Most Popular
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1 in 3 Koreans live alone, family types becoming diverse
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Korea, Japan finance chiefs vow to tame rampant FX market volatility
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K-pop singer lost consciousness after being hit by foul ball, cancels show
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K-pop group's manager dismissed for setting up spycam in theater dressing room
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Contentious grain bill put directly to plenary meeting for vote
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Korean Muslim YouTuber's plan to build mosque in Incheon goes viral
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Why is Apple Pay struggling to get purchase in Korea?
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Yoon's office denies considering liberal figures for key posts
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Trilateral talks acknowledge ‘serious’ slumps of won, yen
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[Today’s K-pop] BTS pop-up event to come to Seoul
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Scientists identify new cell to lower risk of hardening of arteries
A group of scientists, including one of the two recipients of this year's Nobel prize in medicine, the late Ralph M. Steinman, has identified a new cell that helps reduce risks of the hardening of the arteries, South Korea's science ministry said Friday.The research, published Thursday (U.S. time) o
TechnologyNov. 11, 2011
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Insurer loan default rate goes up in Q3
The default rate on loans extended by South Korean insurance companies inched up in the third quarter from three months earlier, due mainly to a rise in overdue corporate loans, the financial watchdog said Friday.The average ratio of overdue loans came to 1.18 percent of total lending by local life
Nov. 11, 2011
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KOSPI tumbles on Italian woes
Seoul shares lost 4.94 percent to 1,813.25 Thursday on deepening woes over Europe’s debt crisis as soaring borrowing costs in Italy renewed fears that the region’s currency union may be breaking up. The benchmark KOSPI opened sharply lower, with losses led by bank and oil refiners, tracking worsening performance of market indices across Asia and the U.S. The local currency lost 1.5 percent to close at 1,134.2 won against the U.S. dollar. “It wasn’t a surprise that investors cut their holdings, e
Nov. 10, 2011
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SKT becomes sole bidder for Hynix
SK Telecom, the nation’s top mobile carrier, submitted its final bid on Thursday to take over Hynix Semiconductor, becoming a sole bidder, creditors said.Credit Suisse, one of the co-sale brokers for the deal, received SKT’s bid to acquire a 15 percent stake in the world’s No. 2 memory chip maker, said officials at Korea Exchange Bank, the main creditor.The creditors plan to select a preferred bidder on Friday and conduct price negotiations with the selected company. SKT tendered the last-minute
IndustryNov. 10, 2011
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Household loans grow by most in 4 months
South Korean banks’ household loans grew by the most in four months in October on a rise in mortgage lending, the central bank said Thursday, complicating the government’s efforts to curb growing household debt.Local banks’ household loans, including home-backed and credit loans, reached 451.8 trillion won ($398 billion) as of the end of October, up 3.2 trillion won from the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea.The October monthly growth marked the largest expansion since such loans in
Nov. 10, 2011
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Alert issued against arterial embolism
The Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service on Thursday issued a warning over arterial embolisms, which have increased 34 percent in the past five years. The U.S. National Library of Medicine defines an arterial embolism as a sudden interruption of blood flow to an organ or body part due to a clot (embolus). The clots often occur in the legs and feet. Some may occur in the brain, causing a stroke, or in the heart, causing a heart attack. Less common sites include the kidneys, intestines,
TechnologyNov. 10, 2011
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KCDC warns of humidifier-sterilizers again
The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention once again advised people to refrain from using humidifier-sterilizers. The advice was issued after a civic group claimed that 18 people died of a lung disease believed to have been caused by disinfectants in the machines. The authorities asked supermarkets and retailers to recall the products in August, and is issuing the warning again to raise public awareness of the health threat. More information on the relationship between humidifier disi
TechnologyNov. 10, 2011
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GE introduces new anesthetic device
GE Healthcare launched Aisys ET Control, an anesthetic device with an upgraded control function. According to the health care equipment maker, anesthetic equipment is controlled by doctors in operating theaters, but the device helps automatically control the amount of drugs inhaled, preventing patients from falling into hypoxia.(baejisook@heraldm.com)
TechnologyNov. 10, 2011
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Fatty liver
Fatty liver is a disease where fat, and especially the neutral fat (triglyceride), is accumulated in the liver cells and takes up more than 5 percent of the liver weight. Liver is a chemical factory in human body and plays many different roles including processing fat. And if fat from the food is not properly processed, it can cause fatty liver. Cause and symptomsAlcohol is one of the most well-known causes of fatty liver. Alcohol lowers many metabolic functions of the liver, especially by reduc
TechnologyNov. 10, 2011
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Skin transplant gives patients new lease of life
