Orders for new ships won by South Korean shipbuilders have plunged over 50 percent from a year earlier so far this year though the country continues to maintain its dominance in the global ship market, the government said Tuesday.In the first nine months of the year, South Korean shipbuilders reaped orders for 5.2 million compensated gross tons, worth $18.9 billion, according to the Ministry of Knowledge Economy.The figures for total weight and monetary value dropped 58.6 percent and 56.9 percen

Oct. 16, 2012

Foreign employees at Samsung Electronics Co., the world’s biggest maker of smartphones, memory chips and flat-panel televisions, totaled more than 1,000, industry watchers said Tuesday.The figure is almost twice the roughly 600 foreign headcount from early 2009, mirroring the company’s growing presence in the global job market, they said.The increase is also in line with Samsung’s heightened brand value. The company is ranked the world’s ninth best global brand with its brand value coming to $32

IndustryOct. 16, 2012

Foreign currency deposits at South Korean banks rose to a fresh high in September on gains in the trade surplus and a rise in corporate sales of overseas bonds, the central bank said Tuesday.Outstanding foreign currency-denominated deposits held by local residents reached a record $39.26 billion as of the end of September, up $3.43 billion from the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea.Residents includes individual citizens and firms but does not cover foreign nationals with residency s

Oct. 16, 2012

Transactions among affiliates of large business groups in South Korea have increased over the past year with one in five firms making over 70 percent of their sales with sister firms, a report showed Tuesday.According to the report by Chaebol.com, which tracks the country’s conglomerates, 211 or 18.1 percent of 1,165 firms affiliated with the country’s top 30 business groups had over 70 percent of their sales with their sister companies last year.The figure is up from 190 and 11.1 percent a year

IndustryOct. 16, 2012

South Korean stocks rose 0.83 percent on Tuesday as investor sentiment got a boost from upbeat China and U.S. economic data as well as overnight gains on Wall Street, analysts said. The local currency gained against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index climbed 15.95 points to 1,941.54. Trading volume was moderate at 516.9 million shares worth 3.64 trillion won ($3.29 billion), with gainers outnumbering decliners 470 to 340.“It was mostly external factors, such as slowi

Oct. 16, 2012

Shinsegae Group said Tuesday that it will acquire a controlling stake in Central City, the landlord of its department store’s outlet in Gangnam, southern Seoul, in a bid to fend off competition from rival retailers.Shinsegae, which recently sold off its Incheon outlet to Lotte Department Store, said it will buy a 60-percent stake worth over 1 trillion won ($903 billion) in Central City from four Malaysia-based investment companies owned by a foundation of the Unification Church.Spanning over 59,

IndustryOct. 16, 2012

Twelve Tesco outlets in Britain will begin regular sales of Korean-made food products such as bulgogi sauce, a pomegranate-flavored health drink that contains vinegar, chocolate-dipped snacks called Pepero, soy sauce, ramyeon and soju on Thursday. Forty-nine food items from 19 Korean companies, chosen from a wider range of products that were temporarily displayed at a Tesco store in London, have earned regular spots on the shelves of 11 more stores thanks to the excellent consumer response, Home

IndustryOct. 16, 2012

Only 17.5 percent hired from within companyThree out of 10 heads of institutions run by government agencies were found to be former officials of those same agencies.Among 286 public companies run by some 30 ministries and other state-run agencies, 82 executives were found to have, at one point, worked for one of the ministries or agencies, according to Alio, a website compiling management information on publicly run firms on Tuesday. These former officials accounted for almost 30 percent of the

IndustryOct. 16, 2012

The International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (AIPPI) said on Tuesday it will hold its 43rd annual congress in COEX, Seoul, between Oct. 20-23.“The World Intellectual Property Congress is one of the biggest intellectual property events in the world. In the upcoming Seoul congress, around 2,000 intellectual property professionals from over 80 countries are expected to attend,’’ AIPPI Korea, the organizer of the 2012 Congress, said in a statement. High-ranking officials

Oct. 16, 2012

The death of a spouse is one of the most tragic events in a person’s life, often causing an enormous amount of stress andaffecting even the health of the surviving partner. Other extremely traumatic events, new research finds out, can literally break the heart of an individual. The research, done at the University Clinic of Rostock in Germany, studied how heart-breaking experiences affect the heart conditions of subjects. Distressed patients’ hearts force the body to pour out adrenaline and othe

TechnologyOct. 16, 2012

The American Academy of Dermatology says its new video demonstrates how a U.S. adult can check his or her own skin for skin cancer. Dr. Thomas E. Rohrer, a board-certified dermatologist in Chestnut Hill, Mass., said current estimates show 20 percent of U.S. adults will be diagnosed with skin cancer in their lifetime, so it‘s important to be familiar with your skin, especially moles.“Checking your skin for skin cancer only requires your eyes and a mirror,” Rohrer said in a statement. “Examining y

TechnologyOct. 16, 2012