Foreigners planning start-ups invited to workshop next week

Nonprofit organization the TIDE Institute is hosting a three-day workshop in English for foreigners planning start-up ventures at Kyungil University next week.Developers, designers and entrepreneurs are invited to come together to share ideas, form teams, build prototypes and find out if their start-up ideas are viable at the “Start-up Springboard” to be held from Jan. 16 through 18 at the university in Gyeongsan, North Gyeongsang Province.The event begins with an open pitch session on Jan. 16 i

IndustryJan. 8, 2013

Samsung Electronics takes up 20% of stock market cap: data

South Korea’s tech giant Samsung Electronics Co. has increased its presence in the local stock market with its value reaching nearly 20 percent of the total market capitalization, data showed Tuesday.The market cap of Samsung Electronics reached 223.8 trillion won ($210.5 billion) as of Monday, or 19.26 percent of the market total and up 4.3 percentage points from end-2011, according to data compiled by the bourse operator Korea Exchange.Samsung’s market cap had stayed below 20 percent after rea

CompaniesJan. 8, 2013

Seoul to overhaul operator of scandals-hit nuclear power plant

The government announced a set of measures Tuesday to overhaul the country’s state-run nuclear power plant operator that seeks to enhance the safety of nuclear reactors and public confidence.The move comes as public confidence over the safety of nuclear power plants plunged from 71 percent in January 2010 to only 34.8 percent at the end of last year, according to the Ministry of Knowledge Economy, which oversees the country’s energy affairs.Such a large drop was largely caused by a nuclear accid

Jan. 8, 2013

Dongbu Group inks deal to buy Daewoo Electronics

South Korean conglomerate Dongbu Group signed a contract to take over Daewoo Electronics Corp. on Tuesday, ending a decade-long search for a buyer for the country’s No. 3 electronics firm.The group said its consortium inked the deal with Daewoo Electronics creditors to purchase the appliance maker for 272.6 billion won ($256.4 million).The move comes five months after Dongbu Group was tapped as the preferred bidder of Daewoo Electronics, a former unit of Daewoo Group, one of South Korea’s larges

Jan. 8, 2013

KT reports LG Uplus to watchdog for ‘irregularities’

KT Corp., the country’s top fixed line and No. 2 mobile carrier, on Tuesday reported rival LG Uplus Corp. to the communications watchdog for illegally luring subscribers.“KT has submitted a report to the Korea Communications Commission requesting a strict measure on LG Uplus, which has been receiving subscribers through illegal means despite its business suspension stemming from excessive subsidy payments,” KT said in a press release.Since Monday, LG Uplus has been under a 24-day business suspen

Jan. 8, 2013

Banks’ foreign-currency deposits dip in Dec.

Foreign currency deposits at South Korean banks fell for the second straight month in December as local firms withdrew money to cover import bills, the central bank said Tuesday.Outstanding foreign currency-denominated deposits held by local residents reached $36.03 billion as of the end of December, down $2.35 billion from the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea.The December data marked the lowest level since August when such deposits hit $35.83 billion, it added. In October, the dep

Jan. 8, 2013

Shares down on weak Q4 earnings outlook

South Korean stocks finished 0.66 percent lower Tuesday as rising concerns over a weak corporate earnings outlook dented investor sentiment, analysts said. The local currency gathered ground against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index dropped 13.30 points to 1,997.94. Trading volume was moderate at 489.3 million shares worth 3.91 trillion won ($3.67 billion), with decliners outnumbering gainers 427 to 369.“Although Samsung Electronics boasted all-time high quarterly e

Jan. 8, 2013

Park not to raise taxes on wealthy bracket

President-elect Park Geun-hye’s transition team is poised to rule out tax hikes in the coming administration’s policy to secure funds for social welfare, committee members said Tuesday.Under Park’s full-fledged welfare project, which will cost the nation more than 90 trillion won ($83.3 billion) over five years, some economists had expected that the high-income bracket and major business groups would ultimately be the main target of tax authorities.But in contrast to market prediction, a member

Jan. 8, 2013

Household debt, aging weigh on growth

President-elect Park Geun-hye is faced with many economic challenges ahead as Korea is about to enter a low-growth period, further weighed down by rising household debt and a rapidly aging society.With her transition team in order, Park and her advisers are set out to improve the country’s financial soundness by first extending a support mechanism that aims to alleviate the growing debt of middle-income earners and credit delinquents.As pledged, the incoming administration is expected to set up

Jan. 8, 2013

Target emerging nations’ middle class: KOTRA

The Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency said that local export firms should target the middle class in emerging countries in order to tide over the protracted global economic slump.The state-run agency held its yearly presentation on local companies’ overseas market expansion strategy at InterContinental Seoul COEX on Tuesday.The three-day event kicked off with opening speeches by KOTRA CEO Oh Young-ho and Knowledge Economy Minister Hong Suk-woo, as well as reports from directors of nine reg

Jan. 8, 2013

Religious tax to be introduced this month

The Ministry of Strategy and Finance is reportedly pushing for a revised income taxation law that allows the government to collect taxes from religious groups.It plans to reintroduce the ordinance this month that has been controversial since 2006 when the National Tax Service suggested the religious tax to the Finance Ministry.Clergy and monks had been granted tax exemptions, and the ministry had been seriously contemplating whether to introduce the tax system faced with opposition and resistanc

Jan. 8, 2013

Even in Roman times, cool shoes were a must

Children living in Roman times showed off their social status through the shoes they wore, a recent research suggested.According to a study led by Elizabeth Greene of the University of Western Ontario, Roman children were dressed to reveal their place in society. “The role of dress in expressing status was prominent even for children of the very youngest ages,” Livescience.com quoted Greene as saying. Greene and her colleagues looked at over 4,000 shoes found at Vindolanda, a Roman army fort in

TechnologyJan. 8, 2013

U.S. Supreme Court leaves stem cell research alone

The U.S. Supreme Court declined Monday to enter the emotionally-charged debate over stem cell research, refusing to hear an appeal centered on the issue of federal government funding.The top U.S. court did not give a reason for its decision, which ends the long judicial saga over President Barack Obama's 2009 executive order lifting restrictions on financing imposed by his predecessor George W. Bush.The appeal had come from two researchers working with adult cells rather than embryonic stem cell

TechnologyJan. 8, 2013

Samsung puts Q4 operating profit at 8.8 trillion won

Samsung Electronics Co., the world's biggest technology firm by revenue, estimated Tuesday it had posted a record operating profit of 8.8 trillion won ($8.3 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2012, and is poised to log record annual earnings on the back of its smartphone dominance.The preliminary estimate represents an 88.8 percent jump from a revised operating profit of 4.66 trillion won a year earlier, Samsung said in a regulatory filing. It is also a 9.2 percent increase from the previous thre

IndustryJan. 8, 2013

Economic power shifts to emerging markets: report

The protracted economic slump in developed countries is accelerating the shift of global economic power to emerging markets, industry sources said. A recent report from the International Monetary Fund said the gross domestic product of emerging markets is forecast to increase to $44.1 trillion this year, surpassing $42.7 trillion of the developed countries for the first time in history. The outlook for GDP came as developed countries cut government expenditure more than emerging economies. The r

Jan. 7, 2013