Most Popular
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Qoo10 liquidity crisis sparks massive complaints, fears of wider damage
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Yoon urges municipalities to embrace foreigners
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What is happening at Hybe?
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S. Korea to consent to Japan's Sado mines gaining World Heritage status: official
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Korea unveils tax reform bill to spur economy
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Actor’s excessive airport security sparks probe into human rights violations
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Man who let his father die due to financial difficulties to be released on parole
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Actor Yoo Ah-in accused of sexual attack
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S. Korea, China shifting from tensions to cooperation: Seoul
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LG Electronics achieves record earnings in Q2
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Retailers halt U.S. beef sales after BSE outbreak
The nation’s large retailers, such as Homeplus and Lotte Mart, temporarily suspended sales of U.S. beef on Wednesday following an outbreak of mad cow disease in California. The suspension came a day after the U.S. Department of Agriculture reported the country’s fourth-ever case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or BSE.But U.S. officials said it was contained and no contaminated meat had entered the food chain, stressing that it poses no threat to consumers.A spokesperson for Korea’s Ministry
April 25, 2012
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Measures aim at traffic jams, hotel overpricing during Expo
The government said Wednesday it plans to accelerate its ongoing highway expansion work and raise the number of trains, buses and flights connecting to the Expo 2012 Yeosu to facilitate visitors’ access and minimize traffic jams. A pan-governmental task force will also be set up to clamp down on hotels and other lodging facilities that overcharge and refuse bookings, taking advantage of local and international guests in the hopes of a cash bonanza. The measures come less than three weeks before
IndustryApril 25, 2012
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Hyundai Heavy develops new solar cells
Hyundai Heavy Industries said Wednesday it has developed selective-emitter solar cells with a record electricity conversion efficiency of 19.7 percent, which could curtail production costs for the fast-growing energy source.The figure beat the previous record of 19.6 percent by Suntech Power Holdings, the world’s largest maker of photovoltaic panels based in Shanghai. It has also been confirmed by the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems, a leading think tank in Munich, the Korean shipb
IndustryApril 25, 2012
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LG Electronics swings back to profit in Q1
CFO says company is developing proprietary mobile application processorLG Electronics said it reached 448.2 billion won ($392.7 million) in operating profit for the first quarter, up 243 percent from the same period last year, boosted by its sales of premium goods. The local electronics giant’s operating profit is also more than 18 times the 23 billion won recorded in the fourth quarter of last year, according to its company officials.The firm, however, posted about 12.22 trillion won in total
IndustryApril 25, 2012
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Korean builders eye $11.1b energy projects in Venezuela
Daewoo, STX, SK, Hyundai firms sign MOUs on major construction projectsKorean companies have inked preliminary deals with Venezuela to participate in energy infrastructure businesses worth a total of $11.1 billion in the South American country, the Ministry of Knowledge Economy said Wednesday.Seoul and Caracas also reached a framework agreement to have Korea Gas Corporation take part in a $10.4 billion project to develop liquefied natural gas fields in Venezuela.Venezuela has the world’s second
IndustryApril 25, 2012
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Shares end flat on lingering eurozone woes
South Korean stocks closed nearly unchanged Wednesday on lingering eurozone concerns that offset positive U.S. corporate earnings reports, analysts said. The local currency fell against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index edged down 0.07 percent, or 1.44 points, to close at 1,961.98. Trading volume was heavy at 674 million shares worth 4.95 trillion won ($4.33 billion), with losers outpacing gainers 537 to 312.“Investor sentiment was hurt by persistent concerns surrou
April 25, 2012
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Construction, job creation key to growth: BOK head
South Korea should pay closer attention to the construction sector and job creation to ensure sustainable economic growth in the face of weak exports, the country’s top central banker said Wednesday.In an economic review meeting with private economists and experts, Bank of Korea Gov. Kim Choong-soo said the domestic market’s overall contribution to national growth is on the rise. “Because construction and jobs are key to bolstering the domestic economy, the country needs to do more to revive the
April 25, 2012
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Better consumer sentiment for third month in April
South Korea’s consumer confidence improved for the third consecutive month in April on gains in production and market demand, and waning inflationary pressure, the central bank said Wednesday.The consumer sentiment index, which gauges consumers’ overall economic outlook, living conditions and future spending, stood at 104 for this month, compared with 101 tallied in March, according to a survey by the Bank of Korea. A CSI reading above the benchmark 100 means optimists outnumber pessimists. The
April 25, 2012
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ING Life Korea gets closer to customers
ING Life Korea is aiming to get close and personal with its existing and potential customers by further “opening its ears” to hear their needs in financial planning.The Korean subsidiary of the global life insurer is boosting in-house training not only for financial consultants but also for executives, in an effort to boost customer relations, its press release said.In addition to the 180-day consulting training, the company has sent its managers and executives to its nationwide centers to meet
