The Korea Herald

Lecture on digital marketing in China

The China Europe International Business School’s Seoul office is hosting CEIBS dean professor John Quelch to deliver his newly crafted presentation on his latest passion, digital marketing in China, this week.Drawing upon his quarter of a century of experience at Harvard Business School and three years as Dean of the London Business School, Quelch will touch on the impact of such revolutionary trends as China’s growing hunger for online gaming, micro-blogging, Weibo (Chinese Twitter) and virtual

Feb. 27, 2012

ING art exhibition displays nature’s elements

The ING N.V. Seoul branch is running their annual in-house art exhibition project with the goal to enrich the cultural experience of their clients and employees and to promote young local talent.The project introduces artists whose works reflect a modern take on the traditional Korean art forms and concepts.This year’s program is titled “Naturally Beautiful: Earth, Wind, Fire and Water,” the three elements that is represented on the Korean flag.The works are on display at the ING Seoul Branch of

Feb. 27, 2012

Potential for Yeosu is in tourism: Italy

Italy’s commissioner for Yeosu seemed impressed with the environment around Yeosu, the site for Expo 2012, but expressed some concern that the region was not living up to its full potential.“Tourism can give a helping hand providing it is sustainable, that it is not this cynical utilization or cementification of the coast which sometimes occurs,” Claudio Moreno told The Korea Herald.Italy is a peninsular country, like Korea, with a highly developed northern region and a lesser developed southern

Feb. 27, 2012

Potential for Yeosu is in tourism: Italy

HSBC profits hit $22 bln on Asia growth

HSBC Holdings, Europe's biggest bank, made a $21.9 billion profit last year, the largest among western banks, as its strength in Asia helped it cope with a euro zone debt crisis that has plunged many rivals into huge losses.HSBC, which makes more than three quarters of its pretax profit outside Euro

Feb. 27, 2012

Korean robotics industry picks up steam

Korea’s robotics industry is picking up steam as government-led pilot programs are spurring sales and exports, while carving out new niches in the fledgling market. About 200 local robotics firms are expected to have generated at least 2 trillion won ($1.77 billion) in output last year, an official at the Ministry of Knowledge Economy said Monday, citing preliminary data. The ministry plans to release the final figures as early as June. Yet the tally is up about 12 percent from 2010 and more tha

IndustryFeb. 27, 2012

KT shows off femtocell technology

KT Corp. said Monday that it showcased its Long Term Evolution femtocell, a one-chip solution that combines the central processing unit and modem functionality, at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.Dubbed the finest technology being operated on the firm’s internet infrastructure, it is expected to guarantee voice quality not only indoors but also in underground areas, according to KT officials.Femtocell is a small base station which targets improving network connections for small indoor spa

IndustryFeb. 27, 2012

Hana Bank CEO to head Hana Financial

Hana Financial Group selected Hana Bank CEO Kim Jung-tai, the No. 3 figure in the group, as its new chairman on Monday.Kim, who has been picked as the only candidate by the group’s ad hoc committee, will be appointed to the post in several weeks.The 60-year-old figure has been working for Hana Financial and its flagship unit Hana Bank for 20 years since its foundation in 1992.In a statement, the nominee said he would like to play the role of a “helper,” who will pave the way for employees to opt

Feb. 27, 2012

Hynix presents smart mobile solutions

Firm goes forward with first reshuffling move following SK takeoverHynix Semiconductor said Monday that it introduced smart mobile solution products at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona for the first time in partnership with its new owner SK Telecom.With a theme of “Hynix enabling a ubiquitous world,” the global top memory chipmaker features mobile solutions like 20 nanometer class 4 gigabit DDR3 dynamic random access memory and 30 nanometer class 4 gigabit LPDDR3 DRAM, said Hynix officials

IndustryFeb. 27, 2012

Regulator toughens lending rules at cooperatives, insurers

The financial regulator on Monday announced fresh rules to toughen household lending at non-bank financial companies, putting the brakes on burgeoning private sector debt, which is nearing 900 trillion won ($801 billion).Lenders in the secondary banking sector, including cooperatives, have been ordered to limit lending money to non-members of the credit firm to less than one-third of their total loan, according to the Financial Services Commission. The National Agricultural Cooperative Federatio

Feb. 27, 2012

Seoul shares dip 1.42% on higher oil prices

South Korean stocks dropped 1.42 percent Monday on concerns that rising oil prices may hurt the South Korean economy and corporate earnings, analysts said. The local currency fell against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index lost 28.73 points to end at 1,991.16. Trading volume was moderate at 629 million shares worth 5.48 trillion won ($4.85 billion) with decliners leading gainers 570 to 275.“Rising oil prices could be a big burden to the local economy and hurt corpora

