The Korea Herald

Lee Kun-hee’s stock value hits record high

The value of securities held by Samsung Electronics chairman Lee Kun-hee has exceeded the 10 trillion won ($8.9 billion) mark for the first time, setting a new record in Korea’s stock market.According to Chaebul.com on Sunday, stakes held by the nation’s richest entrepreneur came in at 10.1 trillion

March 11, 2012

Samsung employee summoned over tailing CJ Group chief

Police said Saturday they have questioned an employee of Samsung C&T Corp. for allegedly conducting an illegal surveillance on the chief of CJ Group, amid a growing feud over the family inheritance fight over Samsung, South Korea's biggest conglomerate. The summons came as CJ Group sued the 42-year-

IndustryMarch 11, 2012

Samsung employee summoned over tailing CJ Group Chairman

Seoul police said Saturday they questioned an employee of Samsung Construction and Trading (C&T) over allegations of tailing the CJ Group Chairman, who is in an inheritance legal battle with his younger brother, Samsung Group Chairman Lee Kun-hee.The summons came as CJ Group sued the 42-year-old Sam

BusinessMarch 10, 2012

Hyundai Motor allegedly bribed 8 ex-liberal lawmakers in 2006

Prosecutors have secured witnesses that Hyundai Motor Group bribed eight former lawmakers of then ruling liberal party in 2006 while its chairman was on trial over bribery charges, according to prosecution sources Saturday.The special investigation team delving into the savings bank scandal said Kim

IndustryMarch 10, 2012

Will new iPad run on Korea’s LTE networks?

Questions are arising not only about the new iPad’s launch date but also about its fourth generation network compatibility in Korea after Apple introduced it during an event in San Francisco on Thursday.The latest iPad, which boasts “ultra-fast wireless speeds,”is customized to run not on the 4G Long Term Evolution network, but on the 700 megahertz and 2.1 gigahertz wireless broadband spectrums used by U.S. mobile carriers Verizon and AT&T.The finding not only impacts Korea, a country currently

IndustryMarch 9, 2012

Will new iPad run on Korea’s LTE networks?

Seoul shares gain on eased Greece woes

South Korean stocks closed 0.88 percent higher Friday, as Greece finally settled on its long-pending debt swap plan to restructure its troubled fiscal health, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark gained 17.54 points to finish at 2,018.30. Trading volume was moderate at 406.4 million shares worth 5.31 trillion won ($4.76 billion) with gainers outpacing decliners 442 to 349. “Since the Greece deal has made a breakthrough, there’s no particular external facto

March 9, 2012

Hansol acquires firm for power plant business

Hansol EME, an affiliate of Hansol Group, said Friday that it inked an acquisition deal with industrial boiler technology firm SeenTec Co. to dive into the power plant business and secure a new growth engine.The company, specializing in integrated plant projects, signed an agreement with SeenTec this week to acquire a 34.17 percent stake, taking over 3.3 million of its shares worth $33 million in total, according to its officials.The event takes place as the power plant business is projected to

IndustryMarch 9, 2012

POSCO develops car body frame

POSCO on Friday announced the results of its development of a steel body frame for electric cars that is 25 percent lighter than existing chassis.The use of ultra high strength steel was increased by 40 percent in the new chassis, but it does not require changes in the existing auto production lines, allowing minimized cost increases for mass production of electric cars, POSCO said in a press release.The POSCO Body Concept-Electric Vehicle meets international safety standards for 2015, and reduc

IndustryMarch 9, 2012

Hyundai, Kia named most fuel efficient carmakers by U.S. agency

Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Motors Corp. were named the most fuel efficient and environmentally-friendly carmakers by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, outperforming rivals such as Toyota Motor Corp.In the EPA’s annual report “Light-Duty Automotive Technology, Carbon Dioxide Emissions and Fuel Economy Trends,” Hyundai and Kia cars for the model year 2010 showed the highest average fuel economy of 27 miles per gallon, or 11.5 kilometers per liter.The two Korean automakers were tied for firs

IndustryMarch 9, 2012

Top regulator promises transparency under FTAs

The chief financial regulator pledged to improve Korea’s supervisory systems to promote a level playing field for local and foreign players.At a forum for foreign financial firms in Seoul, Friday, Financial Supervisory Service Gov. Kwon Hyouk-se stressed the necessity of bolstering regulatory transparency in “the era of free trade pacts.”His promise came during his speech at the 4th annual event, dubbed “FSS Speaks,” on the nation’s regulatory policy directions.“One (policy) is steps we are taki

