The Korea Herald

LG plans to roll out new flagship smartphone by March

LG Electronics will roll out a new flagship smartphone dubbed “Optimus G Pro” in Korea by March, according to its chief financial officer Jeong Do-hyun on Wednesday.Following its quarterly earnings conference at its headquarters in Yeouido, Jeong said that the new 5.5-inch flagship smartphone will be released in the local market by the first quarter and then to the overseas market in the second quarter.Another LG executive also stated during the earnings conference that the new G series smartpho

TechnologyJan. 30, 2013

Taiwan’s E Ink accused of asset-stripping Hydis

E Ink, the parent company of Hydis, appeared to have no concrete plans on how to run Hydis, a local manufacturer of LCDs.Despite the uproar at the Gyeonggi-based company this month after its plants were forced to shut down by E Ink until Feb. 15, the Taiwan-based maker of electronic ink remained silent.Neither the employees at Hydis nor E Ink offered any clue, with E Ink stating only that it was “operating legally,” and therefore, there were no problems. “We acquired Hydis, so it’s OK,” said on

IndustryJan. 30, 2013

Taiwan’s E Ink accused of asset-stripping Hydis

Chronology of major events leading to Seoul's 3rd space rocket launch

The following is a chronology of major events related to South Korea's development of the Korea Space Launch Vehicle-1, which is set to blast off from the country's Naro Space Center later Wednesday. March 2001 - South Korea joins the Missile Technology Control Regime, an informal international association that oversees the proliferation of unmanned delivery systems capable of delivering weapons of mass destruction. August 2002 - South Korea and Russia confirm plans to develop the Korea Spac

TechnologyJan. 30, 2013

Seoul shares rise 0.43 pct on exporter gains

South Korean stocks closed 0.43 percent higher Wednesday as local exporters continued to rebound from their recent losses on the improved foreign exchange market conditions, analysts said. The local currency fell against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) climbed 8.47 points to 1,964.43. Trading volume was high at 515.9 million shares worth 4.2 trillion won (US$3.87 billion) with gainers outnumbering decliners 425 to 367."The local stock market recouped some

Jan. 30, 2013

LG Electronics logs 107 bil operating profit in Q4

South Korean consumer electronics giant LG Electronics Inc. saw its net loss widen in the fourth quarter from a year earlier due to increased marketing costs and a one-off TV cartel fine. Net loss came to 467.8 billion won ($431 million) in the October-December period, growing more than three-fold from the loss of 111.6 billion won the previous year, LG Electronics said in a regulatory filing.Revenue slipped 2.3 percent on-year to 13.5 trillion won over the cited period, while operating profit j

IndustryJan. 30, 2013

Timing of meal affects weight loss: study

A new study shows that meal timing seems to affect weight loss, suggesting that when people eat matters as much as what they eat. A research team from Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston and the University of Murcia studied the relationship between meal times and weight loss among 420 participants for 20 weeks. The first group of people was told to eat before 3 p.m. while the latter group ate after 3. The study suggested that early eaters lost more weight than late eaters and did so more quic

TechnologyJan. 30, 2013

Timing of meal affects weight loss: study

Subglacial Lake suggests life deep under Antarctic

The successful drilling of subglacial Lake Whillans suggests that microorganisms may have been living under the Antarctic ice sheet for thousands of years, U.S. broadcaster NBC News reported. Funded by U.S. National Science Foundation’s Office of Polar Programs, members of the Whillans Ice Stream Subglacial Access Research Drilling project drilled into the 800-meter-deep lake, retrieved water and sediment samples and analyzed them. The analysis of experiments showed that microorganisms may exist

TechnologyJan. 30, 2013

Subglacial Lake suggests life deep under Antarctic

Airborne bacteria may impact climate

U.S. scientists say bacteria and fungi found floating a surprising 30,000 feet above the Earth‘s surface have the potential to affect the globe’s weather.Scientists have long studied airborne bacteria, but they typically do so from the ground, so not much has been known about the number and diversity of floating microbes, researcher Athanasios Nenes, an atmospheric scientist at Georgia Tech, said.To find out more, Nenes and his colleagues hitched rides on a NASA research aircraft doing atmospher

TechnologyJan. 30, 2013

SK Hynix posts profit as chip demand improves

South Korean chipmaker SK Hynix Inc. reported a second straight quarterly profit as its debt load eased and sales benefited from increased demand for chips used in smartphones and servers. The company said Wednesday its October-December net profit totaled 163.7 billion won ($151 million) compared with a 239.9 billion won loss a year earlier. SK Hynix returned to the black in the July-September quarter with a 2 billion won profit following a period of losses due to a slump in chip prices and weak

IndustryJan. 30, 2013

U.S. court says Samsung infringement wasn’t ‘intentional’

The U.S. court looks to be changing its stance on the Samsung-Apple global patent litigation with Apple with the court acknowledging that Samsung patent infringements were not intentional on Wednesday.U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh denied Apple’s argument that the $1.05 billion damages award against Samsung from its previous patent infringement trial should be increased.She found that Samsung’s infringement was not “willful,” denying a new trial and leaving the August jury findings largely untouch

