Woongjin Group to sell water purifier maker

Woongjin Group announced Monday that it will sell Woongjin Coway, the nation’s biggest water purifier maker, according to news reports.The news immediately sparked market attention on the reason behind the sale, as the company is a money-making subsidiary for the conglomerate. Coway’s sales last year took up about 27 percent in the conglomerate’s total output. The company also enjoys a share of more than 50 percent in water purifier marketSome industry watchers said the sale may be aimed at secu

IndustryFeb. 6, 2012

Carcinogens found in Samsung chip factories: study

Trace amounts of leukemia-linked carcinogens were found in semiconductor-producing factories of Samsung Electronics Co. and other chipmakers, a governmental authority said Monday.  “We found that cancer-causing substances are present inside the chip factories,” said Park Jung-sun, head of the s

IndustryFeb. 6, 2012

BAT to roll out strong cigarettes

By Shin Hyon-heeBritish American Tobacco Korea plans to introduce a stronger version of its Lucky Strike cigarettes to boost the nascent brand’s presence in the market, the local unit of the multinational group said Monday.The latest product, Lucky Strike Original Filters, will provide a richer and bolder taste than the previous version, and features cork-tipped filters with modern, black packaging, the company said.A pack contains 8 milligrams of tar and will be sold for 2,500 won ($2.20) start

IndustryFeb. 6, 2012

KT Q4 net rises 12.5% on one-off factor

Korea’s telecom titan KT Corp. said Monday that its fourth-quarter net profit rose 12.5 percent from a year earlier due to a one-off factor.Net income came to 210.6 billion won ($188.9 million) in the October-December period of last year, compared with 187.1 billion won a year ago, the company said in a regulatory filing.Sales jumped 24.7 percent on-year to 6.4 trillion won over the same period, while its operating profit dropped 16.7 percent to 287.6 billion won in the final quarter of last yea

TechnologyFeb. 6, 2012

Israeli ad has Iranians fuming at Samsung

Samsung Electronics is facing a backlash in Iran over a commercial that featured its tablet PC blowing up what appears to be an Iranian nuclear facility.The company has made clear that it did not take part in the production of the advertisement and that Israeli cable television channel HOT had made the clip to promote itself.“Currently, the cable channel has stopped running the commercial on YouTube,” said a Samsung executive. “We’re not planning to take particular action at this point as we hav

IndustryFeb. 6, 2012

Cultural exports draw $800 million in 2011

Korea raised nearly $800 million from the export of television dramas, movies and K-pop content last year, the Bank of Korea said Monday, raking in the highest amount of revenue since overseas sales began in 1997. The culture industry generated a total of 890 billion won ($793 million) from the Korean Wave or hallyu in 2011, the highest overseas profit since the central bank started collecting related data in 1980. The industry generated no revenue from selling cultural content abroad up until 1

IndustryFeb. 6, 2012

Import cars capture 8.9% of Korean market

Foreign carmakers grabbed nearly 9 percent of the automobile market in Korea last month, marking the second-highest monthly share in history.According to the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association, sales of import cars came to 9,441 units in January, up 9 percent from a year earlier.The import cars accounted for 8.92 percent of the combined sales, including made-in-Korea cars, totaling 105,889 units last month.Their market share is the second-highest since they posted 8.96 perce

MobilityFeb. 6, 2012

Shares inch up on better U.S. data

Korean stocks closed a tad higher Monday, lifted by improved U.S. economic data, but the gains were limited on renewed concern over Greece’s default, analysts said. The local currency fell against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 0.79 points, or 0.04 percent, to finish at 1,973.13. Trading volume was heavy at 515.3 million shares worth 7.21 trillion won ($6.43 billion) with decliners outpacing gainers 433 to 400. The KOSPI opened 1.10 percent higher but los

Feb. 6, 2012

Retirement pension market grows 71%

Korea’s pension industry grew 71 percent last year after more retirees-to-be subscribed to pension funds in one of the world’s fastest-aging societies, the financial regulator said Monday. The size of retirement pension reserves came in at 49.92 trillion won by December 2011, posting a 71.3 percent jump from 29.15 trillion won a year earlier, the Financial Supervisory Services said. “The flock to the pension market is creating a heated competition to introduce pension funds and insurance,” a FSS

IndustryFeb. 6, 2012

Retailers move to boycott Shinhan Card

About 1 million stores participate in protest to demand reduction of service chargesA million retailers nationwide are set to boycott payment via Shinhan Card from Feb. 20.Their protest against the nation’s largest credit card firm is due to the card industry’s lukewarm attitude toward cutting settlement service charges on retailers.Members of the retailer association notified consumers on Monday that they will not accept Shinhan Card for payment of goods.The retailers reportedly demanded cuttin

Feb. 6, 2012

Former tax official indicted on charges of helping SK Group evade

A convicted former senior tax official has been additionally indicted on charges of receiving a massive amount of money in return for helping South Korea's third-largest industrial conglomerate SK Group evade tax audits, prosecutors said Monday. Lee Hee-wan, a former director at the Seoul Regional T

Feb. 6, 2012

Sony, Panasonic expect larger losses as Samsung dominates

Japan’s biggest makers of TVs, phones and chips say they will lose about $17 billion this year, about three-quarters of what Samsung Electronics Co. will spend on research to lengthen the lead over its competitors.Sony Corp. more than doubled its annual loss forecast for the year ending March 31 as it announced a new chief executive officer, while Panasonic Corp. and Sharp Corp. predicted the worst losses in their histories. Their combined losses compare with the $22 billion that Samsung, Asia’s

IndustryFeb. 6, 2012

Korea, Turkey to sign MOU on $2b power plant

ISTANBUL (Yonhap News) -- South Korean firms will sign a preliminary agreement to build a thermal power plant in southern Turkey on the sidelines of President Lee Myung-bak's trip to the Eurasian nation, officials said Sunday.A consortium of SK E&C and the state-run Korea South-East Power Co. will s

IndustryFeb. 6, 2012

Four companies fined for cartel in submarine project

Korea’s four major defense manufacturers have been fined for allegedly forming a cartel in a 2.7 trillion won ($2.41 billion) project to build next generation submarines, the country’s antitrust watchdog said Sunday.The four defense contractors ― LIG Nex1, Samsung Thales, Hanwha Corp. and STX Engine Co.― were imposed with a combined fine of 5.99 billion won, according to the Fair Trade Commission.Samsung Thales was fined 2.68 billion won with LIG Nex1 ordered to pay 2.47 billion won in penalties

Feb. 5, 2012