European airliner would catapult the local airliner to become the world’s 21st largest, industry data showed Thursday. The Korean flag carrier this week placed a bid to buy the shares in Czech Airlines, but without seeking managerial control of the European airliner. Korean Air and Czech Airlines ― both part of the Sky Team global alliance ― claimed 0.6 percent an
IndustryMarch 7, 2013
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Austrian parts maker Geislinger to open $10m plant in Busan
Geislinger, an Austrian top-tier supplier of engine parts, is to open its first manufacturing plant in Busan to facilitate supplies to local shipbuilders.The factory, located in the Mieum Industrial District, will begin operation next Monday and start producing couplings and dampers, according to officials.“The new plant is part of our localization strategy for top clients in Korea, so that they may save logistics and supplementary costs,” said company spokesperson Lee Mi-gyeong.Major clients fo
IndustryMarch 7, 2013