Controversy is brewing over the latest reinstatement of SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won as board director of SK C&C, the de facto holding company of SK. Last week, Chey ― who is serving out a sentence for corporate malfeasance ― was named board director with a term of three years at a shareholders’ meeting. His term will be up until 2016. The decision went through largely because Chey is currently the largest shareholder at SK C&C, with a 38 percent stake. The National Pension Fund, which holds a

IndustryMarch 24, 2013

A Korean-born French cabinet minister has visited Korea to discuss ways to widen corporate ties between Korea and France, and also meet the French-Korean business community here. Fleur Pellerin arrived Saturday for a five-day visit. This marks her first return to her homeland since she was adopted by French parents as a baby. Pellerin is currently France’s minister for small and mid-sized enterprises and innovation. At a lunch meeting with the French-Korean business community today, Pellerin wil

March 24, 2013

Having charmed guests and hotel industry insiders including those from a five-star hotel in Hong Kong with its stylish yet comforting furnishings, Hotel La Casa is ready to expand.“We plan to build about 30 more rooms in the building next to La Casa by spring next year,” Lee Hyun-koo, chairman of Casamia which runs the boutique hotel, said in an interview with The Korea Herald.La Casa is located at the southern foot of Seoul’s Hannam Bridge, next to the offices of Casamia. These offices, which a

IndustryMarch 24, 2013

Carlos Ghosn laid a $5 billion bet in 2009 that the world’s next Ford Model T would be electric, and that Nissan Motor Co. would lead a revolution embraced by nations such as Denmark. Three years later, sales of Leaf plug- in vehicles in the Nordic country: 73.Nissan’s chief executive officer has long fronted a campaign to convince the world that by the end of the decade, 1 in 10 cars sold will be electric. Customers haven’t bought in, as prices remain high and charging stations are few and far

MobilityMarch 24, 2013

This is the second in a three-part series of stories contributed by BMW Group Korea. The author is currently CFO at the company in Seoul. ― Ed.“Sustainable” ― what does it actually mean? It’s a strange word, isn’t it? Although it’s a trendy term and on everyone’s lips, I decided to go the extra mile and look it up in German. The dictionary proposes “nachhaltig” another word that sounds vague to me, even though I am German. Feeding this German word into a French dictionary, however, is much more

MobilityMarch 24, 2013

Cruising down Seoul in the Fiat 500 will definitely make you stand out. Out of the 3 million cars on the roads of this bustling metropolis, there are only about 100 of these iconic subcompacts to be seen, as it was only launched in Korea in February. It’s not the first time that the Italian carmaker has tried its hand here, but Fiat had to withdraw its Korean business in the late 1990s when its local manufacturing partner Kia Motors went bankrupt. Even at the time, the 500 ― born in 1957 ― had n

MobilityMarch 24, 2013

Cruising down Seoul in the Fiat 500 will make you stand out. Out of the 1.5 million cars on the roads of this bustling metropolis, there are only about 100 of these iconic subcompacts to be seen, as it was the only launched in Korea in February. It’s not the first time that the Italian carmaker has tried its hand here, but Fiat had to withdraw its Korean business in the late 1990s when its local manufacturing partner Kia Motors went bankrupt. Even at the time, the 500 -- born in 1957 -- had not

BusinessMarch 24, 2013

Chinese scientists say they have developed the world‘s lightest material, lighter than air, which could play an important role in tackling pollution.The material -- dubbed graphene aerogel or carbon aerogel, and developed at Zhejiang University in Hangzhou -- weighs 0.16 milligrams per cubic centimeter, a sixth the weight of air, China’s official Xinhua News Agency reported Friday.The material, derived from a gel with the liquid component replaced by a gas, is easy to manufacture and has strong

TechnologyMarch 24, 2013

　　　CUPERTINO, Calif. -- Software and hardware units at U.S. technology company Apple are now working more closely together, sources told The Wall Street Journal.　In the past, Jonathan Ive, the executive behind the sleek look of Apple‘s hardware, has had his own software development team create proxy operating systems that are used in the design phase of a new product.　The team developing the software that will end up in the product in stores, however, has been working on software without even k

TechnologyMarch 24, 2013

Medical researchers in Spain say they are close to being able to grow human hearts for transplants outside the body.Doctors have already grown and transplanted a number of human organs, including windpipes, ears, tear ducts and an artery, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday.Now, they want to recreate a heart. Researchers in Spain say although the country has the highest number of organ donors in the world, only about 10 percent of patients in need of a new heart get one.Dr. Francisco Fernand

TechnologyMarch 24, 2013

Controversial remarks by an editor from men’s Esquire magazine drew furious responses from women around the world.Alex Bilmes, the editor for the magazine’s British edition, expressed his opinion on how Esquire produces content featuring women.“The women we feature in the magazine are ornamental, that is how we see them,” he said at the Advertising Week Europe conference. “I could lie and say we are interested in their brains as well but on the whole we‘re not, they are there to be a beautiful o

IndustryMarch 23, 2013

KB Financial Group management has averted a revolt among foreign shareholders over its business policies.The voting result at the annual shareholder meeting of KB Financial, which was held Friday, showed that its management successfully dispelled misunderstandings of foreign shareholders, who hold a 65 percent stake in the group. Though some had raised the possibility that the majority of its shareholders could cast dissenting ballots against the reappointment of KB Financial’s outside directors

March 22, 2013

Shareholders of Hyundai Merchant Marine, the nation’s No. 2 shipping firm, approved a controversial plan Friday to increase the limit of preferred shares it can issue, despite opposition from the second-largest shareholder, Hyundai Heavy Industries.The approval means that Hyundai Group, HMM’s largest shareholder, is expected to tighten its control over the shipping company in financial trouble, as it will be able to sell the preferred shares to a third party to secure funds, industry analysts sa

IndustryMarch 22, 2013

Hyundai Motor Group chairman Chung Mong-koo on Friday pledged to nurture the Kia brand into a more competitive global player through additional investment, especially for environment-friendly vehicles.During a shareholders’ meeting on Friday in Seoul, Kia Motors set this year’s sales target at 2.75 million vehicles globally, up 300,000 from last year.“The business environment will be tough both in Korea and abroad this year. We will continue brand innovation through quality products,” Chung said

IndustryMarch 22, 2013