The Korea Herald

KAIST team develops advanced wireless chip

A team of scientists from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology has developed a wireless chip that can transmit data nearly 50 times faster than Bluetooth wireless standards and comparable Wi-Fi speeds.Professor Park Chul-soon and his research team said they developed a new type of radio frequency chip that uses 60-gigahertz bandwidth, different from licensed 2.5GHz or 5.2GHz, to wirelessly transmit 10.7 gigabytes of uncompressed data per second.Downloading a 5-GB two-hour movie

TechnologyMarch 12, 2013

Yongsan project developer faces default

The massive Yongsan development project came on the verge of bankruptcy as its developer is facing default under severe financial difficulties.The Dream Hub failed to the meet the deadline of payment of 5.9 billion won ($5.4 million) in interest on its asset-backed commercial paper as of 6:00 p.m.The developer would head toward bankruptcy if it could not repay its debt by Tuesday. KORAIL, the state-run rail operator and largest shareholder, had earlier pledged to inject 6.4 billion won in an eff

March 12, 2013

Tariff revenue on U.S. imports falls: ministry

A free trade agreement with the U.S. has pushed down Korea’s tariff revenue on U.S. imports for the first time in seven years, despite an increase in trade with the world’s largest economy.The Ministry of Strategy and Finance said Tuesday that tariff revenue on U.S. imports sank to 9.8 trillion won ($8.9 billion) last year, down 10.7 percent from 10.9 trillion won a year ago.This is the first time Korea saw its customs revenue decline since 2005, the ministry noted, adding that its revenue fell

March 12, 2013

Effect of rate cut would be marginal: IBs

More and more market participants are betting that the Bank of Korea will lower the benchmark interest rate in March ― the first monthly rate-setting under the Park Geun-hye administration.According to a poll of 132 bond traders conducted by the Korea Financial Investment Association, 46 percent of respondents predicted a rate cut at the meeting of the BOK’s monetary policy committee, slated for Thursday.Some economists and analysts, however, claimed that a rate cut from the current 2.75 percent

March 12, 2013

LG Uplus offers full HD content

LG Uplus said Tuesday that it would offer high-definition content for its Internet protocol television subscribers beginning this month.The country’s smallest telecom service provider said that up to 32 channels would be provided on Uplus TV G in full high-definition this month even if subscribers did not own a pricey smart TV.The Uplus TV G service is an IPTV collaboration between the telecom and Google that was launched here last October. The number of channels in Full HD format will be increa

IndustryMarch 12, 2013

Hankook Tire wins global CSR award

Hankook Tire said Tuesday it topped the world’s largest corporate social responsibility competition, Vision Awards, run by the League of American Communications Professionals.The LACP is an international forum in the public relations industry, and its Vision Awards recognize the outstanding annual performances of the past 12 months. This year, more than 5,500 companies in 24 countries competed for the industry’s top honor. Hankook Tire, Korea’s largest tire maker, won the top prize across indust

BusinessMarch 12, 2013

Hite Jinro’s Max beer nabs global brewing award

Hite Jinro, Korea’s leading beer and soju producer, said Tuesday that its lager Max has won the top prize at one of the world’s three largest brewing contests in Britain.The Korean brewer was selected as a gold medalist in the 4.5―4.9 percent alcohol by volume lager sector, beating Singaporean lager Tiger and Japan’s Asahi Super Dry which took silver and bronze, respectively.The company was the only Korean winner of the International Brewing Awards 2013, hosted by the Brewing, Food & Beverage In

IndustryMarch 12, 2013

Insurance firms scrap plans to raise fees

Local major insurance firms have decided to freeze premiums under regulatory instruction from the Financial Supervisory Service.Industry sources said Tuesday that life insurance firms, including Samsung Life, Kyobo Life and Hanwha Life, have dropped their stance to raise premiums on products sold to policyholders. These firms had abortively planned to raise the rates on insurance products in April, when the standard rate of interest is expected drop about 5 percent. Major nonlife insurance firms

March 12, 2013

Shares down on foreign selling

Korean stocks ended 0.5 percent lower on Tuesday as foreigners extended their selling mode amid a weakening Japanese yen and North Korea’s multiple nuclear threats, analysts said. The local currency slipped against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 10.01 points to 1,993.34. Trading volume was moderate at 385.8 million shares worth 3.29 trillion won ($3 billion), with gainers outnumbering decliners 433 to 364.“Bad market sentiment, along with high volatility, is

March 12, 2013

Korea-U.S. FTA seen as half success

Following is the first in a series of articles on the Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement which marks the first year after its effectuation on March 15, 2012. ― Ed.A year has passed since the controversial Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement took effect. But disagreements still exist on whether the free trade deal had a positive influence on Korea’s economy, as the government had guaranteed.The majority response from experts is that the trade pact has so far been a “half success,” as it has displayed po

