Most Popular
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Court refuses injunction on medical school expansion
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Why Korean crime stories typically feature nameless, faceless perpetrators
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Debate on 'no-seniors zones' heats up
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Is NewJeans headed for a long 'break'?
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Jimin of BTS, actor Song Da-eun suspected to be dating, again
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S. Korea, Cambodia forge strategic partnership
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Police raid popera singer Kim Ho-joong's house over hit-and-run suspicions
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[KH Explains] Hyundai-backed Motional’s struggles deepen as Tesla eyes August robotaxi debut
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Trump may like to 'solve' N. Korean nuclear problem if reelected: ex-official
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What's next for the government's push in quota hike?
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WIT becomes first startup in Korea to develop portable probe station
Semiconductor equipment startup WIT on Thursday announced that it had recently become the first startup in Korea to develop and release a significantly smaller and lighter portable vacuum probe station. A probe station is a device used to measure the electrical properties of products, such as semiconductors and LCDs, before the assembly process. WIT’s products are primarily used to conduct tests of semiconductor wafers.“Most existing probe stations are about a meter wide and tall and are difficu
TechnologyApril 5, 2017
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Service-led jobs should revive consumption: BOK chief
South Korea’s central bank chief said sluggish private consumption should be boosted by job growth in the service sector, cautioning against optimism from rebounding exports.“To revive consumption, people’s income should be increased through job creation. And such job creation should be led by the service industry rather than the manufacturing sector,” Bank of Korea Gov. Lee Ju-yeol said at a meeting with economists, professors and financial industry executives. Bank of Korea Gov. Lee Ju-yeol sp
April 5, 2017
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Jaguar Land Rover, Genie develop infotainment for connected cars
Jaguar Land Rover Korea has partnered Genie, a local music streaming service provider, to develop a new infotainment system for connected cars, the company said Wednesday.Named Jaguar Land Rover Genie, the program is installed on the infotainment system of Jaguar Land Rover vehicles and offers music streaming services when a mobile device is connected to the program via Bluetooth. Genie's music services for the connected car market (Genie)When connected, drivers can select music by touching the
IndustryApril 5, 2017
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Korean shares down 0.04% in late morning trade
South Korean stocks traded lower late Wednesday morning as foreigners continued to offload stocks.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index lost 0.79 points, or 0.04 percent, to 2,160.31 as of 11:15 a.m.The broad index bucked overnight gains on Wall Street. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 0.19 percent, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index climbing 0.07 percent.Bae Sung-young, a market analyst at KB Securities Co., said foreigners continued to sell South Korean stocks and there
April 5, 2017
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Korea's Q1 GDP growth may accelerate
South Korea's economic growth for the first quarter of this year is expected to be faster than the fourth quarter of last year, fueled by robust exports, according to estimates by foreign investment banks Wednesday. Although the nation's industrial output fell in February, foreign banks, including Barclays, HSBC and Citibank, expected production to bounce back, helped by strong exports on improved global demand. (Yonhap)The estimates, compiled by the Korea Center for International Finance, came
April 5, 2017
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Korea's seafood exports rise 10.9% in Q1
South Korea's exports of seafood rose 10.9 percent in the first three months of the year on steady overseas demand, government data showed Wednesday.Outbound shipments of South Korean seafood reached $482 million in the January-March period, up from $434.7 million tallied a year ago, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries. (Yonhap)It marked the fifth straight quarter of on-year gain.Japan was the biggest buyer of South Korean products, importing $156.5 million wor
IndustryApril 5, 2017
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CJ says The Body Shop M&A under review
CJ Group, a South Korean food and entertainment giant, said Wednesday it is reviewing whether to buy the British cosmetics brand The Body Shop, which is on the market for sale.“We are reviewing (the matter of) acquiring The Body Shop, but there’s no detailed decision made yet including whether to participate in the bid and which one (affiliate) will take charge (of the acquisition),” the group said in a statement. (The Body Shop)It came a day after a local report that CJ has already named an adv
IndustryApril 5, 2017
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K-Bank aims to post 1st profit in 2020
South Korea's first Internet-only bank, K-Bank, aims to report its first annual profit in 2020, the bank's chief executive has said, as it seeks to make inroads into the credit card business. Shim Sung-hoon, CEO of K-Bank, said the bank is targeting to attract 400,000 active customers by the end of this year with deposits worth 500 billion won ($445 million).Shim Sung-hoon, CEO of K-Bank, speaks during the launch ceremony of the bank on April 3, 2017 (Yonhap)"Given the current situation on inter
April 5, 2017
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Hyundai Grandeur Hybrid adds green credentials to lineup
Hyundai Motor Co. has launched the Grandeur Hybrid that will add green credentials to its lineup as the South Korean carmaker competes with its Japanese rivals in major markets.The Grandeur Hybrid is the carmaker's latest gasoline-hybrid model based on the all-new Grandeur large-size sedan. The previous hybrids were based on the Avante compact, the Sonata midsize sedan and an earlier version of the Grandeur sedan. There is also the Ioniq hybrid developed from the bottom up as a eco-friendly vehi
MobilityApril 5, 2017
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Corporate analysis shows women getting paid much less than men
