[Adam Minter] In ‘Star Wars’ economy, one thing doesn’t pay

Junk is surprisingly pervasive in “Star Wars,” playing an understated role in nearly every film in the series. In “The Phantom Menace,” we meet young Anakin Skywalker, the future Darth Vader, working at a small electronics scrapyard and repair shop. In “A New Hope,” Luke Skywalker’s uncle buys R2-D2 and C-3PO from a group of Jawas, a species that drive massive, sand-crawling junk trucks. The recently released “Rise of Skywalker” is largely a

ViewpointsDec. 25, 2019

Trilateral summit raises hopes for recovery of consumer goods stocks

At the end of a sluggish year, South Korea is gradually coming to anticipate the recovery of its consumer goods stocks, placing its hopes on the latest trilateral talk with China and Japan.The key point of interest comes down to whether Seoul will break free of the consequences of economic retaliatory measures taken by Beijing in response to the deployment of an advanced US missile defense system in 2016.On Tuesday, the leaders of the three Northeast Asian states reaffirmed their shared goals of

MarketDec. 25, 2019

Dialogue revived between Moon, Abe, but still has a long way to go

South Korea and Japan have revived top-level dialogue, but it will take a while for the squabbling neighbors to make substantive progress toward resolving the core issues, experts said Wednesday.  South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held a summit, their first formal talks in 15 months, on the sidelines of the South Korea-China-Japan trilateral summit in the southwestern Chinese city of Chengdu.   No breakthroughs were made, but the two ag

Foreign AffairsDec. 25, 2019

White-bearded 'Merry Christmas' bank robber throws cash at passers-by

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- A white-bearded man robbed a bank two days before Christmas, but threw the stolen cash in the air and wished passers-by a merry Christmas, US media reported.Colorado police confirmed in a statement an "older white male" robbed the Academy Bank in Colorado Springs after threatening workers with an unidentified weapon and leaving with an unknown amount of money around midday Monday. "He started throwing money out of the bag and then said, 'Merry Christmas!"

World NewsDec. 25, 2019

Seoul, Washington on alert over NK’s ‘Christmas gift’

Seoul and Washington were on high alert Wednesday over North Korea’s “Christmas gift” and its year-end deadline for US-North Korea denuclearization dialogue. According to reports, Seoul’s presidential office and concerned governmental bodies including the unification and defense ministries were monitoring North Korea for any unusual activities.  The militaries of South Korea and the US are reported to have deployed surveillance assets in and around the Korean Peninsu

North KoreaDec. 25, 2019

Conglomerates’ R&D investments rise 11% despite lower sales

South Korea’s large businesses increased investment in research and development by around 11 percent throughout the year despite declines in sales, according to data from a local market tracker released Wednesday. The aggregate investments of 211 major companies stood at 39.2 trillion won ($33.7 billion) as of the third quarter, up 11.3 percent from the 35.2 percent recorded during the same period last year, showed a report from corporate researcher CEO Score. The 211 firms are among the c

TechnologyDec. 25, 2019

LG to debut connected car platform with global tech giants at CES 2020

LG Electronics said Wednesday it will debut its connected car platform -- built in collaboration with multiple global tech companies -- for the first time at the Consumer Electronics Show 2020 that kicks off in Las Vegas on Jan.7. The South Korean tech giant is going to demonstrate the latest version of Linux-based car infotainment platform webOS Auto that it has been working on with Qualcomm, Microsoft, Qt and Luxoft. The company will exhibit a connected car model co-designed by automotive seat

TechnologyDec. 25, 2019

Hyundai E&C wins 800b won worth of orders in Singapore, Vietnam

Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co. said Wednesday it has clinched some 800 billion won ($687 million) worth of deals to build a road and a hotel in Singapore and Vietnam, respectively.The deal with Singapore's Land Transport Authority, worth $435 million, calls for Hyundai E&C to build a 4.5-kilometer elevated highway in Sembawang in the northern part of Singapore. Hyundai E&C expects the construction of the road to take 84 months. Separately, Hyundai E&C said it has won a co

IndustryDec. 25, 2019

E-mart to open second outlet in Philippines

South Korea’s largest retailer E-mart said Wednesday that it will open its second No Brand store in the Philippines this week.  No Brand is E-mart’s private brand promoting low-priced items ranging from food to daily necessities. The outlet is slated to open Friday on a 353 square-meters area in Robinsons Galleria South, a commercial establishment located in San Pedro City, Laguna province.The new branch plans to sell some 630 No Brand items, in addition to some 150 local items.

