Amid simmering criticism over collusion and price fixing among industry giants, Samsung on Wednesday mapped out a set of measures to head off the rampant illicit practices within Korea’s largest conglomerate. The package, a follow-up to its November program, is aimed at establishing “systemic safeguards against any temptations to collude in tough business environments,” Samsung Group said in a s...

Livestock and dairy farmers who are hurt by free trade pacts will be eligible to receive direct cash assistance from the government, the Farm Ministry said Wednesday. The ministry said it has set up an evaluation system to measure fallout in the livestock sector caused by opening the domestic market to cheaper meat and dairy products from abroad. It said cash assistance will be given if prices ...

Korea’s industrial output shrank on-year for the first time in 31 months in January as its export-driven economy is under growing pressure from persistent global market uncertainties, a government report showed Wednesday. According to the report by Statistics Korea, production in the mining and manufacturing industries contracted 2 percent last month from a year earlier, compared with a 2.8 perc...

Industry sources say Samsung is on the lookout for lawyer All eyes are on the future course of action Samsung Electronics chairman Lee Kun-hee will take in response to inheritance suits from his sister and brother. Industry sources close to the matter raised the possibility that Lee will refuse compromise and seek to end the dispute through a legal means. The sources said the country’s largest...

Korean stocks surged 1.33 percent Wednesday, boosted by a rally in chipmakers and shipbuilders as well as broad gains in large caps, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index advanced 26.56 points to end at 2,030.25. Trading volume was moderate at 555 million shares worth 6.71 trillion won ($5.99 billion) with gainers leading...

Bank and union agree on pay raise, creation of task force on other issues Standard Chartered Bank Korea has reached a compromise with its union on a wage hike, though there are still unsettled aspects to their talks. The two sides agreed to pay raises of 2 percent and 4.1 percent for 2010 and 2011 salaries, respectively, late Tuesday. Their talks on the salary hike have continued over the past...

Korean universities lowered their annual tuition fees by 4.5 percent on average, caving in to pressure to ease the financial burden for students and their parents. The average tuition fees at 186 four-year universities this year amount to about 6.7 million won ($6,000), down 4.48 percent from last year, according to a data compiled by the Education Ministry and released on Wednesday. It is the ...

Former TV celebrity Kang Ho-dong has decided to donate 2 billion won ($1.76 million.) in real estate in PyeongChang, Gangwon Province, home of the 2018 Winter Olympic Games, to charity, local media reported Wednesday. Kang, once a popular show host and former Korean traditional wrestling champion, is currently taking a hiatus from showbiz. He quit his broadcasting activities last year when his p...