Most Popular
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1 in 3 Koreans live alone, family types becoming diverse
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Korea, Japan finance chiefs vow to tame rampant FX market volatility
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K-pop group's manager dismissed for setting up spycam in theater dressing room
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Contentious grain bill put directly to plenary meeting for vote
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Korean Muslim YouTuber's plan to build mosque in Incheon goes viral
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Why is Apple Pay struggling to get purchase in Korea?
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Yoon's office denies considering liberal figures for key posts
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Trilateral talks acknowledge ‘serious’ slumps of won, yen
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Will tug-of-war between doctors, government end soon?
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Climate impacts set to cut 2050 global GDP by nearly a fifth
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Korea’s gender pay gap biggest in OECD
The income gap between men and women was the biggest in South Korea among member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in 2010, research showed. Women received an average 39 percent lower payment compared to men in Korea, an OECD report showed on Friday. The gap in Korea was about 2.6 times larger than the average gap among 28 OECD countries, which was 15 percent.Japan came in second on the list with 29 percent, followed by Germany and Israel, which both marked 2
IndustryNov. 30, 2012
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Apple's iPhone 5 to hit S. Korea next week
South Korea's two biggest mobile carriers -- SK Telecom Co. and KT Corp. -- said Friday they plan to release the long-awaited iPhone 5 in the local market next week. SK Telecom and KT tweeted they plan to start receiving pre-orders for the Apple device starting at 10 p.m. and officially launch the phone on Dec. 7.The move comes nearly three months after the U.S. smartphone maker, which is facing off against Samsung Electronics Co. in a global patent war, unveiled its first smartphone that runs o
TechnologyNov. 30, 2012
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iPhone 5 to be launched on Dec. 7 in S. Korea
Apple’s iPhone 5 is to be released in the Korean market on Dec. 7, three months after its launch in U.S.Korea’s two largest telecommunications companies, SK Telecom and KT, said on their official Twitter pages that “the official release of iPhone 5 is due on Dec. 7 and pre-sales will begin on Friday 10 p.m.”Detailed information on how to apply for pre-sale, storage capacity and color choices of the phone has not yet been announced.Apple released iPhone 5 on Sept. 12 in some countries including t
TechnologyNov. 30, 2012
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Most human mutations are relatively recent
Most of the harmful mutations in people are of recent origin, evolutionarily speaking, arising in the past 5,000 to 10,000 years, a U.S. geneticist says.A study by University of Washington researcher Joshua Akey dating the age of more than 1 million single-letter variations in the human DNA code reveals most of these mutations are of recent origin, with more than 86 percent of the harmful protein-coding mutations of this type appearing in humans just during the past 5,000 to 10,000 years.Humans
TechnologyNov. 30, 2012
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S. Korea’s income gap by gender widest among OECD nations
South Korea remained the nation with the largest income gap between men and women among advanced countries with the gender pay gap hardly narrowing over the past decade, a report showed Friday.According to the report by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), South Korea found its gender income gap to be 39 percent, the highest among 28 surveyed member nations, as of 2010.It means that South Korean women are paid 39 percent less than their male counterparts, lower than
IndustryNov. 30, 2012
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Seoul shares open lower on U.S. fiscal cliff woes
South Korean stocks opened lower Friday as investor sentiment was dented by rising concerns on the U.S. fiscal cliff issue, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 0.3 percent, or 5.76 points, to 1,929.09 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Carmakers led the decline, with No.1 player Hyundai Motor falling 0.22 percent, while its smaller auto parts affiliate Hyundai Wia moved down 0.84 percent.Brokerages also fell, with Samsung Securities losing 0.61 percent, wh
Nov. 30, 2012
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NASA: Closest planet to sun, Mercury, harbors ice
Just in time for Christmas, scientists have confirmed a vast amount of ice at the north pole on Mercury, the closest planet to the sun.The findings are from NASA's Mercury-orbiting probe, Messenger, and the subject of three scientific papers released Thursday by the journal Science.The frozen water is located in regions of Mercury's north pole that always are in shadows, essentially impact craters. It's believed the south pole harbors ice as well, though there are no hard data to support it. Mes
TechnologyNov. 30, 2012
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Naro rocket launch called off due to technical glitch
Korea called off the launch of its first space rocket again on Thursday due to a technical glitch on its electronic systems.Officials of the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology and the Korea Aerospace Research Institute said that they detected malfunctions in the control system for a hydraulic pump that provides the thrust to the second-stage solid rocket.“We will further look for and resolve the problem, and announce a new launch date in the near future,” Education, Science and Techno
TechnologyNov. 29, 2012
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Mobile advertising market soars
The trend in online marketing is fast shifting into mobile advertisements, as smartphones have become a necessity for Koreans, according to financial investment industry data. The shift comes as the number of smartphone users in Korea surpassed 30 million. This year’s mobile ad business is expected to reach about 204 billion won ($190 million), about 107 times more than two years ago, when it was just 1.9 billion won. Hanwha Investment & Securities Co. expects that the mobile ad market will keep
TechnologyNov. 29, 2012
