Most Popular
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Heavy snow alerts issued in greater Seoul area, Gangwon Province; over 20 cm of snow seen in Seoul
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Seoul blanketed by heaviest Nov. snow, with more expected
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NewJeans to terminate contract with Ador
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Seoul snowfall now third heaviest on record
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Samsung shakes up management, commits to reviving chip business
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Heavy snow of up to 40 cm blankets Seoul for 2nd day
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How $70 funeral wreaths became symbol of protest in S. Korea
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Hybe consolidates chairman Bang Si-hyuk’s regime with leadership changes
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Why cynical, 'memeified' makeovers of kids' characters are so appealing
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BOK makes surprise 2nd rate cut to boost growth
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Soft robot mimics earthworm movement
U.S. researchers say they‘ve developed a “soft” robot that inches along like an earthworm and can keep working even after taking a pounding from a hammer.Scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard University and Seoul National University have engineered a soft autonomous robot that moves across surfaces by contracting segments of its body, a process called peristalsis.Such a soft robot could be useful for navigating rough terrain or squeezing through tight spaces, MIT mecha
TechnologyAug. 10, 2012
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Android rules global sales of smartphones in Q2: data
About two-thirds of smartphones shipped globally in the second quarter ran on Google Inc.’s Android platform, data showed Thursday, further cementing its dominance over other operating system.Shipments of Android-powered smartphones totaled 104.8 million units in the April-June period, more than doubling from 50.8 million units the previous year, according to the data by market intelligence firm International Data Corporation.That translates into the Android platform powering 68.1 percent of sma
TechnologyAug. 9, 2012
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Hanwha Chemical to acquire German solar cell maker
Hanwha Chemical Corp., a key affiliate of Hanwha Group, is currently in the final stage of capping the acquisition deal of Germany’s Q-Cells SE, once the world’s No. 1 holder of the global solar-cell and module market share, industry sources said. Some Hanwha Group officials were quoted as saying Thursday that should there be no other extraordinary circumstances, Hanwha Chemical will be prioritized in the bid as soon as next week and take over the German solar energy firm as early as next month.
IndustryAug. 9, 2012
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SK Telecom, CJ form IT, content partnership
SK Telecom and CJ Group have formed a partnership to collaborate on providing convergence services for IT and cultural content amid the rising use of smart devices.Korea’s largest telecom company said that it will closely work with Korea’s leading food and entertainment conglomerate in the areas of marketing and distribution of mobile content.Both sides will be able to benefit from SK Telecom having solid telecommunication networks with over 27 million users, and CJ holding a vast portfolio of e
TechnologyAug. 9, 2012
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Seoul court defers ruling on Samsung, Apple patent fight
The outcome in Korea of a patent fight between global IT behemoths Samsung Electronics and Apple Inc. will be heard at a Seoul court on Aug. 24.The Seoul Central District Court said Thursday it will announce the outcome of the intellectual property rights dispute between the two electronics firms in about two weeks, canceling the ruling which was supposed to take place this Friday.“We’ve decided to announce the ruling at a later date to further work on the ruling statement,” said a court officia
IndustryAug. 9, 2012
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Shares jump on foreign buying
Korean stocks closed 1.96 percent higher Thursday on strong foreign buying fed by optimism over a global economic recovery, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shot up 37.33 points to 1,907.13. Trading volume was moderate at 483.1 million shares worth 6.32 trillion won ($5.60 billion) with advancers outstripping decliners 592 to 234. “Foreigners snapped up blue chips. China’s steady consumer prices and hopes for further
Aug. 9, 2012
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Korean Air demands plastic surgery clinic alter uniform
Korean Air has demanded a plastic surgery clinic change the design of its staff’s uniform, claiming that it closely resembles that of its flight attendants.The nation’s flag carrier said it sent a certified letter on Tuesday to the medical clinic in Gangnam, southern Seoul, indicating that it could bring the matter to court for design patent theft. “The uniform really accounts for the brand image of a company, and they (the clinic) have plagiarized our design against the protective law on design
Aug. 9, 2012
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LG chairman offers 500m won to Yang
LG Group said Thursday that its chairman Koo Bon-moo will deliver 500 million won ($444,225) to gymnastics gold medalist Yang Hak-seon as soon as he comes back from London.The group said that the chairman decided to offer the funding to Yang, a 20-year-old gymnast who won the gold medal in men’s vault on Monday, so he could fully concentrate on sports.“The funding was given to encourage the gymnast as he still persevered to win the gold with his strong will and training despite his family’s diff
IndustryAug. 9, 2012
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KCC to strengthen supervision of three major telecom firms
Korea Communications Commission said Thursday that it will strengthen its supervision and management of the country’s three telecom companies ― SK Telecom, KT and LG Uplus ― to further prevent personal data and information leaks.Its announcement came after KT, Korea’s second largest mobile carrier, was found to have had its system breached by a hacker, a company telemarketing agent, last month.KCC, the country’s broadcasting and telecom watchdog, has launched a team of inspectors to probe KT, wh
TechnologyAug. 9, 2012
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HSBC, SC Bank face inspection for money laundering
