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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Rare mid-May heavy snow warning issued over mountainous areas of Gangwon
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S. Korea, Cambodia forge strategic partnership
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Is NewJeans headed for a long 'break'?
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[KH Explains] Hyundai-backed Motional’s struggles deepen as Tesla eyes August robotaxi debut
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Police raid popera singer Kim Ho-joong's house over hit-and-run suspicions
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Trump may like to 'solve' N. Korean nuclear problem if reelected: ex-official
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New Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office chief vows full-fledged probe into first lady
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Korean economy grows 2% in 2012
Korea’s economy grew at the slowest pace in three years due to lackluster private consumption as well as slowdowns in facility investment and construction, the Bank of Korea said Tuesday.According to the BOK report, the nation’s gross national income increased 2.6 percent on-year in 2012 as terms of trade improved. Per capita GNI stood at $22,708 last year, up from $22,451 in 2011.Growth of Korea’s gross domestic product stood at 2 percent in 2012 as initially expected, as the three main economi
March 26, 2013
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KB Kookmin Card pours effort into sharing
Among countless corporate social sharing programs, KB Kookmin Card’s social contributions specifically aim to bolster the nation as a whole. Embracing the core needs of all age groups and ethnicities is the essential part of the ambitious sharing project. KB Kookmin Card has been one of the “big 4” credit finance card companies, wielding power in the credit card and check card sectors in particular, since its launch in 2011.Applied to the sharing project is the company’s extensive experience dat
BusinessMarch 26, 2013
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Nations start three-way FTA talks
Korea, China and Japan officially kicked off the first round of their three-way free trade agreement talks in Seoul on Tuesday, aiming to create the world’s third-largest economic cooperation bloc.Korea’s chief FTA negotiator Choi Kyung-lim, who was recently named assistant deputy minister of trade, met with his Chinese and Japanese counterparts ― assistant commerce minister Yu Zianhua and deputy foreign minister for economic affairs Koji Tsuruoka.During the three-day talks held at the Grand Int
March 26, 2013
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Seoul seeks to raise W15tr via overhaul of tax break schemes
SEJONG (Yonhap News) ― South Korea seeks to secure 15 trillion won ($13.5 billion) over the next five years by streamlining its tax exemptions and reduction programs, the Finance Ministry said Tuesday.The move comes as policymakers are reviewing diverse ways to raise money to finance expanded welfare programs sought by the new government, which started its five-year-term in February.“In order to satisfy the growing fiscal demand, we need to raise 15 trillion won over the next five years by strea
March 26, 2013
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K-water CEO tenders resignation
Kim Keun-ho, CEO of Korea Water Resources Corporation, or K-water, tendered his resignation to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, a ministry official said Tuesday. He has four months remaining on his contract, but has decided to step down so as to not “burden” the new administration inaugurated last month, officials said.The key achievement of Kim, who has served K-water for the past five years, was the completion of the controversial four river restoration project, which was on
March 26, 2013
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NPS ups investment in chaebol: data
South Korea’s state-run pension fund has sharply expanded its stock holdings in the country’s biggest four business groups for the past five years, with its sway over the conglomerates also growing, data showed Tuesday.The National Pension Service, the country’s largest institutional investor, held 42.55 trillion won ($38.31 billion) worth of shares of the top 4 business groups ― Samsung, LG, SK and Hyundai Motor ― at the end of 2012, a huge increase from 11.46 trillion won at the end of 2007, a
March 26, 2013
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Shares up on bargain hunting
South Korean stocks closed 0.3 percent higher on Tuesday as investors hunted for bargains, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar.After opening lower, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 6.03 points to 1,983.7. Trading volume was moderate at 271.8 million shares worth 3.3 trillion won ($3 billion), with decliners outnumbering gainers 408 to 386.The key index staged a rally on Monday after dropping for three consecutive trading sessions.“The local stock ma
March 26, 2013
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Hyundai Heavy wins $2b offshore order from France
Hyundai Heavy Industries, the nation’s top shipbuilder, won a $2 billion deal to build two offshore facilities for France-based oil company Total, the company said in a press release. In the deal with Total’s overseas branch in the Republic of Congo, Hyundai Heavy will build a floating production unit for $1.3 billion and an offshore platform for $700 million.The two offshore facilities will be installed in the Moho Nord oil field, about 80 kilometers from Pointe-Noire on the country’s southern
IndustryMarch 26, 2013
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Hyundai Motor leads auto parts exports
South Korea’s exports of auto parts reached a record high last year on the back of growing demand for South Korean automobiles around the world, a trade association said Tuesday.According to the Korea International Trade Association, South Korea’s outbound shipments of auto parts reached $24.6 billion last year, and the country posted a surplus of $19.7 billion in auto parts trade.Exports of auto parts have been on a steady increase since early 2000 as local automakers such as Hyundai Motor Co.
