The Korea Herald

Economy to bottom out in Q1: Bahk

Economic growth is likely to be the weakest in the first three months of this year as external uncertainties will peak in the period, Finance Minister Bahk Jae-wan said Monday. “Growth uncertainties are seen to be significant in the first quarter. The risk from the European debt crisis is likely to ease in the second and third quarters,” Bahk told reporters at a news conference.Bahk’s projection comes amid signs of faltering growth. The economy grew 0.4 percent, the least in two years in the Oct

Jan. 30, 2012

Kim breaks Korean equestrian record in Florida

Kim Dong-seon, gold medalist of team equestrian dressage at the Guangzhou Asian Games in 2010, broke the record for Korean contestants at the WC Sunshine Challenge/World Dressage Masters in West Palm Beach, Florida.Kim, third son of Hanwha Group chairman Kim Seung-youn, scored 65.022 points in the grand prix special of WC Sunshin Challenge held Jan. 26-29, placing third.Kim broke the Korean record set by Suh Jung-kyun in 1988. Kim had placed fourth with a score of 64.689 points in the GCDA Opene

IndustryJan. 30, 2012

Kim breaks Korean equestrian record in Florida

Women are better at parking than men: study

Women are better than men when it comes to parking, a recent survey found, reversing the existing idea that men have better spatial awareness.The report by a car parking operator in the United Kingdom studied the parking habits of 450 drivers through CCTV footage and surveyed 2000 more to find that

TechnologyJan. 30, 2012

Women are better at parking than men: study

Quarter of households suffer 'absolute poverty' in 5 years

More than one out of four South Korean households have suffered "absolute poverty" in the past five years with over one third also facing relative difficulties making ends meet, a report showed Monday.According to the report by the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs, 27 percent of some 5,

Jan. 30, 2012

Korea's current account surplus hits $3.96 billion in Dec.

South Korea posted a current account surplus for the 22nd month in December, but the surplus narrowed from the previous month as the service account turned negative due to tourism-related shortfalls, the central bank said Monday. The current account surplus reached US$3.96 billion in December, down

Jan. 30, 2012

Korea Herald iPad app combines news, education

The Korea Herald has recently introduced a new application for the iPad, joining the drive to produce digital news customized for the rapidly growing number of tablet users.The latest mobile version of the country’s leading English daily also offers a multimedia tool for learning and practicing English through news. Harnessing rapidly developing media technologies, the company has been stepping up efforts to provide a variety of multimedia-rich content and improved user experiences.Its news cont

TechnologyJan. 29, 2012

Korea Herald iPad app combines news, education

Herald strengthens mobile news offering

New iPad app latest in efforts to provide multimedia-rich content, better user experiencesSmart phones and tablet PCs have dramatically changed the features of the news industry. A host of media companies around the world have jumped into the digital market to secure a footing in the massive shift toward online and mobile news.The tablet PC market led by Apple and Samsung Electronics is more important for newspapers. While smartphones are restricted by small screens, tablets boast bigger screen

TechnologyJan. 29, 2012

Commerce minister to address AMCHAM

Knowledge Economy Minister Hong Suk-woo will speak about the Korean economy at a luncheon meeting organized by the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea on Jan. 31.After his speech, Hong will field questions from participants in the event that will take place at the Grand Hyatt hotel from noon to 2 p.m.The networking event, which is also open to the press, is 72,000 won for members and 92,000 won for nonmembers at the door. A 10,000 won discount applies to guests who register before noon on Jan.

Jan. 29, 2012

Criticism escalates over SNS censorship

Criticism is escalating over censorship of online social networking sites in Korea after Twitter’s announcement that it will enable certain countries to withhold content if it goes against their law.“Twitter has changed my life over the past year and it was an extraordinary tool that I wanted to thank,” said a Twitter user named Kim Yeo-jin on Sunday. “It’s just sad news for me to hear that Twitter has decided to censor tweets upon specific requests from a country and as a result, I’ve decided t

IndustryJan. 29, 2012

Asia driving force for Lufthansa Cargo

Lufthansa Cargo, a German global cargo airline, plans to expand its presence in Korea and China, forecasting that more than 50 percent of its business will be made in Asia soon. “Forty-seven percent of our business is in Asia and growing,” chairman and CEO of Lufthansa Cargo Karl Ulrich Garnadt told The Korea Herald on Saturday. “Very soon it will be 50 percent. China is the most important market at 20 percent out of the total 100 percent.“We will see air cargo traffic grow by 4.5 percent (world

IndustryJan. 29, 2012

Hana’s forthcoming acquisition of KEB meets challenges

Lender is set to emerge as second-largest financial group by total assetsFriday’s decision by the financial regulator to allow Hana Financial Group take over Korea Exchange Bank is set to impact the financial market in general and the credit card sector in particular, with Hana still to resolve a thorny integration issue. The Financial Services Commission approved Hana’s bid to buy KEB from Lone Star Funds for 3.92 trillion won ($3.5 billion), allowing the U.S.-based fund to exit its eight-year