March 9, 2012

Top regulator promises transparency under FTAs

Solo households change economy

One in four households has just one occupant; companies shiftattention to their potentialThe number of Korean households with only one occupant is on the rise, and local companies are taking increasing notice of their significant purchasing power. Compared with married people, those who live alone tend to eat out in restaurants, enjoy time at cafes, take various hobbyist classes and go to the gym. The demographic’s distinctive preferences for certain goods and services is now generating interest

March 9, 2012

Producer price gain accelerates...in February

South Korea’s producer price growth accelerated in February from the previous month because of a rise in oil prices and public service charges, the central bank said Friday.The producer price index, a barometer of future consumer inflation, gained 3.5 percent in February from a year ago, accelerating from a 3.4 percent on-year growth in the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea. The January figure marked the slowest growth pace in 17 months.The on-year gain was largely attributed to an

March 9, 2012

Producer price gain accelerates...in February

Import prices of raw materials rise in Feb.

Import prices of key raw materials rose for a second consecutive month in February on a steady rise of petroleum and non-ferrous metal prices, a trade association said Friday.The Korea Importers Association said its price index for imported commodities stood at 387.36 last month, up 16.91 points or 4.56 percent from January. KOIMA uses 1995 as the base year for the benchmark index that covers 56 key imported raw materials, ranging from corn and soybeans to crude oil and aluminum scraps.The assoc

March 9, 2012

Foreign currency deposits at 5 Korean lenders top $20 bln

Foreign currency-denominated deposits at five South Korean lenders more than doubled from a year ago to $20 billion in February on the back of the local currency‘s ascent against the U.S. dollar, financial industry sources said Friday. According to local sources, the outstanding deposits at five commercial lenders -- Kookmin Bank, Woori Bank, Shinhan Bank, Hana Bank and the state-run Industrial Bank of Korea -- reached $20.36 billion, up 3.2 percent from January.The figure was a 65 percent surge

March 9, 2012

Proposed ‘nuclear’ clock most accurate?

A clock tied to the orbiting of an atom’s neutron could gain or lose less than a second in 14 billion years, the age of the universe, Australian scientists say.“This is nearly 100 times more accurate than the best atomic clocks we have now,” said one of the researchers proposing such a “nuclear” clo

TechnologyMarch 9, 2012

Space weather storm fizzles on arrival

A picture taken late on March 7, 2012 of northern lights in Abisko, Swedish Lapland. (AFP)A space weather storm that was forecast to be the strongest in five years has fizzled out and ended up causing no impact to power grids or modern navigation systems, US experts said on Thursday.A series of erup

TechnologyMarch 9, 2012

Seoul to promote safety of its nuclear plants

Korean reactor models demonstrate upgraded safety featuresThe Seoul Nuclear Security Summit on March 26 and 27, which will be preceded by a nuclear industry conference three days earlier, is expected to be an opportunity to show off the technological excellence and safety of Korean atomic power plants.The Korean standard nuclear power plant, which is 95 percent technologically self-sufficient, has risen as a major export item in the country after semiconductors, cars, mobile phones and ships.Sta

IndustryMarch 8, 2012

Seoul to promote safety of its nuclear plants

LG Uplus to offer service for LTE voice calls in October

LG Uplus Co., South Korea’s smallest mobile carrier, said Thursday that it plans to start voice over long-term evolution service late this year that will enable smartphone users to access better data and voice services.The LTE service, or the fourth-generation wireless technology, enables customers to access a stream of data faster than the current 3G network and download and watch movies more quickly. The VoLTE technology allows users to enjoy high quality voice services as well. “We are aiming

IndustryMarch 8, 2012

LG Uplus to offer service for LTE voice calls in October

LG chairman orders faster roll-out of OLED TVs

LG Group chairman Koo Bon-moo urged its flagship electronics arm to secure the lead in the organic light-emitting diode television market by rolling out the TV sets earlier than scheduled.During his visit with its affiliates’ chief executives to the group’s research and development conference in Daejeon on Wednesday, he requested an early release of the 55-inch OLED TV, which is currently set to be launched in the latter half of this year.He also asked LG Display to speed up the development of p

IndustryMarch 8, 2012

LG chairman orders faster roll-out of OLED TVs

Hotels under antitrust probe

The Fair Trade Commission has launched an investigation into the country’s seven top-rated hotels in Seoul on suspicion of colluding to rig the prices of their wedding packages and rooms, according to industry sources and reports Thursday.The seven hotels are Lotte Hotel Seoul, Lotte Hotel World, The Shilla Seoul, The Westin Chosun Seoul, Sheraton Grande Walkerhill, W Seoul-Walkerhill and The Plaza Hotel Seoul.“FTC investigators requested yesterday documents related to our wedding business,” an

IndustryMarch 8, 2012