Most Popular
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Heavy snow alerts issued in greater Seoul area, Gangwon Province; over 20 cm of snow seen in Seoul
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Seoul blanketed by heaviest Nov. snow, with more expected
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Seoul snowfall now third heaviest on record
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NewJeans to terminate contract with Ador
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Samsung shakes up management, commits to reviving chip business
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Heavy snow of up to 40 cm blankets Seoul for 2nd day
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How $70 funeral wreaths became symbol of protest in S. Korea
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Hybe consolidates chairman Bang Si-hyuk’s regime with leadership changes
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Why cynical, 'memeified' makeovers of kids' characters are so appealing
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BOK makes surprise 2nd rate cut to boost growth
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KTX breaks down in tunnel
A high-speed train on its way from Seoul to Busan broke down for 68 minutes in a tunnel on Friday, news reports said. The KTX train stopped running suddenly near Busan between 3:42 p.m. and 4:50 p.m. while passing through Geumjeong Tunnel, the country’s longest, just 5 minutes from Busan station. A mechanical malfunction is believed to have been the cause but further inspection is necessary, a spokesman of Korea Railroad Corp. said.All the electric devices including air conditioning system stopp
July 27, 2012
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Woori Financial sale falls though
The sale of Woori Finance Holdings fell through on Friday as none of the expected bidders made a bid. The state-controlled financial company failed to be privatized as no one applied for the preliminary bids for the 57 percent government stake in Woori. KB Financial Group decided not to make a bid two days ahead of the deadline for preliminary bidding, and so did Kyobo Life Insurance, the Korean Federation of Community Credit Cooperatives, which had considered forming consortia for the bid, and
July 27, 2012
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Lee calls for efforts to prevent blackouts
President Lee Myung-bak instructed state bodies managing the electricity supply on Friday to cope with rising demand so there is no repeat of last year’s rolling blackouts.Lee made the remarks during his visit to Korea Power Exchange in southern Seoul to check whether the electricity supply was stable.There have been concerns that the nation could fail to meet soaring power demand as electricity demand spikes due to scorching temperatures. According to news reports, the country’s energy reserve
July 27, 2012
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Shares jump 2.62% on ECB chief’s pledge
South Korean stocks rallied 2.62 percent Friday as cheering remarks by the European Central Bank chief offered investors a sense of reassurance against the persistent eurozone crisis, analysts said. The local currency gathered ground against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 46.69 points to close at 1,805.92. Trading volume was moderate at 393.4 million shares worth 4.54 trillion won ($3.95 billion) with gainers far outstripping losers 641 to 186.The ECB Presid
July 27, 2012
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Food cluster to open in North Jeolla Province
The Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries announced on Friday plans to establish Korea National Food Cluster in North Jeolla Province by 2015. The 3.58-square-kilometer cluster to open in Iksan, named FOODPOLIS, will focus on boosting research and development in the food industry and expanding exports and developing related culture, ministry officials said.It aims to be a new hub for the global food market, said officials at the Agriculture Ministry’s Korean National Food Cluste
IndustryJuly 27, 2012
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Current account surplus hits record high in June
Korea’s current account surplus widened to a record high in June as imports declined amid falling oil prices and the bleaker economic outlook, the central bank said Friday.The current account surplus reached $5.84 billion in June, up from a revised $3.57 billion the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea. The current account is the broadest measure of cross-border trade.The June data marked the largest surplus ever and the fifth straight month of the surplus run, according to the BOK.The
July 27, 2012
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NHN introduces translation app
NHN, the operator of Korea’s largest search engine Naver, has developed a proprietary voice-recognition application that enables users to search for foreign language expressions.Android-based smartphone consumers can access and download the app, named “Link,” which will introduce a list of foreign expressions after they speak into their phone in Korean.When users say, for instance, “hello” or “could you check in my luggage, please” in Korean, the Link app will translate and show how to say the p
TechnologyJuly 27, 2012
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Kia sees earnings surge by 25 percent
Kia Motors reported an operating profit of 2.3 trillion won ($2 billion) during the first half of 2012, up 25 percent on the same period last year.The automaker also saw its sales increase by 9.5 percent to 24.3 trillion won and net profit rise by 10.4 percent to 2.2 trillion won, posting all-time high figures on its financial statements.Despite global economic uncertainties, Kia recorded sales growth of 17.8 percent in the United States, 24.5 percent in Europe and 16.3 percent China.It sold 289
IndustryJuly 27, 2012
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Samsung Electronics posts record Q2 profits
Net reaches $4.5b as smartphones remain growth driver, but chip profits continue slideSamsung Electronics, the world’s largest tech company in terms of revenue, posted record earnings in the second quarter of this year, despite the global economic slowdown.The tech giant posted net profit of 5.2 trillion won ($4.5 billion) from April to June this year, up 48 percent from 3.5 trillion won a year earlier. Its operating profit reached 6.7 trillion won, up 79 percent from 3.8 trillion won, with reve
