Hyundai, Kia U.S. car sales to top 1m mark this year

U.S. sales of vehicles made by Hyundai Motor Co. and its affiliate Kia Motors Corp. are expected to surpass the 1 million mark for the first time this year, fueled by a surge in consumer demand, the carmakers said Thursday.The two companies, part of the world’s fifth-largest automaker Hyundai Motor Group, said their combined sales in the U.S. market jumped 26 percent on-year to 950,411 units in the first 10 months of this year.Hyundai, South Korea’s largest carmaker, said it sold 545,316 cars in

MobilityNov. 10, 2011

Savings banks seek state funds

Several banks hope to tap Financial Market Stabilization FundA number of savings banks are seeking state help in securing additional capital, sources said Thursday.“Some of the savings banks have shown interest in receiving support through the Financial Market Stabilization Fund,” an unnamed official with the Financial Services Commission was quoted as saying by a local news agency.According to industry sources, three or four savings banks are seeking state funds.“It is expected that application

Nov. 10, 2011

SKT makes bid for Hynix

SK Telecom submitted its application to take over Hynix Semiconductor, owned by creditors, as a sole bidder on Thursday.Credit Suisse, one of the co-sale brokers for the deal, received the bid to acquire a 15 percent stake in Hynix from SKT, said officials at Korea Exchange Bank, the main creditor.SKT tendered the last minute application just before the 5:00 p.m. deadline after hours of heated in-house debate over whether to bid amid turmoil following the prosecution’s probe of the SK Group chai

Nov. 10, 2011

G-Star launches with an array of mobile games

BUSAN ― As the country’s largest game trade show G-Star launched on Thursday, it showcased games designed exclusively for smartphones, the most attention-grabbing trend for this year.Mobile game firm Com2us, which set up its booths at G-Star for the first time, featured up to 15 new mobile games, including “Tiny Farm,” “Escape the Ape,” “Puzzle Family” and “MiniGame Paradise.”“The competitiveness and graphic quality of mobile games are now meeting users’ expectations,” said a Com2us official.Wem

IndustryNov. 10, 2011

Depression may be linked to dementia later

U.S. researchers say a chemical marker that binds to plaque and tangle deposits indicates dementia may be linked to major depressive disorder in older people."This is the first study using [the marker] FDDNP to assess the abnormal protein levels in brains of older adults with severe depression," Dr.

TechnologyNov. 10, 2011

S. Korea to push 10% power cuts for manufacturers, limit neon sign use

SEOUL, Nov. 10 (Yonhap) -- The South Korean government on Thursday announced a wide range of measures to prevent recurrence of a recent nationwide power outage that include a 10 percent mandatory power cut by major manufacturers and limited use of neon signs during peak hours.The move follows massiv

TechnologyNov. 10, 2011

Banks' household loans grow by most in 4 months in Oct.

South Korean banks' household loans grew by the most in four months in October on a rise in mortgage lending, the central bank said Thursday, complicating the government's efforts to curb growing household debt.Local banks' household loans, including home-backed and credit loans, reached 451.8 trill

Nov. 10, 2011

New drug zaps fat cells in monkeys

WASHINGTON (AFP) - An experimental drug helped obese monkeys lose 11 percent of their extra weight in a month, a promising sign in the hunt for obesity drugs that could apply to humans, US researchers said Wednesday.The drug, known as Adipotide, works by attacking the blood supply of a certain kind

TechnologyNov. 10, 2011

Gold prices climb higher amid Italy woes

SEOUL, Nov. 10 (Yonhap) -- Gold prices on both the international and South Korean markets are expected to continue rising as renewed worries on the eurozone, sparked by Italy's financial woes, prompt investors to scurry for safer assets, data showed Thursday.On Tuesday, the contract for December del

Nov. 10, 2011

Korea’s jobless rate falls to 2.9% in Oct.

