Most Popular
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Contentious grain bill put directly to plenary meeting for vote
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Yoon's approval rating plunges to all-time low
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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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Trilateral talks acknowledge ‘serious’ slumps of won, yen
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[Graphic News] More Koreans say they plan long-distance trips this year
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[KH Explains] Hyundai's full hybrid edge to pay off amid slow transition to pure EVs
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North Korea removes streetlights along cross-border roads with South
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Russia's denial of entry of S. Korean national unrelated to bilateral ties: Seoul official
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Farming households dip below 1m for first time in 2023
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Korean firms to expand cooperation with U.N.
Representatives from Korean companies and officials from the United Nations Procurement Division gathered in New York to discuss expanding future business relations at the inaugural “2015 U.N.-Korea Procurement Day.” The event was held on Wednesday and Thursday and cohosted by the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency and the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Korea to the U.N. It brought together 20 Korean companies, including Hyundai Motor Co., from diverse sectors and put officials in con
April 9, 2015
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CJ to launch Vera Wang’s lifestyle brand
CJ O’Shopping, the TV shopping unit of CJ Group, said Thursday it would develop a lifestyle brand for noted U.S. fashion designer Vera Wang and start licensing the products from later this month. Based on their deal, signed for the first time in Asia, the company will launch lingerie brand Vera Wang Intimates in April, continue with linen line Vera Wang Home in May and expand to garments, cosmetics and accessories through the VW Vera Wang collection in September. The Korean company expects to ge
April 9, 2015
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Yongin growing into business-centered city
Yongin, once regarded as a commuter town in Gyeonggi Province, is now developing into a business-centered metropolis equipped with a growth engine as it amasses infrastructure befitting a city of more than 1 million residents. The development has been underway since Mayor Jung Chan-min took office nine months ago. The city is setting up several industrial complex centers including the Yongin Techno Valley currently under construction, and the once-dormant light rail Everline is currently used by
April 9, 2015
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41 conglomerates under tight scrutiny for heavy debts
South Korea's financial watchdog said Thursday that it has placed 41 highly-indebted conglomerates under closer watch for debt reductions in order to prevent unexpected defaults. According to the Financial Supervisory Service, the conglomerates that owe more than 1.3 trillion won ($1.2 billion) to local banks have been designated as heavy corporate debtors for this year, compared with 42 firms selected last year. The FSS unveils the list of major highly-indebted large firms in April every year
April 9, 2015
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Watchdog probing top discount chains' alleged unfair trading
South Korea's antitrust watchdog is investigating allegations that the country's three largest discount chains cheated consumers and forced suppliers to accept losses, market sources said Thursday. The Fair Trade Commission sent investigators to E-mart and Lotte Mart on Wednesday to check whether they violated laws governing advertisements. Last week, it also launched a probe into Homeplus following complaints that the retailer used its superior position to compel suppliers to take smaller pr
April 9, 2015
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Internet banks to start business this year
South Korea's financial regulator said Thursday that Internet-only banks are expected to be launched in South Korea in 2015 as it is working on detailed measures to encourage big name IT firms like Naver Corp. and Daum Kakao Corp. to invest in the online banking industry. Under the current financial laws, a non-financial company is banned from holding more than a 4 percent stake in a bank, while all commercial banks are required to have brick-and-mortar offices and face-to-face channels with cus
April 9, 2015
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Hyundai Steel plans to merge with Hysco
Hyundai Steel, a steel arm of Hyundai Motor Group, said Wednesday that the company would take over its sister steelmaker Hyundai Hysco as part of its efforts to become a global steel giant. “The corporate board approved the deal and will host a shareholders meeting on May 8 for endorsement,” the nation’s second-largest steelmaker said in a regulatory filing to the financial authorities. “We are expecting to close the deal by July 1, after passing the review by the nation’s antitrust watchdog Fai
April 8, 2015
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Homeplus cuts prices 30% following scandal
Homeplus, the Korean unit of the British retail giant Tesco, on Wednesday said it would cut prices by up to 30 percent on 2,450 items sold at its outlets.The supermarket chain will also support its suppliers’ advance into the Chinese market and other Tesco stores around the globe, said company CEO Do Sung-hwan.“Homeplus will shoulder the reduced margin estimated at around 40 billion won ($36.5 million), and our suppliers will only benefit from the increase in profit created through growth in dem
April 8, 2015
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Lotte, Kazakh firm partner for retail biz, theme park
Lotte Group, South Korea’s fifth-largest conglomerate, signed a memorandum of understanding with Kazakhstan’s Astana Group on Wednesday in a bid to boost cooperation for a theme park and retail business. The Korean retail giant pledged to support Astana’s theme park business plan that the Kazakh firm is eyeing to develop ahead of Expo 2017, an international exposition scheduled to take place in 2017 in Astana, Kazakhstan’s capital city. “Lotte Group will make an effort to support the creative ec