Korea’s Financial Supervisory Service said Thursday it will examine HSBC and Standard Chartered Bank’s Seoul branches over money laundering cases allegedly involving the British banks. HSBC’s U.S. office is currently under investigation, accused of offering money laundering channels to hide transactions for terrorists and weapons dealers. The British bank’s Mexico office paid a fine of $27.5 million last month for not reporting on a suspicious transaction considered to have been involved in drug
Aug. 9, 2012
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Financial firms tighten belts in economic slump
Korean financial firms, hit by the economic slowdown, are tightening their belts through job cuts and asset sales to shore up their falling profitability and put their balance sheets in better shape, market watchers said Thursday.Local brokerage houses are leading the way in reducing workforces and streamlining businesses.The total number of employees at 63 local brokerage firms reached 42,388 at end-March this year, down 0.7 percent from three months earlier, the first decrease since the second
Aug. 9, 2012
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Revolving credit plagues 1m cardholders
Financial authorities seek to curb card debt rolled over past due dateAbout 1 million credit cardholders with low credit are facing further credit downgrades due to potential defaults on their revolving credit, prompting financial authorities to revise related rules.The revolving credit system allows cardholders to pay only between 5 and 10 percent of their monthly credit card bills and have the rest rolled over to the following month until it is fully paid off. Credit card firms charge consumer
Aug. 9, 2012
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KOGAS finds more reserves below Mozambique waters
The Korea Gas Corp.’s efforts to find natural gas off the coast of Mozambique have made progress, raising hopes for new reserves of overseas natural resources for the nation.The state-run energy corporation has actively participated in the deepwater projects in the African country since 2007. Korea, Asia’s fourth-largest economy, has sought to reduce its heavy reliance on resource imports.The latest discovery of a natural gas field in the African nation came on Aug. 1. Korea’s Ministry of Knowle
IndustryAug. 9, 2012
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Yeosu Declaration to build on momentum of Rio+20 Conference
Oceans are the quintessential sustainable development issue, essential to all three pillars of sustainable development ― economic development, social development and environmental protection. Oceans provide critical social, economic and nutritional benefits, providing billions of people with nutrition and livelihood, and underpin the global economy. Just as one cannot do without a healthy heart, the world cannot do without a healthy ocean.This is an important year for oceans. The momentous Rio+2
Aug. 9, 2012
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Yeosu Expo to complete three-month run Sunday
Expo site to be turned into ocean resort complexThe Expo 2012 Yeosu will wrap up its three-month run on Sunday, with the number of visitors expected to reach 8 million as targeted by the organizing committee. Dubbed the first-ever world fair held on water, the Yeosu Expo opened on May 12 in the southern coastal town of Yeosu, about 455 kilometers south of Seoul. It was the second international fair hosted by Korea, after the Daejeon Expo in 1993. As of Thursday, the accumulated number of visito
IndustryAug. 9, 2012
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Cholesterol levels of U.S. children down significantly
WASHINGTON ― Against the drumbeat of bad news on obesity and diabetes among children, researchers have uncovered a cause for cautious optimism: a steady and significant improvement in the cholesterol profiles of American kids over the last 20 years.The proportion of young people ages 6 to 19 with high total cholesterol dropped 28 percent between the two time periods sampled in the report, from 11.3 percent in 1988-94 down to 8.1 percent in 2007-10, the new study found.At the same time, the avera
TechnologyAug. 9, 2012
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Healthy blood vessels for a longer life
Blood vessels are literally the vessels through which our blood flows. There are essential substances such as nutrients and oxygen in the blood, and the vessels function as a carrier of these substances throughout the body. Therefore, it is easy to understand that the blood has to flow smoothly for a healthy life. Blood vessels can be narrowed or obstructed due to many reasons including aging, disease, diet and smoking. If so, the body sends an SOS signal and in severe cases, the person’s life i
TechnologyAug. 9, 2012
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Gender test is Olympic hurdle
Of all the obstacles athletes have had to overcome to compete in the Olympics, perhaps the most controversial has been the gender test.Originally designed to prevent men from competing in women’s events, it is based on the premise that competitors can be sorted into two categories via established scientific rules. But the biological boundaries of gender aren’t always clear.Consider the Spanish hurdler Maria Jose Martinez-Patino. A gender test revealed that she had a Y chromosome, which normally
TechnologyAug. 9, 2012
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Drug combination lifts breast cancer survival rates, study says
SEATTLE ― Women with metastatic breast cancer treated with a combination of two estrogen-blocking drugs survived more than six months longer than those treated with just one of the drugs or one followed by the other, according to a study involving nearly 700 women.It’s the first time such improvement in overall survival has been seen in trials of first-line hormonal therapy for hormone-receptive metastatic breast cancer, the study authors said.“We’re finding a lot of other ways of treating these
TechnologyAug. 9, 2012
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Heat wave threatens public health
The prolonged scorching weather is putting people at risk of not only heat-related illnesses but waterborne diseases as well. Seoul City has been gripped by a weeks-long heat wave, with the mercury often soaring above 35 degrees Celsius and nighttime highs staying above 25 C, resulting in 13 consecutive tropical nights since July 27.A total of 89 people have been taken to the hospital for heat-related illnesses such as heatstroke and dehydration since June, whereas 27 people suffered from such i
TechnologyAug. 9, 2012