Feb. 27, 2012

MTU, Asiana clinch deal for engine maintenance

MTU Maintenance Hannover, a German engine maintenance services provider, said Monday it has won an order from Asiana Airlines to provide maintenance, repair and overhaul services.Under the deal, MTU will be in charge of the Korean carrier’s CF6-80C2, an engine made by General Electric Aviation to power its Boeing 767 and 747 fleets, for the next five years. The deal terms were not made public.The German company is an MRO unit of MTU Aero Engines, an engine manufacturer. The deal is its first wit

IndustryFeb. 27, 2012

KEB to replace all executives

Korea Exchange Bank dismissed all nine of its executives Monday, under the business policy of its new CEO Yun Yong-ro to revamp management structure.His move comes a month after financial regulators endorsed Hana Financial Group’s takeover of KEB from Lone Star Funds.Yun, the first KEB CEO under the wing of Hana Financial, notified the nine executives, including four deputy CEOs, that their terms would not be extended.The executives were at their posts during Lone Star’s management of the bank f

Feb. 27, 2012

Sales of imported premium beer swell

Local brewers expand imports of Japanese beers to raise profitabilitySales of imported premium beer are on the rise with a growing number of young consumers preferring foreign beers to domestic brands, prompting Korean brewers to pump up imports of Japanese brands.About 45 million liters of imported beer was sold in Korea last year, up 11 percent from a year ago. Japanese beer was the most popular with 18,252 tons worth $12.35 million sold, followed by Dutch (9,509 tons worth $10.92 million) and

IndustryFeb. 27, 2012

Samsung expects to sell 10 million units of Galaxy Note this year

There’s no negotiation with Apple: mobile chiefBARCELONA, Spain ― Samsung Electronics became the No. 1 smartphone maker for the first time last year, selling more than 17 million units globally. The company also sold a record 330 million handsets during the year.This year Samsung is aiming even higher, at doubling the sales target for its mobile devices. And the key strategy behind the goal is appealing to consumers with emotional marketing. “Cellphones are not just mobile devices but also have

IndustryFeb. 27, 2012

Samsung expects to sell 10 million units of Galaxy Note this year

LG aims to lead global LTE market

After dismal years, mobile chief upbeat for 2012BARCELONA, Spain ― LG Electronics, which became the world’s second-largest player in the Long Term Evolution phone market last year, hopes to revive its hey-day as a hit phone maker, the company’s mobile chief said Sunday. “2012 will be the year of LTE, HD and quad-core. Based on the growth momentum in the fourth quarter last year, we aim to become the global No. 1 in the LTE market,” Park Jong-seok, CEO of LG’s mobile communication unit said durin

IndustryFeb. 27, 2012

Childbirths in Korea rise in 2011

The number of children born in Korea increased for the second straight year in 2011, amid concerted efforts to bolster the country’s low birthrate, a government report showed Monday.According to the report by Statistics Korea, the number of newborns totaled 471,400 last year, a gain of 1,200, or 0.3 percent, from the 2010 tally. The gain was attributed mainly to more couples opting to have their first and third child last year.Reflecting this, the number of first and third-borns edged up 1.7 per

Feb. 27, 2012

Korean or Western titles, that is the question

The Korean title system, the Western title system or a mix of both; the question is, which one is better? In the end, it depends on what the company wants to achieve.“Some people might say that one is better than the other, and the more we study it, the more we find that there is no system that supersedes any other,” said Zuellig Pharma Korea president Christophe Piganiol.The head of the pharmaceutical giant has been studying the different systems with the aim of better understanding what drives

Feb. 27, 2012

Korean or Western titles, that is the question

Report: Women have rare egg-producing stem cells

For 60 years, doctors have believed women were born with all the eggs they’ll ever have. Now Harvard scientists are challenging that dogma, saying they’ve discovered the ovaries of young women harbor very rare stem cells capable of producing new eggs.If Sunday’s report is confirmed, harnessing those

TechnologyFeb. 27, 2012

Korea braces for oil price spike

With crude prices spiraling out of control amid tensions surrounding Iran, concerns are surfacing of a fresh oil shock. Korea’s benchmark Dubai crude jumped to $121.57 a barrel, the highest since August 2008, on Singapore’s spot market on Friday. Brent crude, a global yardstick, touched a nine-month high of $125 a barrel.Korea, the world’s fifth-largest crude buyer, imports almost of its oil needs.Runaway fuel costs are threatening to push up consumer prices and in turn jeopardize the central ba

Feb. 26, 2012

Government to back SK Biopharm’s epilepsy drug development

SK Biopharmaceuticals Co. said Sunday it plans to carry out clinical tests for its epilepsy drug candidate in four countries as part of a government program to cultivate blockbuster drugs, targeting the international market. The drug unit of Korea’s third-largest conglomerate has since 2006 been developing a medicine for intractable epilepsy, a set of chronic neurological disorders typified by seizures. The product, codenamed YKP3089, is currently in small-scale second-phase trials in the U.S. T

IndustryFeb. 26, 2012