March 12, 2013

Korea’s outside directors suffer credibility gap

Board directors have been a crucial part of the corporate management system, monitoring companies and executives to ensure they are operating fairly and transparently.Outside independent directors have been especially relied upon and placed alongside inside directors to help and guide the decision-making process in the interest of shareholders to avert stock price losses or any other value depreciation.Korea implemented the outside director system in the aftermath of the 1997-98 Asian financial

BusinessMarch 12, 2013

Korea’s outside directors suffer credibility gap

Incheon named best airport for eighth time

Incheon International Airport said Tuesday it won the World’s Best Airport title again this year for the eighth consecutive time.The non-profit Airport Council International conducted a survey of 350,000 passengers over the past year and Incheon Airport earned the highest scores in service quality. The airport also topped two other categories ― best airport in Asia-Pacific and best among those with 25-40 million users annually.It is unprecedented for an airport to win the industry’s top honor ei

IndustryMarch 12, 2013

Foreign fast fashion brands neglect after-sales service

Despite their explosive sales growth here, foreign “fast fashion” brands do not offer after-sales service.Sales of five major imported SPA brands Uniqlo, Gap, Zara, H&M and Mango jumped over 50 percent each year to nearly 2 trillion won ($1.8 billion) in 2011, but none of them had an official after-sales service center, Consumer Research said on Tuesday.The stores did not take any calls for after-sales service, and offered no alteration or repair services except for hemming pants. Customers were

IndustryMarch 12, 2013

Foreign fast fashion brands neglect after-sales service

Shunning goes both ways

People who give others the cold shoulder or deliberately shun another are equally distressed by the experience, U.S. researchers say.Study co-author Richard Ryan, professor of clinical and social psychology at the University of Rochester in New York, and Nicole Legate, a doctoral candidate at the University of Rochester, found having study subjects comply with instructions to exclude another person led most people to feel shame and guilt, along with a diminished sense of autonomy.The study, publ

TechnologyMarch 12, 2013

Bee stings might help destroy HIV cells

A study suggested that melittin, a toxin found in bee stings, could destroy HIV cells and lead to the development of related drugs. Scientists from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis argued that the potent toxin in bee stings could selectively kill HIV cells if attached to nanoparticles. The melittin attached to the nanoparticles could rip holes in the outer layer of the HIV cells and destroy them, leaving other body cells intact, the research paper claimed. While most anti-HI

TechnologyMarch 12, 2013

Seoul shares down 0.15 pct in late-morning trade

South Korean stocks traded 0.15 percent lower late Tuesday morning as foreigners extended their selling mode, analysts said.Reversing earlier gains, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) slipped 2.99 points to 2,000.36. Large caps were mixed. Market bellwether Samsung Electronics fell 0.4 percent and steel giant POSCO lost 0.88 percent, but Hyundai Motor rose 0.96 percent. Hyundai Elevator surged 14.81 percent on talks over a potential management feud.The local currency was cha

March 12, 2013

Spanish dentist pulls out patient’s teeth after dispute over bill

A dentist was detained by police on suspicions of pulling out a patient’s teeth after a quarrel over a medical bill, a Spanish daily reported Monday.According to ABC newspaper, a 39-year-old dentist from Zaragoza is accused of removing several implanted teeth from a middle-aged female patient in February. The victim -- who was being treated by the doctor for months -- asked the dentist why her bill had amounted to thousands of euros, which led to a heated argument. The dentist then sat her down

TechnologyMarch 12, 2013

Spanish dentist pulls out patient’s teeth after dispute over bill

Seoul shares open higher on autos

South Korean stocks got off to a strong start on Tuesday fueled by gains in automakers, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added2.09 points, or 0.1 percent, to 2,005.44 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Hyundai Motor, the country's top automaker, gained 0.96 percent, and its smaller affiliate Kia Motors rose 1.15 percent.In contrast, market bellwether Samsung Electronics slipped 0.27 percent.The local currency was trading at 1,095.7 won to the U.S.dollar as o

March 12, 2013

[Graphic News] Koreans hesitant to open wallets

Koreans have become more cautious in opening their wallets due to concerns over a prolonged economic slowdown, government data showed Monday. According to Statistics Korea and Shinyoung Securities, the average monthly household spending increased 1.38 percent to 2.4 million won ($2,200) in the fourth quarter of last year from a year ago. Following a mere 0.96 percent increase in the third quarter, it was the first time that year-on-year growth stuck below 2 percent for two consecutive quarters s

March 11, 2013

[Graphic News] Koreans hesitant to open wallets

GE Lighting taps LED market through local partnerships

The light-emitting diode is like the hydrogen-powered car of the lighting industry. One day, energy-efficient LED lighting will replace all fluorescent lamps. Inefficient incandescent bulbs will soon be nonexistent in Korea as the government banned their production and sale from next year, as in many other parts of the world. But for now, the LED lighting industry is just blossoming, with government offices taking up most of the local demand. The Korean government is replacing old lighting equip

BusinessMarch 11, 2013

GE Lighting taps LED market through local partnerships