Samsung to stop suits seeking to block Apple sales in Europe

   Samsung Electronics Co. will withdraw patent lawsuits seeking to block sales of Apple Inc. products as part of litigation over the use of its technology in European countries, the company said Tuesday.    "Samsung has decided to withdraw our injunction requests against Apple on the basis of our standard essential patents pending in European courts, in the interest of protecting consumer choice," the Suwon, South Korea-based company said in an e-mailed statement Tuesday. The decision on Europe

TechnologyDec. 18, 2012

Apple’s case vs. Samsung snubbed by U.S. court

Apple Inc.’s request for a U.S. sales ban on more than two dozen devices manufactured by Samsung Electronics was rejected by a federal judge, reports from the U.S. said on Tuesday.According to U.S. district judge Lucy Koh, the iPhone maker failed to establish that consumer demand for Samsung products was driven by technology that Samsung stole from Apple.In her ruling, Koh said that “it wasn’t in the public interest to bar Samsung devices because the infringing elements constituted a limited par

IndustryDec. 18, 2012

POSCO E&C wins $400m order from Vietnam

POSCO Engineering & Construction Co., a construction arm of South Korea’s largest steelmaker POSCO, said Tuesday it has signed a $400 million deal to build a steel processing facility in Vietnam.Under the contract with Formosa Ha Tinh Steel Corp., an affiliate of Vietnam’s Formosa Group, POSCO E&C will build a raw material handling facility in a steel complex, located in northern Ha Tinh Province, with an annual production capacity of 7 million tons of steel, said the company.Imported materials

Dec. 18, 2012

Shares gain on foreign buying

South Korean stocks closed 0.51 percent higher on Tuesday on the back of foreigners’ buying, but the gain was capped due to remaining corporate uncertainties, analysts said. The local currency fell slightly against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 10.02 points to finish at 1,993.09. Trading volume was moderate at 446.9 million shares worth 4.55 trillion won ($4.24 billion) with gainers outnumbering losers 426 to 384.“We’ve seen steady foreign inflows in rece

Dec. 18, 2012

Doosan Heavy receives W600b order from India

Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Co., South Korea’s leading power equipment maker, said Tuesday that it has clinched a 600 billion won ($559.5 million) deal to build two power plant boilers in India.Under the deal with NTPC Ltd., India’s state-run energy service company, Doosan Heavy’s local unit, Doosan Power Systems India Pvt., will supply two 800-megawatt steam generator boilers to be built for its Lara plant in the central part of India, said the company.Doosan Heavy already won a cont

Dec. 18, 2012

Weaker yen gives mixed forecast on local stock market

Major foreign investment banks anticipate the Japanese currency will trade lower against the U.S. dollar in 2013, a report showed Tuesday, while local analysts are mixed about the impact of a weaker yen on the local stock market.Thirteen global investment banks expect the yen will change hands at 81.62 yen against the U.S. dollar in the first quarter of next year, down 1.8 percent from 80.16 yen suggested a month earlier, according to the report by the Korea Center for International Finance.The

Dec. 18, 2012

Carriers brace for heavy election traffic

One day ahead of Wednesday’s presidential election, the nation’s three major mobile carriers stepped up intensive mobile traffic control on Tuesday to prevent possible data traffic surges and cyberterrorism. KT, SK Telecom and LG Uplus expect that mobile traffic may be overloaded on election day, as the use of mobile social networking services will likely soar as people use smartphones to check out real-time ballot counts and election results.Their election protection plans include expanding the

TechnologyDec. 18, 2012

Korean unit to develop midsize sedan for Renault

Renault Samsung Motors may develop a midsize model for Renault Group, aiming for an early 2015 launch, a local news daily reported Tuesday. But the carmaker immediately said “nothing has yet been decided.”Under the “Renault Samsung mid-term plan,” which was cited by the Chosun Ilbo, the Korean unit of the France-based Renault will be responsible exclusively for developing the upper body of the new version of its flagship SM5 sedan. If realized, it would be the first time for Renault Samsung, whi

IndustryDec. 18, 2012

Korea’s household debt is manageable: Goldman Sachs

South Korea’s household debts, though standing at an alarming level, are under control as a stabilizing housing market and regulatory steps to stem their growth have capped risks, a global investment bank said Tuesday. Goldman Sachs said in a report that the growth pace of home-backed lending here has slowed in recent months, curbing the overall rise in household liabilities, according to the Korea Center for International Finance. The country’s household credit, which includes credit purchases

Dec. 18, 2012

MS, PC room owners in licensing dispute

Conflict between Microsoft Korea and the owners of PC rooms nationwide continued to escalate on Tuesday as both sides argued over the illegal use of the latest Windows 8 software.Microsoft claims that at least 700 PC room operators, which are also known as “PC bang” in Korea, are using its recently released operating system without paying the necessary fees.However, an association of PC room owners called the Korea Internet Cultural Contents Service Association rejected the charge claiming that

IndustryDec. 18, 2012

Credit card spending up 9.2 percent in Oct.

South Korea’s credit card spending climbed 9.2 percent in October from a year earlier due to rising consumer prices and improved employment, a trade association said Tuesday.Purchases made with credit cards totaled 43.6 trillion won ($40.6 billion) in October, up 3.7 trillion won from the previous year, according to the Credit Finance Association.On the other hand, transactions made with plastics edged down 4.9 percent on-month in October, as local credit card spending surged temporally in Septe

Dec. 18, 2012

International court acquits Congo rebel leader

The International Criminal Court has acquitted a Congolese militia leader of all charges of leading fighters who destroyed a strategic village in eastern Congo in 2003, hacking to death and raping some 200 people including women and children. Tuesday's acquittal of Mathieu Ngudjolo is only the second verdict in the court's 10-year history and the first time it has cleared a suspect.Prosecutor Fatou Besnouda immediately indicated she would appeal and ask for Ngudjolo to be kept in custody.Ngudjol

IndustryDec. 18, 2012