Jan. 29, 2012

Hana’s forthcoming acquisition of KEB meets challenges

Traditional markets losing vitality amid slow sales

Customers turn to department stores, supermarket chainsSai Sachiko, a Tokyo-based school teacher, includes Namdaemun Market in her “must-see routes” whenever she visits Seoul. “In addition to their quality products, people there, especially middle-aged female merchants, are always energetic and stimulate me in a good way,” she said. “The atmosphere is totally different from Japanese markets. I can feel warmth and affection unique to Korean traditional markets.”Many foreign tourists pick the chea

IndustryJan. 29, 2012

Traditional markets losing vitality amid slow sales

Trade minister stresses need for FTA with China

DAVOS, Switzerland (Yonhap News) ― Korea’s trade minister stressed the need to sign a free trade agreement with China, as the deal will help Seoul attain its goal of becoming a global free trade hub and lure more foreign investment.“As Korea has FTA deals with the U.S. and the European Union, it would be a right move to clinch additional FTAs with China and Japan,” Bark Tae-ho, the country’s new trade minister, said in an interview with Yonhap news agency here on Saturday.“There might be little

Jan. 29, 2012

Trade minister stresses need for FTA with China

Shares likely to settle this week

Korean stocks are expected to lose momentum next week, weighed down by the pessimistic U.S. economic index and credit downgrades of eurozone countries, analysts said Saturday.The benchmark KOSPI inched up 0.8 percent to close at 1,964.83 on Friday on strong foreign buying buoyed by positive corporate earnings and the U.S. Fed’s low-rate pledge. The key index has spiked nearly 100 points over the previous two weeks.World’s largest memory chip maker Samsung Electronics posted 13.7 trillion won ($1

Jan. 29, 2012

Hyundai Mobis net rises, Daewoo E&C turns positive

Hyundai Mobis Co., Korea’s largest auto parts maker, said Friday that its net earnings rose 11.5 percent in 2011 from a year earlier on brisk sales of auto parts amid record sales by local automakers.Net profits came to 3 trillion won ($2.7 billion) last year from 2.7 trillion won in 2010, the company said in a regulatory filing. Sales also rose 18.7 percent on-year to 26.3 trillion won from a year ago, and operating profit gained 6.7 percent to total 2.7 trillion won, the company said.In the me

Jan. 29, 2012

Woori Bank aims for Asia’s top 10 by 2017

Woori Bank, the country’s largest lender by assets, aims to be in the top 10 in Asia, CEO Lee Soon-woo said at the bank’s annual meeting of executives Saturday.“This year will be a challenging one for us as the banking industry is facing major takeovers which would reshuffle the rankings of the top four. We need to be at our best to strengthen fundamentals to become a global bank,” the chief of the state-run bank told his workers. Lee’s comments follow regulator’s approval on Lone Star Fund’s sa

Jan. 29, 2012

Woori Bank aims for Asia’s top 10 by 2017

Korea to beef up FX liquidity conditions

Korea plans to set up a second line of defense for its foreign currency liquidity by prompting local state-run lenders to further secure such liquidity to brace for the eurozone debt crisis, an official said Sunday.The move came as the deepening eurozone debt crisis may squeeze local banks’ foreign currency liquidity situations.“Since late last year, the country’s four state-run lenders have scurried to secure FX liquidity,” said an official at the Financial Services Commission. The four banks m

Jan. 29, 2012

Korea’s public debt nears W800tr

Analysts attribute fast rise to undertaking of numerous public infrastructure projectsKorea’s public sector debt stood at 789.4 trillion won ($702.3 billion) as of September as the government struggled to curb household borrowing, data showed on Sunday. The combined debt owed by the government and state-run enterprises marks a 9.2 percent increase from a year earlier, the Finance Ministry said. The total debt is 2.4 times the government’s 325.4 trillion won budget for this year. The figure place

Jan. 29, 2012

U.S. firms bid to retake luxury car market

U.S. luxury cars manufacturers like Cadillac and Lincoln, respectively run by GM and Ford, are struggling to win back a share of the expanding luxury car market, largely controlled by Japanese and German automakers.These brands, which once embodied the very essence of luxury cars, saw quality decline in the years before the industry crisis, and drivers abandoned them in their droves.Now they must recover their former glory by improving entry-level models, which was not their strong suit, but whi

MobilityJan. 29, 2012

Automakers compete with fuel efficient cars

Korean, foreign firms strive to attract customers with new diesel line-upsCompetition to launch vehicles with high fuel efficiency has been heated in the local automobile market.Among the contenders are Korean carmakers, such as Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors, and major import brands including BMW, Mini, Volkswagen, Nissan and Chrysler.Noticeably, fuel efficient diesel-powered sedans as well as diesel-powered sport utility vehicles are gaining popularity with Korean consumers.Drivers’ priorities

MobilityJan. 29, 2012

Automakers compete with fuel efficient cars