March 26, 2013
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BOK, finance chiefs at odds over interest rates
Signs of a feud between the Bank of Korea and the Finance Ministry are emerging as their chiefs are taking different stances over monetary policy.Hyun Oh-seok, the first deputy prime minister and finance minister, stressed the need to lower the benchmark interest rate in a bid boost the sagging economy.In contrast, BOK Gov. Kim Choong-soo immediately reiterated that side effects from low interest rates could undermine Korea’s economic fundamentals.Kim, one of the seven-member panel for the BOK’s
March 26, 2013
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Kia picks New York over Seoul to unveil new cars
Kia Motors will take the wraps off three world introductions this week, but not at the Seoul Motor Show, the largest automotive event on its home turf that starts Thursday. The carmaker, an affiliate of Hyundai Motor, instead decided to make the debuts of the second-generation Soul, the redesigned New Optima (the K5 in Korea) and the two-door Forte (the K3 coupe) at the New York International Auto Show on Friday. During the Seoul event, Kia plans to unveil only one new car, the KND-7, a concept
IndustryMarch 26, 2013
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Samsung-LG legal war gets uglier
The legal fight between local electronics firms Samsung and LG Electronics is getting uglier by the minute with the firms recently suing each other over fridge marketing tactics.Samsung filed a lawsuit with Seoul Southern District Court against its rival LG last Friday, demanding 50 billion won ($45 million) in compensation for damaging its brand value.The move came about two months after LG filed a 10-billion-won compensation suit against Samsung in January, for which the first hearing is sched
IndustryMarch 26, 2013
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E. Asia emerges as largest market for Korean builders
HANOI (Yonhap News) ― Asian countries have emerged as the largest market for South Korean builders in recent months, data showed Tuesday, a sign that their efforts to diversify their businesses are paying off.South Korean builders bagged a combined $6.36 billion worth of new orders in Asia in the first three months of this year, compared with $1.58 billion a year earlier.The latest orders accounted for 68 percent of a combined $9.36 billion worth of overseas orders in the first quarter, accordin
March 26, 2013
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Standard Chartered offers chance to visit EPL fields
Standard Chartered Bank Korea is providing Korean amateur soccer players with the opportunity to visit an English Premier League field.The bank said Tuesday that a provincial team for “futsal,” a mini football game played between two teams of five players, has won the chance to visit England’s Anfield stadium, home of Liverpool FC.The team from Chuncheon, Gangwon Province, will also vie for the “Standard Chartered Trophy,” an international amateur futsal competition, slated for May 21 at Anfield
March 26, 2013
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Finance sector faces governance overhaul
A seismic shift appears to be about to occur in Korea’s financial sector, where the newly appointed Financial Services Commission chairman Shin Je-yoon has shown his determination to overhaul the country’s major financial holding companies.Heads of financial holding companies such as KDB Financial, Woori Financial and KB Financial are expected to be pressured to step down as Shin said during his inauguration speech last week that he would reform their weak governance structures.Shin claimed they
March 26, 2013
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A simple, not-so-painful way to help save lives
The thought of donating stem cells might arise fear in many, conjuring up images of large needles. But if there was a relatively painless way to help someone in need, would you still hesitate to do it? Not many people know about “Peripheral Blood Stem Cell Transplantation,” a procedure to extract stem cells that gives a helping hand to those suffering from leukemia and other types of stem cell-related disease. There are two ways to transplant stem cells: the traditional method is called bone mar
TechnologyMarch 26, 2013
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Why that bar of chocolate makes you grumpy
New research suggests that foods high in sugar content do not boost your mood. The study by researchers at Pennsylvania State University revealed that women who are concerned with diet and image tend to feel grumpier after eating unhealthy food. Researchers including Dr. Kristin Heron provided 131 women with handheld computers, which frequently asked them about their mood and eating behavior. Their research focused on gathering data from participants in everyday life since other studies tracked
TechnologyMarch 26, 2013
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Seoul shares up 0.3 pct on bargain hunting
South Korean stocks closed 0.3 percent higher on Tuesday as investors hunted for bargains, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar.After opening lower, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 6.03 points to 1,983.7. Trading volume was moderate at 271.8 million shares worth 3.3 trillion won (US$3 billion), with decliners outnumbering gainers 408 to 386.The key index staged a rally on Monday after dropping for three consecutive trading sessions."The loca
BusinessMarch 26, 2013
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Good looking birds raise healthy babies
New research has found that the appearance of a female great tit (Parus major) affects the health conditions of its offspring.According to the study done by researchers at Palacky University in the Czech Republic, the bird’s representative features -- a black stripe across the breast and white patches on the cheeks -- correlate to a chick’s weight and immune strength at two weeks.In order to compare the weight and immune system of baby birds from mothers of different ornamentation, the research
TechnologyMarch 26, 2013
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Starbucks’ mystery people in black
Go to Starbucks and you will see the baristas wearing mostly green aprons.But it’s not hard to spot a few, depending on the store, who are donned in black.They are the global coffeehouse chain’s proud "Coffe Masters" who have passed rigorous educational programs and examinations on coffee.Starbucks Korea has some 4,600 baristas, about 900 of whom have reached ranks of the black apron.Some stores don’t have Coffee Masters while the entire staff at Seoul’s Dongbu Ichon and City Hall Plus stores wh
IndustryMarch 26, 2013