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Eating out takes up half of household food spending
Eating out takes up nearly half of average household spending on food, research showed, reflecting the increase in dual-income families. The cost of eating out took up 20 percent of total food spending in households up until 1990, but gradually increased and reached 44 percent in 2003, 45.2 percent in 2007 and 46.6 percent last year, according to a report by the Korea Rural Economic Institute on Thursday. There was a significant gap between the rich and poor in terms of eating out ― the top 40 p
IndustryNov. 29, 2012
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[Newsmaker] LG CEO breaks barriers in school background
LG Electronics appointed, for the first time, a high school graduate CEO. The Seoul-based consumer electronics giant announced on Thursday the promotion of Jo Seong-jin, former executive vice president of the company’s home appliances department, to the position of president. Jo joined the company in its Gold Star days after graduating from Yongsan Technical High School in 1976. He volunteered to work in the washing machine planning department, which was formerly looked down on by employees at t
IndustryNov. 29, 2012
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Glitches do not deter Korea’s space program
Korea has once again canceled the launch of the Korea Space Launch Vehicle-1, or the Naro, on Thursday due to technical problems on the second-stage solid-fuel rocket’s thrust vector control system.Given that this will make it the final attempt to blast the rocket, jointly developed by Russia and Korea, into space, Korea is playing it safe by making sure everything is in perfect order before launching the Naro one last time.“Rockets require more than a million sophisticated components. One small
TechnologyNov. 29, 2012
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Dry eye syndrome
Tears do not only express sad emotions, but are essential to maintain healthy eyes. When there is not enough tear production, or when the components of the tears are not normal, discomfort in the eyes can occur. This can include a prickling sensation, feeling of a foreign substance in the eyes, a burning sensation, or production of sticky sleep. Sometimes, patients complain of a feeling of drying out of the eyes. These uncomfortable sensations are associated with long hours of computer use, and
TechnologyNov. 29, 2012
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Successful organ transplant sparks change in donation law
In response to a successful organ transplant for a 6-year-old girl, four additional organs will be added to the transplant list starting next month.The Ministry of Health and Welfare drew up revised legislation on organ transplants and it passed the Cabinet meeting on Tuesday.Doctors will be able to transplant the stomach, duodenum, colon and spleen legally after the revision takes effect next month, on the condition that they are transplanted simultaneously with the small intestine. Before the
TechnologyNov. 29, 2012
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SMBA supports SMEs’ innovative design
The following is an introduction of some of the firms that participated in a joint program to support small and medium-sized companies pushed by the Small and Medium Business Administration (SMBA) and the Korea Institute of Design Promotion.The program included support for training employees, improving product design, conducting overseas marketing research, searching for buyers and participating in overseas exhibitions for the SME sector.The centerpiece of the program was helping SMEs redesign t
Nov. 29, 2012
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HSBC mulls shutdown of retail banking in S. Korea
HSBC Holdings Plc. is considering pulling its retail banking out of South Korea, industry sources said Thursday. The British banking giant has apparently been looking into closing down the retail banking section, after its botched attempt to sell 11 local branches to state-run KDB Financial Group Inc. in July, according to the sources and the Financial Services Commission. “We’re looking at all available options,” a HSBC spokeswoman said over the phone. She declined to elaborate further on the m
Nov. 29, 2012
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Daewoo E&C to resume its operations in Libya
Daewoo Engineering & Construction Co., a major South Korean shipbuilder, said Thursday that it will resume its operations in Libya following a suspension due to its civil war.The move came as the builder has successfully checked the facilities at a thermal power plant being built in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi, a former rebel stronghold during an uprising-turned-civil war last year that resulted in the killing of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi.Daewoo E&C said its seven construction sites
Nov. 29, 2012
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Hyundai-led group wins $630m order from Uruguay
A South Korean consortium led by Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co. has won a $630 million deal to build a power plant in Uruguay, the local builder said Thursday. Under the contract with Usinasy Trasmisiones Electricas, Uruguay’s state-owned power company, the consortium will build a 530-megawatt thermal power plant in Punta del Tigre, about 40 kilometers west of the capital city, Montevideo, according to South Korea’s top builder Hyundai Engineering. The consortium will complete the power
IndustryNov. 29, 2012
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LG promotes high-performing execs
LG Group on Thursday conducted the second round of its personnel reshuffling which included the replacement of a couple of long-timers in a move reflecting the company’s shifting focus to performance and a younger generation of executives. At LG Display, executive vice president Han Sang-beom was promoted to president and CEO for helping the company achieve No. 1 status in the world 3-D television market. In the third quarter, Han led the company into the black after eight quarters of deficits.
IndustryNov. 29, 2012
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Shares soar 1.15% on U.S. budget hopes
South Korean stocks rallied 1.15 percent on Thursday as investor sentiment was lifted by hopes that U.S. politicians are inching closer to an agreement to avoid a budget crisis, analysts said. The local currency gained against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index jumped 22.07 points to 1,934.85. Trading volume was moderate at 382.2 million shares worth 4.77 trillion won ($4.4 billion), with gainers far outnumbering decliners 536 to 271.“The market has been reacting sen
Nov. 29, 2012