IndustryJan. 30, 2013

Seoul shares up 0.17 pct in late-morning trade

South Korean stocks traded 0.17 percent higher late Wednesday morning on the back of gains in tech shares, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) gained 3.4 points to 1,959.36. Techs led the gains, with the world's two biggest computer memory chip makers Samsung Electronics and SK hynix gaining 1.14 percent and 1.45 percent, respectively.In contrast, automakers stayed in negative territory, with top player Hyundai Motor falling 1.21 percent.The local currency was

Jan. 30, 2013

Beer hops could be new drug resource

U.S. researchers say hops, which help preserve beer and give it its distinctive flavor, may yield new drugs to treat diabetes, some cancers and other maladies.University of Washington researchers used a process called X-ray crystallography to analyze the precise configuration of humulones, substances derived from hops that give beer its flavor.Previous research has suggested beer and its bittering acids, in moderation, can have beneficial effects on diabetes, some forms of cancer, inflammation a

TechnologyJan. 30, 2013

Seoul shares open higher on tech gains

South Korean stocks began higher on Wednesday, boosted by gains in major technology firms, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) gained 7.06 points, or 0.36 percent, to 1,963.02 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Market bellwether Samsung Electronics rose 1.21 percent and SK hynix, which announced its fourth-quarter earnings ahead of the market's open, added 2.69 percent.Shipbuilders were also bullish, with leading player Hyundai Heavy Industries gaining 1.61 perc

Jan. 30, 2013

S. Korea's space rocket lifts off from Naro Space Center

South Korea's space rocket blasted off Wednesday from the Naro Space Center on the country's southern coast.The Korea Space Launch Vehicle-1 (KSLV-1), also known as Naro, lifted off at 4 p.m. No apparent problems have been observed since its takeoff from the launch site, located 480 kilometers south of Seoul.The 170-ton thrust space rocket is designed to reach its target orbit in 9 minutes following its takeoff. Whether the launch was successful will initially be determined approximately 140 min

TechnologyJan. 30, 2013

S. Korea's space rocket lifts off from Naro Space Center

S. Korea's industrial output grows 0.8 pct on-year in Dec.

South Korea's industrial output grew at a weaker pace than a month earlier in December, raising worries industrial activities might be slowing amid toughened economic conditions, a government report showed Wednesday.According to the report by Statistics Korea, production in the mining, manufacturing, gas and electricity industries increased 0.8 percent last month from a year earlier, compared with a revised 3.2 percent on-year gain tallied in November.The output expanded 1 percent from a month e

Jan. 30, 2013

Korea's service account swings back to black after 14 years

Korea’s services account has swung into the black for the first time in 14 years, mainly thanks to robust transportation transactions, the Bank of Korea said Wednesday.This has helped the country to achieve an annual record in the current account surplus, the broadest measure of trade.Korea’s current account surplus reached a record high of $43.25 billion in 2012, remaining in the black for 15 consecutive years.The current account surplus increased $17.18 billion to $43.25 billion last year, sur

Jan. 30, 2013

Financial sector gets less in bonuses than top manufacturers

While those who work for industrial giants such as Samsung and LG expect solid rewards for their stellar performances, there will be no bonus party for the financial sector, which had their worst year in 2012. The financial brothers of Samsung ― Samsung Life, Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance and Samsung Card ― however, are an exception.Banks including Shinhan, KB Kookmin, Woori, Hana and NH Nonghyup will offer zero or less than half of last year’s performance-based bonuses this year.The banks’ co

Jan. 29, 2013

Yuhan launches genetic analysis service

Yuhan Corporation, a Seoul-based pharmaceutical company, said Tuesday that it had launched a genetic information analysis service that tracks down personal genetic risks for certain diseases and disorders.In a joint venture with Theragen Etex, a local biotech firm specializing in genetic code analysis, Yuhan introduced “Hello Gene” that tests personal genetic information with just a few drops of blood, the company said. The service interprets one’s genetic information within a week or two and pr

TechnologyJan. 29, 2013

IBs predict gradual pickup in Korean economy

The Korean economy will gradually regain momentum as the global economic recovers, the Korean Center for International Finance said in a research report released on Monday.Citing Goldman Sachs, the KCIF stated that the incoming administration’s stimulus plans along with a positive outlook on China’s economic growth will enable the domestic economy to keep building momentum for recovery, despite lowered expectations over the nation’s economic growth.Goldman Sachs cut Korea’s expected economic gro

Jan. 29, 2013

Samsung takes over U.S. medical equipment firm

South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics Co. said Tuesday it has acquired a U.S. medical equipment firm as part of efforts to bolster its healthcare business.Samsung Electronics America acquired NeuroLogica, a leading computed tomography company headquartered in Danvers, Massachusetts, the company said in a press release. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.Samsung’s U.S. unit will control the U.S. medical equipment maker, which develops medical imaging products and portable CT sca

IndustryJan. 29, 2013