South Korea’s jobless rate fell in October from a month earlier and job creation accelerated at the fastest pace in 17 months, showing signs that long-frozen labor conditions might be thawing, a report showed Wednesday.The jobless rate stood at 2.9 percent last month, down from 3 percent in September, according to the report by Statistics Korea.The rate was also down from 3.3 percent tallied in the same month a year earlier.The report showed that the economy gained 501,000 more jobs last month c

Nov. 9, 2011

KONEPA to host art festival during 2012 nuclear summit

The Korea Nuclear Energy Promotion Agency and the 2012 Seoul Nuclear Security Summit Preparatory Secretariat will co-host the International Children’s Peace Art Festival in celebration of the summit forum in Seoul early next year, KONEPA officials said Wednesday.The event will be held on the sidelines of the global summit in March and it is expected to raise the next generation’s awareness of the peaceful use of nuclear energy, the officials said. Participants will be creating paintings on given

IndustryNov. 9, 2011

Hanjin Heavy reaches tentative settlement on labor dispute in Busan

BUSAN (Yonhap News) ― Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction hammered out a tentative agreement with its unionized workers on Wednesday to end an 11-month-long labor dispute sparked by the shipmaker’s massive layoffs. The provisional deal calls for the shipmaker to reinstate within one year 94 former employees who were laid off in the scheme to downsize the workforce, according to people with knowledge about the agreement. It also requires the Busan-based firm to deliver on what Hanjin Heavy cha

Nov. 9, 2011

Hyundai, Kia cars win Middle East ‘car of the year’ awards

Four vehicles made by top South Korean automaker Hyundai Motor Co. and its affiliate Kia Motors Corp. have won 2011 Middle East Motor Awards, industry sources said Wednesday.The cars that ranked first in their respective sections were Hyundai’s Accent subcompact and Elantra compact and Kia’s Optima mid-size sedan and Sportage compact sport utility vehicle.The two automakers are the flagships of Hyundai Motor Group, the world’s fifth-largest car manufacturer, with Hyundai sales in the region risi

MobilityNov. 9, 2011

Most foreign IBs plan to buy more Korean stocks

Seven out of 10 foreign investment banks plan to increase their portion of South Korean stocks next year, citing the country’s solid economic fundamentals and low price valuation, a report showed Wednesday.Citigroup Inc., Barclays Plc and five others said they plan to invest more in South Korean equities, while two players, HSBC Holdings Plc and Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc, opted to scale back their stock purchases, according to the report by the Korea Center for International Finance. JP M

Nov. 9, 2011

Finance, trade ministers urge quick approval of free trade deal with U.S.

South Korea’s top trade and economic policymakers urged the National Assembly on Wednesday to quickly ratify the long-standing free trade deal with the United States.The free trade accord, known as the KORUS FTA, was signed in June 2007 and supplemented in late December of last year with minor modifications that mostly deal with the auto industry. The agreement was ratified by the U.S. Congress last month and Seoul is under mounting pressure to follow suit.Lawmakers here, however, remain locked

Nov. 9, 2011

Nearly 90% of ‘intra-group’ deals granted without competition: FTC

Nearly 90 percent of “intra-group” deals carried out between affiliates of major conglomerates last year were granted without open bidding, the antitrust watchdog said Wednesday.The results are based on an analysis by the Fair Trade Commission of business deals and sales data compiled by 20 affiliates of the nation‘s leading business groups. They consist of 8 advertising, 8 systems integration and 4 logistics companies. The companies were found to have received 9.16 trillion won ($8.23 billion)

Nov. 9, 2011

Samsung top mobile phone vendor in 3 of 6 regions

Samsung Electronics Co., the world’s No. 2 handset maker, was the biggest mobile-phone vendor in three out of six regions in the third quarter, including Western Europe, a market report showed Wednesday.The report released by Strategy Analytics also noted that Samsung is closely competing with Nokia Corp., the world’s top handset maker, for global dominance as the Finnish firm lost ground in America and Western Europe. Samsung shipped 89.5 million handsets worldwide in the July-September period,

IndustryNov. 9, 2011