DETROIT ― Adil Siddiqui was reluctant to go out in public because he thought everybody was staring at the patches of white skin on his face.Siddiqui suffers from vitiligo, an autoimmune skin disease that affects about 2 million Americans. The white patches appear when pigment cells, called melanocytes, are attacked and destroyed by the body’s immune system. The reason is a mystery.The white patches, which are called lesions, developed after Siddiqui graduated from Novi High School in 2006.“It’s
TechnologyNov. 10, 2011
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Study stirs debate over transplants for alcoholics
CHICAGO (AP) ― Some gravely ill alcoholics who need a liver transplant shouldn’t have to prove they can stay sober for six months to get one, doctors say in a study that could intensify the debate over whether those who destroy their organs by drinking deserve new ones.In the small French study, the vast majority of the patients who got a liver without the wait stopped drinking after their surgery and were sober years later. The study involved patients who were suffering from alcohol-related hep
TechnologyNov. 10, 2011
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Using your lunch break to get in shape
More office workers use free time during their workdays for exerciseIf your hectic work schedule is stressing you out and you cannot squeeze in time for exercise, it might be time to consider taking advantage of your lunch break. More people are now investing their lunch time in exercise, from simply taking a walk to weight training. Kim Ji-hye, a 35-year-old office worker at a financial institution, started to take half hour walks after quickly grabbing lunch.“A sandwich and coffee is fine. My
TechnologyNov. 10, 2011
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Private lending market faces major overhaul
Regulator moves to punish lenders for breaching rules on interest ratesA major disruption is expected to hit the private lending market dominated by Japanese firms as Korea’s financial regulators threaten to suspend leading players for violating rules.Amid growing public outcry over the high interest rates charged by private lenders, the initial salvo came on Nov. 6 from the Financial Supervisory Service, which confirmed it was considering suspending major lenders including No. 1 player A&P Fina
Nov. 10, 2011
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Producer price growth sinks to 10-month low
South Korea’s producer prices grew at the slowest clip in 10 months in October as crude oil prices posted more modest gains, which helped offset the local currency’s depreciation to the dollar, the central bank said Thursday.The producer price index, a barometer of future consumer inflation, rose 5.6 percent in October from a year earlier, down slightly from a 5.7 percent on-year gain in September, according to the Bank of Korea.Last month’s data marked the slowest growth since the 5.3 percent g
Nov. 10, 2011
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Gold prices near 7-week high amid Italian woes
Gold prices on both the international and South Korean markets are expected to continue rising as renewed worries on the eurozone, sparked by Italy’s financial woes, prompt investors to scurry for safer assets, data showed Thursday.On Tuesday, the contract for December delivery hit $1,799.2 per troy ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, hitting a near seven-week high. The price closed slightly lower on Wednesday but continued to hover near the $1,800 level.Demand for t
Nov. 10, 2011
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Earnings
NCsoft’s Q3 net dives 29% on weak overseas salesNCsoft Corp., a leading online game developer in South Korea, said Thursday its third-quarter income plunged 29 percent from a year earlier on lower revenues from overseas markets. Net profit reached 27.88 billion won ($24.92 million) in the July-September period, compared with 39.5 billion won on year ago, the company said in a regulatory filing.Sales fell 6 percent on-year to 147.6 billion won in the three months, while operating profit slumped 3
IndustryNov. 10, 2011
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Hyundai rush on U.S. demand boosts airline
Hyundai Motor Co.’s race to meet U.S. demand for Elantra and Sonata cars is helping South Korean air-cargo carriers withstand a global freight slump.Korean Air Lines Co., the nation’s biggest carrier, boosted U.S. auto-part shipments 16 percent in the first 10 months as Seoul-based Hyundai and affiliate Kia Motors Corp. ramped up U.S. production because of surging sales. Second-ranked Asiana Airlines Inc. has also seen a pick-up in component shipments that has slowed an overall decline in volume
IndustryNov. 10, 2011
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Money supply growth quickens in September
The growth of South Korea’s money supply picked up in September from the previous month as bank lending to companies expanded and the current account surplus widened, the central bank said Thursday.The country’s M2, a narrow measure of the money supply, reached 1,729.5 trillion won ($1.52 trillion) in September, up 4.2 percent from a year earlier, according to the Bank of Korea.The M2 in September quickened from the 4 percent on-year expansion tallied in August and marked the fastest growth sinc
Nov. 10, 2011
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Nation’s first renewable energy compound completed in Busan
The country’s first compound for testing and producing parts and technologies for renewable energy sources was completed on Thursday.Work on the complex in Buan County, North Jeolla Province, began in 2004, and cost 100 billion won ($88 million), the Ministry of Knowledge Economy said.The compound is divided into a research and testing complex, industrial complex and a complex for experiencing and learning about related technologies. According to the ministry, three state-run research organizati
Nov. 10, 2011
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Samsung donates ‘smart classroom’
Samsung Electronics has established a “smart classroom” and donated it to Nohwa Elementary School on Wando in South Jeolla Province, the company said Thursday.The smart classroom offers an electronic board and dozens of Galaxy Tab 10.1, a tablet PC manufactured by Samsung.The establishment of a smart classroom is part of Samsung’s efforts to boost the learning environment for children living on remote islands in Korea. The digitalized classroom works by connecting students’ Galaxy Tabs and an el
IndustryNov. 10, 2011