Most Popular
-
1
Korea, Japan finance chiefs vow to tame rampant FX market volatility
-
2
K-pop group's manager dismissed for setting up spycam in theater dressing room
-
3
Contentious grain bill put directly to plenary meeting for vote
-
4
Why is Apple Pay struggling to get purchase in Korea?
-
5
Will tug-of-war between doctors, government end soon?
-
6
Trilateral talks acknowledge ‘serious’ slumps of won, yen
-
7
Climate impacts set to cut 2050 global GDP by nearly a fifth
-
8
[Today’s K-pop] BTS pop-up event to come to Seoul
-
9
[Graphic News] More Koreans say they plan long-distance trips this year
-
10
Fed: Elevated inflation will likely delay rate cuts this year
-
Hyundai releases i40 Saloon
Hyundai Motor Co., Korea’s leading automaker, said Tuesday it released the latest version of its i40 in the local market to meet customer demand for a mid-size sedan.The i40 Saloon, 4.740 meters long and 1.815 meters wide, features the smoothly sculpted exterior seen on recent Hyundai vehicles. It comes with a 2.0-liter GDi gasoline engine with a maximum 178 horsepower and has an average fuel mileage of 13.1 kilometers per liter.There is also a diesel model powered with a 1.7-liter VGT engine wi
MobilityJan. 17, 2012
-
Chung foundation to support 13,000 college students
The Chung Mong-koo Foundation will provide 13,000 college students from underprivileged households with financial support, Hyundai Motor said Tuesday.The foundation, set up by Hyundai Motor chairman Chung, plans to issue tuition fee loans with low or zero percent interest rates.“Over the next two years, about 13,000 college students will enjoy the educational support. Lending rates range between 0 and 3 percent,” the automaker said in a statement.About 5,000 students could be beneficiaries of th
MobilityJan. 17, 2012
-
IMF likely to lower Korea’s GDP outlook soon: official
The International Monetary Fund may lower Korea’s growth outlook from current 4.4 percent in its next economic report due April, a government official in knowledge of the fund’s visit to Seoul this week said Tuesday.“A delegation from the IMF was at the Finance Ministry on Monday. I think they might change their growth outlook on Korea as things have changed from last September,” the official said on condition of anonymity. “GDP projection is likely to be dimmed,” he added.A cut in growth outloo
Jan. 17, 2012
-
Women flex muscles as fund managers, analysts
More women take up key research positions at major securities companiesWomen are making inroads into the financial sector at a rapid pace, taking up more specialist positions such as fund managers and analysts. According to brokerages and the Korea Financial Investment Association, the proportion of female analysts and fund managers is rising, following the broader trend of the gender gap narrowing in the workplace. The most significant change is taking place in the research divisions of major s
Jan. 17, 2012
-
Hyundai Group picked to buy Banyan Tree Seoul
Hyundai Group plans to enter the hotel business as it was named the preferred bidder for a controlling stake in Banyan Tree Club & Spa Seoul, a six-star luxury resort in central Seoul, on Monday. Hyundai proposed a bid of 160 billion won ($140 million) to acquire the shares on the condition that the group will pay in several installments. Starting with the potential acquisition, the group said, it would step up efforts to find the new growth engines that Hyundai Group chairwoman Hyun Jeong-eun s
IndustryJan. 17, 2012
-
Six builders win orders topping W10tr in 2011
Six Korean construction companies are estimated to have secured orders exceeding 10 trillion won ($8.7 billion) in 2011 due mainly to increased overseas contracts, industry sources said Monday.POSCO Engineering & Construction Co., GS E&C and Daewoo Engineering & Construction Co. ranked in the top three in terms of orders won, with Samsung C&T Corp., Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co. and Daelim Industrial Co. also faring well, they said.“POSCO orders surged by 3 trillion won to around 14.4 t
IndustryJan. 17, 2012
-
Chung lambastes large firms for boycotting forum on profit-sharing
The chief of a panel on shared growth on Tuesday lashed out at large conglomerates for boycotting discussions on sharing profits with their smaller partner companies.Former Prime Minister Chung Un-chan who heads the commission for shared growth said the business giants were “neglecting their social responsibility” as they refused to show up at the panel’s first meeting this year.Of the 25 members of the commission, nine representing the large companies did not attend the meeting Tuesday.“We have
IndustryJan. 17, 2012
-
Samsung to invest record $41.7 billion
Conglomerate also announces plan to employ 26,000 people this yearSamsung Group announced Tuesday that it will invest a record 47.8 trillion won ($41.7 billion) and hire 26,000 new workers this year amid the sluggish global economy, especially in the European countries.The 2012 investment figure is up 12 percent from the 42.8 trillion won injected in 2011. Last year’s figure was also the largest amount invested by the country’s biggest conglomerate since its establishment.“The group decided to c
IndustryJan. 17, 2012
-
Shares up on eased EU worries