IndustryJuly 27, 2012
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Orange juices help keeping beauty
A study found that orange juices help become more beautiful.The research conducted by 200 beauty industry workers shows that a daily glass of orange juice improves skin, hair and nails because of the containments like vitamin C, potassium and folic acid.Yellow pigments of vitamin C help reducing sun-induced skin damage and improving elasticity of the skin.“Beauty experts are starting to see the benefits of a glass of this nutrient packed product, realizing it isn’t just what you put on your bod
TechnologyJuly 27, 2012
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Seoul shares jump 2.62 percent on ECB chief's pledge
South Korean stocks rallied 2.62 percent Friday as cheering remarks by the European Central Bank (ECB) chief offered investors a sense of reassurance against the persistent eurozone crisis, analysts said. The local currency gathered ground against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 46.69 points to close at 1,805.92. Trading volume was moderate at 393.4 mil
July 27, 2012
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‘Strange sea creatures?’ Mysterious video released
German wharf-men released a controversial online video about a mysterious discovery. The video features fleshy, tube-shaped objects with tentacles.The video described them as “strange sea creatures,” but some skeptical commenters dismissed them as floating intestines.A writer for Deep Sea News explained that the “double layer of membrane that contains blood vessels, lymph vessels, and nerves and connects the two parts of the small intestine” proves that the mysterious creature is definitely a la
TechnologyJuly 27, 2012
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Seoul shares open higher on Draghi remark
South Korean stocks got off to a strong start Friday, as the eurozone central bank chief's pledge to save the euro boosted investor confidence, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 27.57 points, or 1.55 percent to 1,810.04 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Shares gathered ground across the board, with top-cap Samsung Electronics rising nearly 2 percent and le
July 27, 2012
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Samsung Q2 net jumps 48 percent on brisk smartphone sales
Samsung Electronics Co., the world's largest maker of computer memory chips and smartphones, said Friday its second-quarter earnings jumped 48 percent from a year earlier, powered by strong sales of smartphones.Net profit reached a record 5.2 trillion won (US$4.5 billion) in the April-June period, compared with a net income of 3.5 trillion a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing.Sa
IndustryJuly 27, 2012
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Korea’s GDP growth slows to 0.4% on-quarter
Chances of annual growth below 3% higher, experts sayKorea’s second-quarter growth more than halved from the preceding three months as the eurozone debt crisis dampened exports, raising concerns that the country’s annual growth might fall under 3 percent.The fourth-largest economy in Asia grew 0.4 percent on-quarter in the April-June period, slowing from a 0.9 percent in the first quarter, the Bank of Korea said Thursday.“The growth of consumer spending slowed while facility investment and expor
July 26, 2012
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French action could hit Renault Samsung, GM Korea
Renault Samsung Motors and GM Korea could be severely hit by proposed French government action to invoke “safeguard” measures against cars produced in Korea, auto industry insiders said Thursday. The French government notified the Korean government of its move to take issue with vehicle trade imbalance and other matters under the Korea-EU Free Trade Agreement.“We’ve been informed of their policy through the French Embassy on July 24,” said an official of the Foreign Affairs and Trade Ministry.“T
IndustryJuly 26, 2012
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SKT trials VoLTE service for submarines
Korean telecommunications giant SK Telecom said Thursday that it had a successful trial run of new sub-ocean voice-over LTE wireless service, or HD Voice service, for the first time in the nation’s history. A successful test run of the service took place aboard the Seogwipo Submarine on Thursday, about 40 meters below sea level off the coast of Jeju Island, according to the company. The vessel has been providing outings for tourists since the late 1980s.SK Telecom said it used an LTE transmitter
TechnologyJuly 26, 2012
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SK Hynix bounces back into black in Q2
SK Hynix posted 2.63 trillion won ($2.29 billion) in sales and 23 billion won in operating profit for the second quarter, bouncing back into the black for the first time in four quarters.In a quarterly regulatory filing, the chipmaker said on Thursday that its sales figure was up 10 percent from the first quarter and its operating margin recorded 1 percent, its officials said.Bit shipments and the average selling price for the firm’s dynamic random access memory both rose 7 percent from April-Ju
IndustryJuly 26, 2012
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Auto exports expected to log solid gains in H2
Korea’s auto exports are likely to post a solid increase in the second half of this year despite unfavorable overseas market conditions, industry officials said Thursday.Domestic demand is expected to remain weak for the rest of the year, but exports should continue to do well, carmakers, auto parts companies and local automobile industry associations said in a meeting hosted by the Ministry of Knowledge Economy.“Eurozone fiscal woes and a slowdown in growth in China and the United States have a
MobilityJuly 26, 2012
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Hyundai Mobis fined for abusing suppliers
Hyundai Mobis, the nation’s largest auto parts maker, was slapped with 2.95 billion won ($2.57 million) in fines and corrective orders for demanding lower prices from its subcontractors, the state-run antitrust watchdog said Thursday. According to the Fair Trade Commission, Hyundai Mobis, a unit of Hyundai Motor Group, abused its market dominance in demanding its smaller suppliers lower their prices between 2008 and 2011.The company selected suppliers that promised the lowest prices and then dem
IndustryJuly 26, 2012
