Korea’s car export growth slows in April

South Korea’s car export growth slowed in April as overseas sales by smaller local carmakers contracted from a year earlier, a government report showed Tuesday.Overseas vehicle shipments reached 276,639 units last month, up a modest 3.9 percent gain from 264,934 units sold a year earlier, the report by the Ministry of Knowledge Economy said.The latest tally marks the second month in a row export growth numbers fell compared to the previous month, it said.In February, exports surged 51.2 percent

May 8, 2012

Investment by 600 major firms to hit record high in 2012

The combined investment of the nation’s 600 major enterprises is projected to reach an all-time high this year despite uncertainties surrounding the business environment at home and abroad.According to a survey by the Federation of Korean Industries, local enterprises including Samsung Electronics and Hyundai Motor plan to invest 140.7 trillion won ($124.5 billion) ― the largest scale in history ― in 2012, up 12.1 percent a year earlier.“The survey shows that uncertainties like the eurozone debt

IndustryMay 8, 2012

Samsung, IT firms to make wireless charger

Joint project to develop device that charges remotelySamsung Electronics said Tuesday it has joined forces with other IT giants like Qualcomm and SK Telecom to develop a different wireless charger from the current device-on-pad method.The world’s largest maker of smartphones said it has formed a group called the Alliance for Wireless Power (A4WP) to introduce the resonant wireless battery charger. Members include Germany’s Peiker Acustic, U.S.-based accessory firm Ever Win International, furnitu

IndustryMay 8, 2012

Shares rise on U.S., European gains

South Korean stocks closed 0.54 percent higher Tuesday as investor sentiment got a boost from gains in U.S. and European markets, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark KOSPI moved up 10.57 points to 1,967.01, a turnaround from a three-session losing streak. Trading volume was moderate at 484 million shares worth 4.10 trillion won ($3.61 billion), with gainers outpacing losers 544 to 276.Market watchers said investors were buoyed by overall gains in the U.S.

May 8, 2012

ABS issuance surges 63.8 percent in Q1

The issuance of asset-backed securities in South Korea surged 63.8 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier, led mostly by state-run firms, the country’s financial regulator said Tuesday.ABS sales by local financial firms and mortgage agencies totaled 8.94 trillion won ($7.86 billion) in the January-March period, compared with 5.46 trillion won the previous year, according to the Financial Supervisory Service.The spike came as public firm Korea Land and Housing Corp. and Korea Housing Fi

May 8, 2012

Korea to crack down on rip-offs at Yeosu Expo

A team of government agencies will monitor for exorbitant accommodation prices during the EXPO 2012 Yeosu Korea, which kicks off its three-month run on Saturday. Eight governmental organizations, including the Fair Trade Commission, Yeosu City and the National Tax Service, formed an inspection team which checked on Wednesday and Friday accommodation throughout Yeosu City, announced The Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affaires on Tuesday. The team examined the sanitary conditions of 50 l

IndustryMay 8, 2012

Lotte, Shinsegae eye ET Land

Retail rivals mulling takeover of electronic goods chainLotte Shopping and E-mart revealed on Tuesday intentions to buy ET Land, an electronic goods retail chain. Lotte Shopping said that it is examining the takeover but nothing is decided yet, following Korea Exchange’s call to confirm the spreading market speculation. “Detailed decisions will be made public within a month regarding the buy,” said the company. Shinsegae Group, which was also rumored to be eying ET Land, answered that the story

IndustryMay 8, 2012

Yahoo CEO apologizes for bogus degree

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) ― Yahoo CEO Scott Thompson is sorry for allowing an inaccuracy about his education to appear in his official biography, but not remorseful enough to heed calls for him to resign.Thompson apologized for the uproar caused by the misinformation in a memo sent Monday to the troubled Internet company’s employees. Yahoo Inc. provided a copy of the memo to the Associated Press.The memo didn’t offer any explanation why Thompson’s bio has periodically listed a bachelor’s degree in comp

IndustryMay 8, 2012

Black pepper fights formation of fat cells

Researchers in South Korea say they are unlocking the secret to why black pepper fights fat.Soo-Jong Um, Ji-Cheon Jeong and colleagues at Sejong University in Seoul said black pepper and the black pepper plant were used for centuries in traditional Eastern medicine to treat gastrointestinal distress, pain, inflammation and other health disorders.Despite the long medicinal history, scientists know

TechnologyMay 8, 2012

Reducing calories may preserve memory

Cutting back on calories is a good idea to protect the heart, and U.S. researchers say eating less also may reduce a person's risk of memory loss. Yonas Geda of the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Ariz., and colleagues looked at the association between eating and those with mild cognitive impairment.The researchers compared eating habits and diagnosis of memory loss in 1,000 participants, ages 70 and o

TechnologyMay 8, 2012

Top business groups take 60% of stock market cap

Listed companies belonging to South Korea’s top 10 conglomerates account for nearly 60 percent of the local stock market’s total capitalization, a report showed Monday.The Korea Exchange report showed the aggregate market capitalization of the affiliates stood at 737.17 trillion won ($648.91 billion) as of end-April, up 14.72 percent from the end of 2011. The figure translates into 59.21 percent of the stock market capitalization, up 3.21 percentage points from the end of last year. Samsung Grou

May 7, 2012

Korea’s IT exports drop 9.4% in April

South Korea’s exports of information technology products contracted 9.4 percent on-year in April due to slowdowns in the U.S. and Chinese economies and lingering eurozone woes, the government said Monday.The country shipped $12.04 billion worth of IT products last month, compared with $13.28 billion a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Knowledge Economy. However, the country posted a trade surplus of $5.72 billion as imports also fell 5.3 percent to $6.31 billion. April’s outbound shipme

May 7, 2012