April 25, 2012
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Amore opens first Innisfree store in Shanghai
Amore Pacific, the nation’s biggest beauty company, said Wednesday it opened the first flagship store of its low-cost cosmetics brand Innisfree in downtown Shanghai. With the new launch, the company said it will step up efforts to expand its presence in China where a new beauty trend based on natural ingredients has gained popularity in recent years. According to the company, some cosmetics products of Innisfree are made of natural ingredients grown on Jeju Island, the nation’s southernmost reso
IndustryApril 25, 2012
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Korea to auction stake in Woori
FSC chief Kim says local, foreign investors will be treated equallySouth Korea plans to seek bidders for its stake in Woori Finance Holdings Co. in a third attempt to sell the nation’s largest financial company by assets.The government will hold an international auction and announce details on the plan “soon,” Financial Services Commission chairman Kim Seok-dong said in Seoul on Wednesday. Local and foreign investors’ bids will be treated equally, he said.A rally in Asian equity markets this yea
April 25, 2012
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Nokia debt rating cut to junk at Fitch
Nokia Oyj’s rating was cut to junk for the first time by a debt rating company as the Finnish mobile-phone maker loses its grip on a market now dominated by Apple Inc. and Asian suppliers such as Samsung Electronics Co. Fitch Ratings Tuesday lowered Nokia’s long-term debt ranking to BB+, one step below investment grade, citing a deterioration in the handset business in the first quarter and a “general lack of visibility.” Fitch said it may further cut the rating if Espoo, Finland-based Nokia’s r
TechnologyApril 25, 2012
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Local tech start-up aims high with location-sharing tool
CEO boasts app’s privacy settings better than Google, Apple services When she heard about the recent murder case in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, iSharing Soft CEO Reese Cho said she felt anger and frustration. A 28-year-old woman was found killed and butchered early this month. Despite her last-minute phone call for help, it took 13 hours for police officers to figure out her location. “I believe that she could have been rescued if her location had bee
TechnologyApril 25, 2012
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Ex-deputy chief of FSS to head financial training center
The Korea Banking Institute, an educational organization for financial professionals, has named Lee Jang-young, former deputy governor of the Financial Supervisory Service, its new chief. After graduating from Seoul National University with a degree in economics, Lee worked as a professor of economics at the State University of New York, researcher at the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy, the Korea Institute of Public Finance and economist at the International Monetary Fund.He a
April 25, 2012
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Japanese nuclear plants sit atop ‘unstable region’: report
Two nuclear power plants in Japan are located right on top of a seismically unstable region, raising the possibility of an earthquake-induced disaster, according to a report on Wednesday.Tomari plant in Hokkaido and Tsuruga plant in Fukui Prefecture sit on active faults, the Japanese media reported, citing a report by Japan’s Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency. The fault under the Tsuruga plant is believed to have moved some 4,500 years ago, according to Kyodo news agency. The underground laye
TechnologyApril 25, 2012
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S. Korean economy unlikely to recover fast: think tank
The South Korean economy is not expected to make a quick recovery from its current slump due to external uncertainties and domestic problems, a local think tank said Wednesday."A stable and rapid rebound of the South Korean economy is not in the cards as the private sector remains vulnerable to economic shocks and lacks resilience," Samsung Economic Research Institute(SERI) said in a report.The r
April 25, 2012
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Traces of ancient virus found in human genome
Much of the human genome is yet to be understood. Only 1.5 percent of the genetic material in our cells is coded for human life. Half of the rest is “junk DNA” with no known function, while the other half consists of genes from viruses and other parasites.A recent study attempting to explore this so-called “dark matter” in our genome has revealed that ancient viruses from around 100 million years ago invaded the genomes of 38 mammals including humans, mice, rats, elephants and dolphins.The study
TechnologyApril 25, 2012
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Korea to auction Woori Finance stake in third sale attempt
South Korea plans to take bids for its stake in Woori Finance Holdings Co. in a third attempt to sell the nation’s largest financial company by assets.The government will hold an international auction and announce details on the plan soon, Financial Services Commission Chairman Kim Seok Dong said in Seoul today. Local and foreign investors’ bids will be treated equally, he said.The sale is part of
April 25, 2012
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Swiss scientists demonstrate mind-controlled robot
Swiss scientists have demonstrated how a partially paralyzed person can control a robot by thought alone, a step they hope will one day allow immobile people to interact with their surroundings through so-called avatars.Similar experiments have taken place in the United States and Germany, but they involved either able-bodied patients or invasive brain implants.On Tuesday, a team at Switzerland's
TechnologyApril 25, 2012
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New case of mad cow disease in California
Top beef exporter the United States revealed Tuesday it had discovered a case of mad cow disease in California, prompting a scramble to reassure consumers at home and abroad. (MCT)The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported the country's fourth-ever case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), but stressed the outbreak was contained and no meat has entered the food chain.The infected dairy cow
April 25, 2012