STX to sell 43.1% stake in energy unit to Orix

STX Group said on Tuesday it has signed a contact with Orix Corp., a Japanese financial company, to sell a 43.1 percent stake in STX Energy, the group’s energy business arm. Under the deal, the group aims to raise 360.1 billion won ($330 million).Despite a hefty sell-off, STX Group will continue to keep its management rights in the affiliate with a more than 50 percent stake, the company said. The main businesses of STX Energy are power plant construction and energy development. Orix has investe

IndustryOct. 31, 2012

Samsung, LG win top spots on Consumer Reports

A smartphone produced by Samsung Electronics Co. and household appliances made by LG Electronics Inc. have been chosen as the best products of the year by an authoritative U.S. magazine, industry sources said Wednesday.Consumer Reports gave the South Korean tech giant’s Galaxy S3 smartphone the highest marks out of similar products tested.Samsung’s two-door refrigerator and 32-inch and 60-inch liquid crystal display TVs and 60- to 64-inch plasma display panel TVs also received the highest rankin

IndustryOct. 31, 2012

Nation’s IT giants to hire more overseas Koreans

The nation’s big enterprises and information technology-oriented venture firms will hold a job fair in Silicon Valley in the United States in November to recruit overseas Koreans.The job fair, slated for Nov. 12-13 in Santa Clara, California, is part of the first premier technology conference organized by the Ministry of Knowledge Economy.Among the estimated 30 sponsors and recruiters are Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics, SK Hynix and Asiana Airlines.Ministry officials said the recruitment ta

IndustryOct. 31, 2012

Shares gain on institutional buying

South Korean stocks closed 0.66 percent higher on institutional buying on Wednesday, despite the market fretting over the U.S. presidential election next week, analysts said. The local currency gathered ground against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index finished up 12.50 points to 1,912.08. Trading volume was moderate at 391.7 million shares worth 3.76 trillion won ($3.44 billion) with gainers outpacing losers 562 to 257. “The new U.S. administration will most likely

Oct. 31, 2012

BOK warns against potential outflow of foreign capital

South Korea’s central bank on Wednesday warned against an increase in volatility of cross-border capital movements as the prolonged economic slowdown could spark a reversal of foreign funds inflows.A series of credit rating upgrades on Korea and quantitative easing by major central banks are helping more foreign capital flow to into Asia’s fourth-largest economy, making the won appreciate more than 5 percent to the U.S. dollar so far this year.The warning came as risks of a sudden reversal of fo

Oct. 31, 2012

S-Oil’s earnings rise 25% on prices, margin

S-Oil, the nation’s third-largest oil refiner, said on Tuesday that its operating profit rose 24.8 percent to 518.4 billion won ($475.2 million) in the third quarter on-year thanks to rising international oil prices and improved refining margin.The company’s revenue increased 8.9 percent to 8.5 trillion won and net profit surged 625.5 percent to 456.1 billion won for the three months up to Sept. 30 compared to the same period last year.By business area, the company’s oil refining and petrochemic

IndustryOct. 31, 2012

More Koreans spending heavily overseas

More South Koreans are swiping their cards outside the country. Overseas credit card spending is increasing every year, according to Korea Customs Service on Wednesday, and over 60,000 spent more than $20,000 (21.8 million won) last year.The biggest spenders reached 63,727 in number in 2011, a jump of 16.9 percent compared to 2010 and 64 percent compared to 2009, when the won-dollar exchange rate hit the ceiling right after the global financial crisis, KCS’s report on 2008-2011 credit card spend

Oct. 31, 2012

Peers are influential online as in person

Peers are influential when it comes to alcohol and drug use, and they are just as influential online as they are in person, U.S. researchers suggest. Sarah Stoddard and colleagues at the University of Michigan School of Public Health in Ann Arbor conducted an online survey of 3,447 of U.S. adults ages 18-24. The survey found those who thought their parents and peers would be upset if they viewed images of their drinking and drug use online were less likely to drink. In addition, young adults who

TechnologyOct. 31, 2012

'Self-healing' concrete in real-world test

A "self-healing" concrete that can patch up cracks by itself is ready for outdoor testing, researchers at Delft Technical University in the Netherlands say.The experimental concrete contains limestone-producing bacteria that are activated by corrosive rainwater working its way into the structure, they said.Developed by microbiologist Henk Jonkers and concrete technologist Eric Schlangen, the material could potentially increase the service life of the concrete with considerable cost savings as a

TechnologyOct. 31, 2012

Single junk-food meal can damage arteries

A single junk-food meal -- rich in saturated fat -- is detrimental to the health of the arteries, researchers in Canada said. Dr. Anil Nigam and colleagues at the University of Montreal-affiliated EPIC Center of the Montreal Heart Institute, compared the effects of a junk-food meal and a typical Mediterranean meal on the vascular endothelium, the inner lining of the blood vessels. Endothelial function is closely linked to the long-term risk of developing coronary artery disease.The study involve

TechnologyOct. 31, 2012

Korean digital firm SocialLink to merge into Weber Shandwick

Weber Shandwick, a global public relations firm, announced that Korean digital and social media communications specialist, SocialLink, has signed to merge its business into Weber Shandwick Korea on Wednesday. The owner and of SocialLink and digital communications specialist, Juny Lee, will take the seat of vice president of Weber Shandwick Korea. Lee said that the firm would continue to provide services directly to all of SocialLink’s existing clients. The merger expected to expand Weber Shandwi

TechnologyOct. 31, 2012

Seoul shares open higher on blue-chip gains

South Korean stocks started higher on Wednesday, fueled by gains in blue-chip exporters, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) increased 0.53 percent, or 10.02 points, to 1909.60 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Shares gathered ground across the board, with market bellwether Samsung Electronics rising 0.46 percent and its smaller rival LG Electronics gaining 0.4 percent. Leading automaker Hyundai Motor climbed 0.67 percent.The U.S. stock market was closed on Tue

Oct. 31, 2012