South Korean stocks ended 1.8 percent higher Tuesday as investors shrugged off recent eurozone sovereign downgrades and snapped up shares of blue-chip banks and exporters, analysts said. The local currency gathered ground against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark KOSPI soared 33.47 points to 1,892.74. Trading volume was heavy at 426.6 million shares worth 5.91 trillion won ($5.16 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 553 to 269.Foreigners scooped a net 393.3 billion won worth of shares, extendi
Jan. 17, 2012
-
Samsung to start producing 46-inch transparent LCD
Samsung Electronics said Tuesday that it will begin producing 46-inch transparent liquid-crystal displays by the end of this month, becoming the world’s sole manufacturer of such displays.The new transparent display, the second attempt made by the global IT giant, is currently expected to be placed in refrigerator doors with the cooperation of some U.S. firms, according to Samsung officials.Locally, the 46-inch displays will also be installed as the screen doors for the subway stations on subway
IndustryJan. 17, 2012
-
New bill to prevent ‘bill shock’ from July
Mobile network carriers will be obliged to warn consumers about a potential “bill shock” from July as part of a revision to telecommunication law that took effect on Tuesday. With the rapid adoption of data-heavy smartphones here, consumers have complained about damages from expensive data rates in excess of their fixed-bill plans. Even though local telecom operators have carried out safety measures voluntarily to prevent consumer damages, now such efforts have become legally binding from July 1
IndustryJan. 17, 2012
-
POSCO to reelect Chung for second term
POSCO chief executive Chung Joon-yang is likely to remain at the helm of the Korean steel giant as its board of directors agreed Tuesday to reelect him for another three-year term. Chung, 64, has been orchestrating the company’s operations since February 2009. With the first term expiring at the end of next month, he will seek approval from stakeholders at a meeting in March, POSCO officials said.Chung’s second term was widely expected by industry observers who credit him with masterminding the
IndustryJan. 17, 2012
-
Criticism escalates over delayed private KTX operation
The government’s decision to delay its controversial plan to adopt competition for train operations until the April parliamentary election is intensifying a backlash as critics slam the shift, calling it “a political move.”The Transport Ministry said Tuesday it will put off bidding to run new bullet-train routes departing Suseo in southern Seoul by two months, saying the “timing was inappropriate.”“After consulting with lawmakers, we offered to adjust the pace of the project as some questioned i
IndustryJan. 17, 2012
-
BMW recalls 235,000 Minis worldwide due to 'fire risk'
A Mini Cooper automobile, by Bayerische Motoren Werke AG ( BMW), rolls of the production line at the company's Cowley plant in Oxford, U.K. (Bloomberg)German carmaker BMW has recalled around 235,000 Minis worldwide due to a fault in the electric water pump that cools the turbo charger, which could i
MobilityJan. 17, 2012
-
Study: Babies try lip-reading in learning to talk
WASHINGTON (AP) — Babies don't learn to talk just from hearing sounds. New research suggests they're lip-readers too.It happens during that magical stage when a baby's babbling gradually changes from gibberish into syllables and eventually into that first "mama" or "dada."Florida scientists di
TechnologyJan. 17, 2012
-
Samsung Group to invest 47.8 tln won this year
Samsung Group, South Korea's largest conglomerate, said Tuesday it plans to spend a record 47.8 trillion won ($41.6 billion) on investment this year despite growing economic uncertainty. A man walks behind a Samsung Electronics Co. logo at the company's flagship store in Seoul, South Korea, on Thurs
IndustryJan. 17, 2012
-
Moody's maintains French AAA rating
PARIS (AP)- Ratings agency Moody's says it is maintaining France's top-tier AAA credit rating for now after the country was downgraded by rival Standard & Poor's.Moody's maintained France's outlook at stable. S&P rates France's outlook as negative.Moody's cited the economy's overall strength but sai
Jan. 16, 2012
-
Fitch cuts Russia outlook on anti-Putin protests
MOSCOW (AFP) - Fitch on Monday cut the outlook on Russia's debt due to uncertainty over protests against Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's rule which has intensified the risk of a sustained capital flight."Political uncertainty in Russia has risen and the global economic outlook has worsened since Fit
Jan. 16, 2012
-
KB Financial not to bid for Woori Financial
Euh stresses banks’ role change for upgrade of Korea’s financial marketKB Financial Group clarified its position that it will not bid to take over the state-run Woori Financial, at least for 2012.“This year, we have no plan to acquire any financial company including Woori Financial Group and the group’s subsidiaries,” KB Financial chairman Euh Yoon-dae told The Korea Herald on Monday.His stance comes as government officials and Woori Financial chairman Lee Pal-seung are striving to revitalize th
Jan. 16, 2012
-
Trade deficit with Japan shrinks in 2011
Korea’s trade deficit with Japan sharply fell last year as the powerful earthquake and the appreciating yen pushed up the island country’s imports, a report showed Monday.Korea’s exports to Japan spiked more than 41 percent on-year to $360.3 billion between January and November last year, the report by the Korea International Trade Association showed. Imports rose 7 percent to $624.3 billion.Korea’s trade deficit with its second-largest partner came in at $264 billion over the 11-month period, d
Jan. 16, 2012