The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently approved clinical trials of a Korean company’s artificial liver transplant on humans. The approval is expected to help H2 Holdings raise capital to finance research and development.U.S.-based bio-tech firm HepaHope, which will run the trials, is an affiliate of H2 Holdings, a Korea-based company founded by Dr. Park Sung-soo. Park is the majority shareholder of H2 Holdings, which holds a 10 percent stake in HepaHope. H2 Holdings held more than 17 bil

TechnologyApril 5, 2012

Google on Wednesday gave the world a glimpse of its vision for letting people look at life through Internet-tinted glasses.A video posted at a Project Glass page at Google+ social network confirmed the rumor that the technology titan is working on eyewear that meshes the online world with the real world.“We think technology should work for you -- be there when you need it and get out of your way w

TechnologyApril 5, 2012

Imagine going to a local store, picking out a design for a robot to help with some household chores, and having the device built within a matter of hours.That is the vision of scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where a five-year, $10 million project to bring the power of robots to the average person is just getting started."This research envisions a whole new way of thinking

TechnologyApril 5, 2012

KT&G Corp., South Korea’s biggest tobacco maker, said on Wednesday it will launch a new cigarette named after the famous Italian fashion brand “Tonino Lamborghini” on April 18.The new premium brand has been in development for the past three years to target both the domestic and overseas markets, the company said. KT&G has obtained the exclusive global sales rights for the cigarette brand and plans to market it as one of its global strategic items. “The new cigarette has been made of top-of-the-n

IndustryApril 4, 2012

Samsung Electronics said Wednesday that the firm was given the Carbon Trust Standard certificate by a London-based organization for its carbon-reductive management.Being named the first firm in the country to receive the certificate, Samsung was recognized for its carbon-reduction efforts in eight different workplaces here, according to Samsung officials. Carbon Trust Standard is valid for two years. This comes after the company won the Carbon Footprint for the Galaxy 2 and Galaxy Note earlier i

IndustryApril 4, 2012

Since launching its new display arm, Samsung is gearing up to make a generation shift in display panels at its Chinese plant in Suzhou, Jiang province, so that it can make larger display panels and possibly organic light-emitting diode displays.Chang Won-kie, president of Samsung China, told reporters Wednesday that the Chinese government has approved the firm’s request to shift its liquid-crystal display manufacturing line from 7.5-generation to 8-generation, hinting that it will soon show “out

IndustryApril 4, 2012

The government said Wednesday it would invest 1.24 trillion won (about $1.1 billion) into the research and development of 10 key information technology areas over the next five years.The key areas are core technologies for next-generation smart devices; key IT materials; big data and artificial intelligence; hybrid storage; total networks for fixed-line and wireless services; terahertz and quantum information technology; software platforms for unmanned systems; biosensors; life-care robots and p

IndustryApril 4, 2012

Monthly sales of import automobiles hit an all-time high of 10,648 units in March, while Korean carmakers such as Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors suffered lackluster sales at home.According to the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association, foreign carmakers saw their combined sales grow by 3.5 percent from a year earlier and 15.8 percent from a month before.The former monthly record was 10,290 units, posted in March 2011.For the first quarter of 2012, their sales increased by 13.9 perce

MobilityApril 4, 2012

South Korean stocks dropped 1.5 percent Wednesday as market hopes for an additional credit easing in the U.S. waned, analysts said. The local currency fell against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index sank 30.67 points to close at 2,018.61. Trading volume was moderate at 607 million shares worth 5.77 trillion won ($5.11 billion), with losers outpacing gainers 693 to 153.U.S. stocks closed in negative terrain on Monday after minutes released from the Federal Reserve’s

April 4, 2012

The Financial Supervisory Service classified 34 of the country’s business groups as heavily indebted for this year.The groups, including Hyundai Motor Group and Samsung Group, will be put under scrutiny by their respective creditor banks.Creditor banks are required to evaluate the financial status of the 34 business groups and seek restructuring if they fail to meet certain requirements, the FSS said in a statement.The five most-indebted business groups are Hyundai Motor, Samsung, SK, LG and Hyu

April 4, 2012

Foreign investors were net buyers of South Korean stocks in March, but the amount tumbled from the previous month on massive profit-taking, the financial watchdog said Wednesday.Overseas investors bought a net 939 billion won ($832 million) worth of local stocks last month, compared with net buying of 3.9 trillion won in February, according to the Financial Supervisory Service.The March tally raised foreigners’ net buying of local shares to some 11 trillion won during the first three months of t

April 4, 2012

The Ministry of Land, Transport and Marine Affairs said Wednesday a site to permanently store about 5.1 billion tons of carbon dioxide was found in the continental shelf southwest of the Ulleung Basin in the East Sea.Based on Korea’s target to reduce 32 million tons of CO2 annually by 2030 through CO2 capture and storage, the site will be able to store CO2 for more than 150 years.The ministry confirmed the existence of the geological structure appropriate for CO2 storage in the sedimentary layer

April 4, 2012

Financial regulator plans to review whether Samsung breached marketing patentsThe dispute between Hyundai Card and Samsung Card over alleged mimicry of marketing concepts has resurfaced at a level requiring arbitration by the regulator. Hyundai is publicly accusing Samsung of copying customer benefits of its popular Hyundai Zero Card with its Samsung Card 4. Samsung Card on Tuesday sent a letter to its rival Hyundai rejecting the argument on five grounds“The letter we sent to Hyundai Card was a

April 4, 2012

Google Inc., owner of the world’s most-popular search engine, will spend more than $300 million building its largest Asian data center in Taiwan to meet the region’s demand for its Gmail and YouTube services. A 15-hectare site in Changhua, central Taiwan, will be five times larger than locations already being developed in Singapore and Hong Kong, and bring total spending on facilities in the region to more than $700 million, the Mountain View, California-based company said in a statement on Tues

TechnologyApril 4, 2012