April 8, 2015
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(Photo News) Ready for Racing
Two veterans of Chevrolet racing team pose next to the upgraded racing car Cruze at the Chevrolet booth for the 2015 Seoul Motor Show, while announcing that they are ready to join the 2015 CJ Hello Mobile Superrace Championship. (GM Korea)
April 8, 2015
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Korean cosmetics stocks soar on Chinese demand
Cosmetics shares are spiking over hopes that rising Chinese demand for Korean products will push up their quarterly earnings.Shares of Hankook Cosmetics gained 0.6 percent to 15,600 won ($14.3) at the close of trading Wednesday, after hitting 17,500 won. The price is up more than 140 percent from 7,140 won a month ago. “As we enter the new earnings season, investors are turning their eyes to cosmetics-related stocks that have shown strong momentum,” KB Investment & Securities analyst Yang Ji-hye
April 8, 2015
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Sales at department stores, discount chains down in March: data
Sales at local department stores and discount chains fell in March from a year earlier, government data showed Tuesday, fueling worries that consumer spending remains weak despite some signs of economic recovery, According to data from the finance ministry, department store sales dropped 5.4 percent on-year last month, while discount chain sales shrank 7.4 percent. Department store and discount chain sales contracted on-year from September through January, before rebounding in February, helpe
April 8, 2015
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Employment at South Korea's top 30 biz groups grows 1.3 pct in 2014
The number of people working for South Korea's top 30 major business groups increased slightly last year, industry data showed Wednesday, indicating that the conglomerates did not help much in easing the country's prolonged labor market slump. According to the data by CEO Score, a local corporate researcher, the number of people employed by the country's 30 large business groups, including Samsung, Hyundai and LG stood at 1,023,574 as of the end of last year, up 12,706, or 1.3 percent, from a
April 8, 2015
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Corporate bond sales spike since 2008 financial crisis
Corporate bond sales in South Korea have surged since the 2008 global financial crisis as local companies took advantage of low borrowing costs while reducing stock offerings amid a bear run on the local stock market, data showed Wednesday. According to the data compiled by Korea Capital Market Institute, bond sales accounted for 95.3 percent of corporate direct financing in 2014, compared with 93.6 percent in 2008. In contrast, stock offerings accounted for 4.7 percent in 2014, down from 6.4
April 8, 2015
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Luxury product sales surge despite economic slump
Despite an economic slowdown, sales of luxury products in South Korea soared in the first quarter of 2015 partly due to recent price cuts by major luxury brands, data showed Wednesday. Lotte Department Store saw sales of luxury products jump 15.7 percent on-year in the January-March period, with sales of watches and jewelry soaring 27.2 percent. Sales of luxury apparel also rose 20.3 percent. The on-year gain marks a significant growth compared with the overall 8.3 percent sales growth of the
April 8, 2015
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POSCO E&C executive arrested in slush fund probe
An executive director of POSCO Engineering & Construction Co., the construction arm of POSCO, was detained Tuesday for questioning into his suspected involvement in the company's creation of a slush fund overseas and bribe-taking from a subcontractor. Prosecutors detained the executive identified only as Choi as soon as the Seoul Central District Court issued an arrest warrant for him after hours of hearings. He is the first POSCO E&C executive to have been arrested in connection with the wide
April 8, 2015
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Women in 30s most active mobile shoppers: survey
Women in their 30s are the biggest users of mobile devices to shop online in Korea, a survey showed Tuesday.According to the online survey by Nielsen Korea, shoppers aged between 30 and 39 showed the highest rate of purchase on smartphones and tablets at 32 percent, followed by those in their 40s and 20s at 29 percent and 24 percent, respectively. It also found that women are more likely to shop on mobile platforms compared to men, with 62 percent of women and 38 percent of men saying they made
April 7, 2015
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DSME faces union backlash over pick for new chief
The union of Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering has reacted angrily to the choice of Jung Sung-leep as new chief of the world’s second-largest shipbuilder.The state-owned Korea Development Bank, the largest shareholder of DSME, on Monday recommended Jung, the incumbent CEO of STX Offshore & Shipbuilding, as the company’s new president. The development comes after months of indecision whether to reappoint current DSME president Ko Jae-ho or find a new candidate.“(Choosing an outsider) refle
April 7, 2015
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[SUPER RICH] E-Land chairman’s love of collecting
E-Land Group chairman Park Sung-su acquired something unusual last month. He bought the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences medal of the late economist Simon Kuznets for $39,848.“Park is said to have been attracted to the fact that Kuznets had influenced his peers including the noted British economist John Maynard Keynes,” an industry source said. This is not the first time Park has bought something that could be perceived as extraordinary. He is reported to have bought more than 3,000 rep
April 7, 2015
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POSCO supplier raided in slush fund probe
Prosecutors raided the head office and factory of a supplier for POSCO, the world's third-largest steelmaker, authorities said Tuesday. Authorities confiscated financial statements, transaction records and computer hard disks at the Seoul headquarters of Kosteel Co., which provides wire rods to POSCO in Pohang, about 370 kilometers southeast of Seoul. The move came as prosecutors were looking into allegations that POSCO Engineering & Construction Co., the construction arm of POSCO, created a s
April 7, 2015