Calif. passes 'self-driving' cars bill

California's Senate passed a bill to create guidelines for autonomous vehicles' -- self-driving cars -- to be tested and operated in the state, officials said.The bill will now go to the state Assembly for consideration next month, the Los Angeles Times reported Monday.The passage in the Senate comes as Google Inc., Caltech and other groups are busy developing vehicles that use radar, video camera

MobilityMay 23, 2012

OECD trims Korean growth outlook to 3.3%

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said Tuesday that South Korea’s economy will slow to 3.3 percent in 2012 from 3.6 percent in 2011 due to the deepening European debt woes.But the OECD said in its economy outlook report that the Korean economy will pick up next year to achieve 4 percent growth.In terms of global recovery, the Paris-based OECD said that it is slowly regaining momentum and that the world economy will grow by 3.4 percent in 2012 and 4.2 percent by 2013. It w

May 22, 2012

Samsung C&T wins $726m orders

Samsung C&T Corp., one of South Korea’s leading construction and trading companies, said Tuesday it has won three overseas orders worth $726 million.The company said it secured a high-rise development and building remodeling project worth a combined $534 million in Singapore, and a $192 million hotel construction project in Mongolia.The two orders in Singapore involve construction in the Marina Center region in the city state’s central business district.The company is already engaged in 12 other

May 22, 2012

LG 3-D TV wins excellent reviews

LG Electronics Inc.’s 2012 Cinema 3-D smart TVs have received excellent reviews from European information technology media outlets, industry sources said Tuesday.Sources said that Britain-based CNET media named the South Korean consumer giant’s 47-inch LM960V model its “Editor’s Choice” for its precise contrast, viewer-friendly recreation of vivid colors and smart functionality as well as three-dimensional picture quality.It added that the very thin bezel enhances the overall refinement of the T

IndustryMay 22, 2012

Hyundai Motor Group denies rumors on steel units’ merger

Hyundai Motor Group dismissed the rumors that Hyundai Steel and Hyundai Hysco, two of the conglomerate’s seven subsidiaries, will merge.In their regulatory filing on the Korea Exchange, the two Hyundai units also denied the merger rumors, respectively. They said the news was “groundless.”Stock prices of the two companies fluctuated during the trading session on Tuesday, hit by the speculation that steel producer Hyundai Steel and steel sheet products manufacturer Hyundai Hysco were pushing for b

IndustryMay 22, 2012

KOTRA hosts large exhibition of Korean products in Mideast

Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency announced on Tuesday that it had launched the largest-ever exhibition of Korean products in Abu Dhabi, the capital of United Arab Emirates. Titled “Made in Korea UAE 2012,” the exhibition takes place at Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company. The three-day exhibition introduces a wide variety of products ranging from healthcare equipment to excavator. Infopia Company, IR Electric Company, Doosan Infracore Company, Caravan Engineered Structures Inc., Korea

May 22, 2012

Samsung Electronics fined for irregular subcontracting

The Fair Trade Commission said Tuesday that it had fined Samsung Electronics 1.6 billion won ($1.4 million) for irregular practices in its transactions with subcontractors.This is the second time that Samsung Electronics has been fined for unfair subcontracting, as the company was fined 11.5 billion won by the antitrust regulator four years ago.According to the FTC, the memory chipmaker engaged in 28,574 cases of irregular subcontracting, equivalent to 76.3 billion won between 2008 and 2010.A to

IndustryMay 22, 2012

Shares jump 1.64 percent on global market gains

South Korean stocks surged 1.64 percent Tuesday following Wall Street and European market gains and bargain hunting for big caps, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index jumped 29.56 points to 1,828.69, in the second straight session of gains following last week’s sharp drop caused by eurozone jitters.Trading volume was moderate at 416 million shares worth 4.79 trillion won ($4.11 billion), with gainers outpacing losers 664 t

May 22, 2012

STX shares rebound on expectation of liquidity recovery

Shares of STX Group subsidiaries rebounded for a second day on Tuesday upon news that STX Heavy Industries will receive early payments for its construction project in Iraq which are expected to ease the conglomerate’s financial troubles. STX Heavy Industries is set to receive more than 700 billion won ($601 million) about a month earlier than previously scheduled for the construction of a diesel power plant in Iraq, according to company officials.About $384 million will be wired from Standard Ch

IndustryMay 22, 2012

Korea’s external debt tops record $400b

South Korea’s external debt rose to a record high in the first quarter mainly due to overseas investors buying local bonds and banks’ foreign borrowing, the central bank said Tuesday.The country’s external debt totaled $411.4 billion as of the end of March, up $13 billion from the previous quarter, according to a report by the Bank of Korea. The country held $275.1 billion in long-term foreign debt, with short term debt totaling 136.3 billion.The size of South Korea’s debt is not a source of con

May 22, 2012

Korea should recoup Woori investment soon: regulator

More than 10 years after South Korea spent $11 billion bailing out its weakest banks, taxpayers are still waiting to get their money back. It’s time to fix that, says Kim Seok-dong, the nation’s top financial regulator. The government needs to push ahead with its third attempt to cut its 57 percent stake in Woori Finance Holdings Co., the company created in 2001 by combining the failing banks, as quickly as possible to recoup that money and arrest its eroding value, said Kim, who is chairman of

May 22, 2012

More than 5m people own Korean stocks

More than 5 million people, about a fifth of Korea’s economically active population, were investing in stocks as of late last year, according to data released by the Korea Exchange on Tuesday.Some 5.28 million people were investing in stocks in Korea, up 10.2 percent from 4.79 million a year before. The new figure accounts for 10.6 percent of the country’s population and 21.2 percent of its economically active population.“The number of stock investors hit record high due to the stock market boom

May 22, 2012

OECD cuts Korea's growth forecast to 3.3 pct for 2012

South Korea's economy is expected to grow at a slower pace than previously anticipated this year largely due to a weak global recovery and sluggish trade conditions, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) said Tuesday.In its annual outlook report on South Korea, the Paris-based club of industrialized economies said Asia's fourth-largest economy will likely pull off 3.3 pe

May 22, 2012