Women working at South Korea's top 10 conglomerates are getting paid about 62 percent of what men are getting in yearly salary, even less than half at some companies, according to a corporate tracker Wednesday.An analysis by Chaebul.com, which follows details of the leading business groups, showed that women's average yearly pay at the top 10 listed conglomerates and their affiliates was 54 million won ($48,261), 61.8 percent of the amount for their male counterparts, who receive an average of 8
IndustryApril 5, 2017
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Half of businesses exempted from corporate tax due to business slump in 2015
Nearly half of South Korea's companies were exempted from corporate tax in 2015, government data showed Wednesday, as many experienced a deficit due to the prolonged economic slump.About 47.1 percent, or 280,000, out of the total 590,000 registered corporations were exempt from corporate taxes in 2015, according to the statistics provided by the National Tax Service. (Yonhap)The comparable figures were 46.2 percent in 2011, 46.5 percent in 2012, 47.1 percent in 2013 and 47.3 percent in 2014."The
IndustryApril 5, 2017
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Major shipyards' ratings cut on falling new orders, dim outlook
South Korea's major shipyards saw their ratings cut for their falling new orders and worsening financial status, industry sources said Wednesday.According to the sources, KIS Ratings lowered its rating on Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. to "A-" from "A," citing a protracted industrywide slump, severe competition, falling new orders and lower shipbuilding prices. (Yonhap)Late last month, Korea Ratings also trimmed its rating on Hyundai Heavy to "A" from "A-," the lowest in 15 years. Its rating on Sa
IndustryApril 5, 2017
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Samsung Galaxy S8 display rated 'best' by US evaluator
Samsung Electronics Co. said Wednesday its new flagship Galaxy S8 smartphone's organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display has been rated "best" in the business by a US display evaluator.The South Korean tech giant said the OLED display equipped in the new flagship received the "Excellent A+" grade from DisplayMate.Samsung Electronics Co. displays the Galaxy S8 at Milan Design Week 2017 held in Italy in this photo released by the company on April 5, 2017. (Yonhap)"The Galaxy S8 is the first in a
IndustryApril 5, 2017
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Chinese smartphone market to heat up with Galaxy S8 release
US tech giant Apple Inc. and Chinese smarthphone maker Huawei Technologies Co. are engaging in a fierce competition in the Chinese high-end smartphone sector, industry sources said Wednesday, as Samsung Electronics Co. is set to start sales of its new flagship soon there.Huawei kicked off sales of its flagship smartphone, the P10, in China on Saturday. The P10 is the successor to the mega-hit P9, whose sales reached a whopping 10 million units last year.Samsung Electronics Co.'s Galaxy S8 smartp
IndustryApril 5, 2017
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Samsung's, LG's marketing costs rise in 2016 amid heightened competition
Samsung Electronics Co. and LG Electronics Inc., South Korea's two leading tech giants, expanded their spending on marketing last year amid increased competition, data showed Wednesday.According to industry data, Samsung spent 11.5 trillion won ($10.2 billion) on marketing in 2016. The figure included 4.4 trillion won on advertisements, which advanced 15 percent on-year. (Yonhap)LG Electronics also spent 1.3 trillion won on advertisements last year, a 21.4 percent increase over the cited period.
IndustryApril 5, 2017
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Korea's current account surplus increases to $8.4b in Feb
South Korea's current account surplus rose in February from a year earlier due to an increased surplus in the goods account, central bank data showed Wednesday.The country's current account surplus reached $8.4 billion in February, compared with a surplus of $7.62 billion a year earlier, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea.(Yonhap)The figure represents a surplus for 60 months in a row. The current account is the biggest measure of cross-border trade.The BOK said the goods ac
April 5, 2017
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Korea's FX reserves up in March
South Korea's foreign exchange reserves rose slightly in March from a month earlier due to a hike in the value of non-dollar currencies when converted into the US greenback, central bank data showed Wednesday.As of the end of March, the country's foreign exchange reserves came to $375.3 billion, up 1.39 billion from the previous month, the Bank of Korea said in a statement.(Yonhap)Foreign exchange reserves consist of securities and deposits denominated in overseas currencies, as well as Internat
April 5, 2017
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Luxury hotels compete to rebrand themselves to attract customers
High-class hotel chains in South Korea are scrambling to reshape their brand image by changing their names and through remodeling efforts, as they compete to attract customers in an increasingly tough market, industry sources said Wednesday. Grand Walker Hill, run by SK Networks Co., reopened under its new name Vista Walker Hill early this month. The hotel operator said it has formally ended the partnership with global hotel chain Marriott International, who owns the brands Sheraton and W.(Yonha
IndustryApril 5, 2017
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Seoul stocks open higher on US gains
South Korean shares opened higher Wednesday, tracking gains on Wall Street.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 0.03 point to 2,161.13 in the first 20 minutes of trading.The main index tracked overnight gains on Wall Street. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 0.19 percent, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index climbing 0.07 percent.Most large-cap stocks were mixed across the board.Naver, the top Internet portal operator, gained 0.59 percent, and top steelmaker POSCO was u
April 5, 2017
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Facebook looks for tie-ups with VR, AR startups
Facebook will help promising augmented reality and virtual reality startups expand abroad in partnership with the South Korean government, it announced Tuesday.The California-based mobile social networking service operator signed an agreement with Korea Innovation Center of the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning and Institute for Information & Communications Technology Promotion to support AR and VR startups at Facebook Korea Office in southern Seoul.Under the agreement, Facebook and t
TechnologyApril 4, 2017