IndustryDec. 25, 2019

Mobile carriers ready for spike in year-end data usage

South Korea’s mobile carriers are busy preparing to counter an expected surge in data traffic during the year-end season, the companies said Wednesday.  Now is usually the time when mobile carriers experience a dramatic increase in data usage, including voice calls, particularly in locations where many people gather to celebrate.Whenever large numbers of people occupy the same space at the same time, data traffic tends to increase accordingly, said officials from the mobile carriers.T

TechnologyDec. 25, 2019

[Monitor] Rehired mid-aged workers earn less than W2m

Six out of 10 workers in their 40s, 50s and 60s who have been rehired earn less than 2 million won per month, data from Statistics Korea showed earlier this week.The wage tended to decrease as they get older with those in their early 40s receiving an average of 2.3 million won, those in their early 50s 2.17 million won and those in their early 60s 1.83 million won.The data was collected from those who were out of a job as of October 2017 and were reemployed a year later.(khnews@heraldcorp.com)

EconomyDec. 25, 2019

Banking groups’ overseas assets grow 40% in 3 years

The combined assets of the overseas subsidiaries of South Korean financial groups have expanded nearly 40 percent over the past three years, data showed Wednesday.According to data by the state-run Korea Deposit Insurance Corp., the total assets owned by overseas subsidiaries of South Korea’s major 10 financial groups tallied 61.6 trillion won ($529.2 billion) as of end-June.The list includes Shinhan Financial Group, Hana Financial Group, Woori Financial Group, KB Financial Group, JB Finan

MarketDec. 25, 2019

Kakao M carries on M&A push with $23m deal

Kakao M, a subsidiary of South Korean internet giant Kakao, is again adding momentum to mergers and acquisitions to consolidate its content production capacity and generate synergy among its media units.In the latest move, Kakao M subsidiary Starship Entertainment inked a deal to buy a 100 percent stake in a local performing arts company, Shownote, for 26.8 billion won ($23 million) in cash. Starship Entertainment also announced a plan to raise 11 billion won in capital, part of which will come

MarketDec. 25, 2019

7 in 10 Seoulites say Korean unification needed: survey

More than 7 out of 10 residents of Seoul said the reunification of South and North Korea was necessary despite soured inter-Korean relations, a survey showed Wednesday.According to the survey of 2,000 Seoul citizens by the Seoul Metropolitan Government, 74.2 percent of the respondents said reunification of the Koreas was necessary, whereas 26 percent said it was not.The liberal Moon Jae-in administration has focused its efforts on improving relations between the two Koreas, which remain technica

Social AffairsDec. 25, 2019

Places to reflect on 2019, make New Year’s wishes for 2020

Making wishes while watching the first sunrise of the new year is considered a special event for many Koreans, who believe the practice will bring them luck in the year ahead. Rising before dawn on New Year’s Day is difficult, but watching the beautiful sunrise is worth the effort. Similarly, some people enjoy watching the sunset on the last day of the year, reflecting on the passing year. Here are some of the best spots for catching the sunset or sunrise in Seoul, and around the country.H

TravelDec. 25, 2019

Boston Symphony Orchestra to make Korean debut in February

The Boston Symphony Orchestra is to visit South Korea for the first time, gracing the stage at the Seoul Arts Center Feb. 6-7.It will be the time-honored orchestra’s first visit to the country. A concert scheduled in 1960 as part of its Asian tour had to be canceled due to the April 19 Revolution.  On the first day, the orchestra will present Bartok’s Concerto for Orchestra Sz. 116 BB. 123; Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 24, K. 491; and Ravel’s Daphnis et Chloe Suite No

PerformanceDec. 25, 2019

Investors turned to real estate, gold and foreign stocks in 2019: KRX

Reflecting the slowing economy and prolonged low interest rates, investors here have increasingly turned their eyes to real estate, gold and overseas securities, South Korea’s stock market operator said Wednesday.Based on a survey of industry experts and media correspondents, the Korea Exchange selected its top 10 news stories about the domestic stock and derivative markets this year.A representative phenomenon was the soaring demand for real estate investment trusts, or REITs, led by the

MarketDec. 25, 2019

[Feature] What you didn’t know about Korean hangover cures

Given the average amount of alcohol Koreans consume on a daily basis, it is no wonder the hangover cure market here has been continuously growing at an annual 15 percent. The demand for these cures is especially strong around the end-of-year season during which time Koreans spend night after night socializing one last time before the year ends.But the truth is the exact mechanism to erase a hangover is not scientifically identified as of yet, and the hangover cures out in the market are merely b

IndustryDec. 25, 2019

[Newsmaker] Over 3,000 S. Koreans seeking reunions with separated relatives in NK died this year

Over 3,000 South Koreans who had applied for reunions with their long-lost relatives in North Korea have died this year without having their wishes fulfilled, according to government data.A total of 3,147 South Koreans, registered as members of separated families since 1988, died from January to November this year, an online system jointly run by the unification ministry and the Red Cross showed on Tuesday. Among the total of 133,365 South Koreans registered as members of separated families, onl

North KoreaDec. 25, 2019