Samsung, Apple eat into RIM’s market share

Research In Motion Ltd.’s BlackBerry smartphone, which lost its No. 4 spot to Apple Inc. in the U.S. in the first half, fell further behind the iPhone maker and market leader Samsung Electronics Co. after new models failed to attract enough users.RIM’s share of U.S. mobile-phone subscribers in the three months through November dropped to 6.5 percent from 7.1 percent in the previous quarter, research firm ComScore Inc. said. Samsung increased to 25.6 percent from 25.3 percent, and Apple consolida

TechnologyJan. 4, 2012

Gloomy projection dominates Q4 earnings

But Samsung, Hyundai, LG buck the trend by posting higher operating incomeKorea’s major companies are expected to post slower earnings in the fourth quarter of last year, hurt by slowing demand amid growing worries over the eurozone debt crisis, data showed Wednesday.According to brokerages’ estimates compiled by financial information provider FnGuide, Korea’s top-ranked business groups such as Samsung are likely to achieve lower-than-expected profits in the forthcoming earnings season. Key fact

IndustryJan. 4, 2012

Grandeur bolsters market share of semi-large cars

The market share of semi-large cars such as the Hyundai Grandeur surged past 10 percent for the first time last year, shrinking that of midsize vehicles.Passenger cars sold by the nation’s five automakers are classified into six segments in terms of size and engine displacement in Korea ― large, semi-large, midsize, semi-midsize, compact and mini-cars.The semi-large segment is comprised of the Grandeur, Renault Samsung SM7, Kia K7 and GM Korea’s Alpheon, which accounted for 10.8 percent of all n

IndustryJan. 4, 2012

Samsung seeks to build new NAND flash plant in China

South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co., the world's largest chipmaker, is seeking to build a new plant in China to produce high-tech NAND flash memory chips, the Seoul government said Wednesday.The move that could lead to technology leaks was filed by Samsung on Dec. 6 and was approved Wednesday by a

IndustryJan. 4, 2012

Local brewery exports ‘bokbunja’ wine to China

Baesangmyun Brewery Co. has recently started exporting wine made with Korean blackberries ― called bokbunja ― to China.The company said Tuesday it clinched a contract worth 200 million won ($174,000) last month with Qingdao Hongbo Import & Export Co., a trading firm, to supply 60,000 bottles of the wine throughout this year. “The deal signifies the upbeat outlook for the Korean alcoholic beverage industry as China is emerging as one of the world’s biggest wine consumers, spurred by the rising in

IndustryJan. 4, 2012

GS E&C aims to triple sales, operating profit by 2020

GS Engineering & Construction Corp. aims to more than triple its sales and operating profit and secure 35 trillion won ($30.4 billion) in overseas orders by 2020 as part of its long-term roadmap to become a global player.Korea’s third-largest builder on Monday unveiled ambitious goals of making 27 trillion won in sales and 2 trillion won in operating profit by 2020, both up more than 330 percent from 2010. Its orders totaled 14 trillion won in 2010. The company said it will also boost internatio

IndustryJan. 4, 2012

Household debt, savings bank woes threaten finance sector

Rising household debt and trouble-laden savings banks pose a threat to Korea’s financial sector, which has long been protected and pampered by government-led bailouts and injections of public funds, analysts said Tuesday. The country’s banks and other financial companies confront a toxic mix of slower global growth and the protracted sovereign debt crisis in Europe, a precarious situation that could potentially increase the chance of bankruptcies here. “Banks handle a lot of loan-related busines

Jan. 4, 2012

Foreign reserves fall for 2nd month in December

South Korea’s foreign exchange reserves declined for a second consecutive month in December as a weaker euro and a softer pound reduced the conversion value of non-dollar assets, the central bank said Tuesday.The country’s foreign reserves reached $306.4 billion last month, down $2.23 billion from the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea. The December reading marked the second straight monthly decline since the foreign reserves hit $310.98 billion in October. “The biggest reason was th

Jan. 4, 2012

SK chairman steps up to normalize management

SK Group chairman Chey Tae-won instructed chief executives of affiliate companies to promptly normalize management on Tuesday, a day after other chaebol chiefs announced their business plans for the new year.The nation’s third largest conglomerate in asset value put off its annual year-end personnel reshuffle and finalizing of investment plans for 2012 as Chey and his younger brother went through prosecutorial investigation on charges of embezzlement to make up for losses in futures trading. Vic

IndustryJan. 3, 2012

Shares end up 2.69 percent on Europe optimism

South Korean stocks jumped 2.69 percent Tuesday as investor sentiment was boosted by better-than-expected European economic data that showed signs of recovery, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark KOSPI jumped 49.04 points to 1,875.41. Trading volume was heavy at 437.9 million shares worth 4.8 trillion won ($4.2 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 572 to 261.“Positive economic data in Europe provided a boost to a new-year rally,” said Um Tae-woon, a

Jan. 3, 2012

GS E&C aims to triple sales, operating profit by 2020

GS Engineering & Construction Corp. aims to more than triple its sales and operating profit by 2020 and secure 35 trillion won ($30.4 billion) in overseas orders as part of its long-term roadmap to become a global player.Korea’s third-largest builder on Monday unveiled ambitious goals of making 27 trillion won in sales and 2 trillion won in operating profit by 2020, both up more than 330 percent from 2010. Its orders totaled 14 trillion won in 2010. The company said it will also boost internatio

IndustryJan. 3, 2012