Companies and workers in the U.S. will increasingly lose out to competition from overseas during the next three years, according to a survey of Harvard Business School alumni. More than two-thirds of about 10,000 graduates of the school in Boston, said that U.S. companies will become less able to co

Jan. 19, 2012

New research from Uppsala University, Sweden, shows that a specific brain region that contributes to a person's appetite sensation is more activated in response to food images after one night of sleep loss than after one night of normal sleep. Poor sleep habits can therefore affect people's risk of

TechnologyJan. 19, 2012

Korea Customs Service confirmed Wednesday it had ordered Diageo Korea last year to pay 216.7 billion won ($189.8 million) for having underreported prices when importing liquor over three years.The KCS confirmed the imposition, which would be the largest of its kind in amount levied on a business. The customs office said Diageo Korea’s transfer prices had stayed significantly lower than those of other liquor importers.“The import prices Diageo Korea reported were considerably lower than those rep

Jan. 18, 2012

Foreign investment banks have contrasting opinions on the course of Korea’s policy rate as some bet on a rate freeze while others expect a rate cut, citing growing uncertainties stemming from eurozone risks, a report showed Wednesday.Korea’s benchmark seven-day repo rate currently stands at 3.25 percent after the Bank of Korea froze the rate for the seventh straight month in January.Four of 10 tallied investment banks, including Barclays Capital and Citigroup, said the BOK is expected to leave t

Jan. 18, 2012

Korea’s central bank said Wednesday that it has won approval from China to invest in yuan-denominated stocks and bonds, joining a string of local financial institutions seeking direct investment in the world’s No. 2 economy. The Bank of Korea received the qualified foreign institutional investor license from the China Securities Regulatory Commission, which allows the central bank to invest in stocks and bonds traded in Shanghai and Shenzen stock markets, it said in a statement. The license allo

Jan. 18, 2012

Samsung Electronics Co., the world’s largest maker of smartphones, said Tuesday that it does not have any interest in taking over Research In Motion Ltd., the BlackBerry maker.The Boy Genius Report, a tech blog, said that RIM is pushing to sell part of its divisions or even the whole company. It said that RIM’s co-chief executive Jim Balsillie has been actively contacting companies and Samsung is the most likely to be interested in the takeover.“The report is groundless, and we’ve not considered

TechnologyJan. 18, 2012

Apple Inc. filed another suit in Germany, seeking to ban sales of Samsung Electronics Co.’s smartphones, including the Galaxy S Plus and the S II, extending the global legal dispute between the two companies.The action targeting 10 smartphone models was filed in the Dusseldorf Regional Court and is based on Apple’s design rights, court spokesman Peter Schuetz said by phone Tuesday. Apple also started a separate suit against five Samsung tablet computers related to a September ruling banning the

TechnologyJan. 18, 2012

Financial regulators filed a complaint against the chief of CNK International and three other persons with the prosecution in connection with a growing financial scandal. The Securities & Futures Commission said it took the measure as they are suspected of having engaged in unfair stock trading practices.The SFC said it also informed the prosecution of the alleged wrongdoings of a former diplomat and minister for the Prime Minister’s Office Cho Joong-pyo and five other persons. After he retired

Jan. 18, 2012

Korean stocks closed 0.02 percent lower on Wednesday as investors turned gun-shy following the previous session’s rally, analysts said. The local currency gathered ground against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 0.35 points to 1,892.39, after jumping 1.8 percent on Tuesday.Trading volume was moderate at 421.6 million shares worth 5.95 trillion won ($5.21 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 461 to 362.“It seems the KOSPI is testing technical resistance a

Jan. 18, 2012

Koreans are enjoying the second-lowest electricity rates among Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development member countries, a report said Wednesday. Prices of electricity for industrial and residential use in Korea stood at 5.8 cents per kilowatt-hour and 7.7 cent kilowatt-hour in 2009, making them lower than in all OECD nations except for Canada, according to the Korean Social Trends report by Statistics Korea. “The cost of electricity for residential purposes here is about 1.5 times

Jan. 18, 2012

Daewoo International Corp. on Wednesday posted record revenue and a more than seven-fold surge in net profit for last year, prompted by robust overseas business and increased sales channels linked with its top stakeholder POSCO.Sales soared 20 percent on-year to nearly 18.8 trillion won ($16.5 billion) in 2011, according to a regulatory filing. Operating profit more than quintupled to 238.8 billion won, while net income topped 160 billion won.The upbeat results drove up Daewoo shares by 3.13 per

IndustryJan. 18, 2012

Korea’s major chemical makers are expected to report weaker than previously forecast earnings for the fourth quarter of last year as reduced demand from Europe and China hurt their bottom lines, industry sources said Wednesday.LG Chem Ltd., the country’s top chemical maker, is estimated to have racked up an operating income of 532 billion won ($465 million) in the fourth quarter, down 25.7 percent from the previous quarter. Its fourth-quarter sales are projected to have declined 3.6 percent to 5

IndustryJan. 18, 2012

More Koreans are preparing for life after retirement as they wish to live independently, a survey report said Wednesday.The report by Statistics Korea showed that 65.7 percent of those surveyed said that they are preparing for their elderly life in 2011, much higher than 32.9 percent in a similar survey conducted in 1998. The ratio for male respondents stood at 73.2 percent in 2011, up from 43.4 percent, while for women it grew to 58.5 percent from 23 percent over the same period.The increase is

Jan. 18, 2012

HONG KONG (Yonhap News) ― Woongjin Coway Co., Korea’s biggest water purifier maker, will focus on the high-end cosmetics market in China this year, in a bid to tap into the world’s fastest growing cosmetics market, company officials said Wednesday. Woongjin Coway’s wholly owned unit in China is currently engaged in the cosmetics and home appliance businesses. Its cosmetic sales in China were estimated at 240 million yuan ($38 million) last year, up 16 percent from a year earlier.Revenues from Wo

IndustryJan. 18, 2012

Hotel Hyundai Gyeongpodae will be reborn as a high-rise luxury resort in 2014 on one of the most popular beaches along the country’s east coast. Hyundai Heavy Industries said Wednesday it has clinched a deal with Gangneung City to rebuild the 40-year-old structure into a 20-story hotel with 160 rooms by May 2014. Demolition work is scheduled to begin in May.The shipbuilder runs four luxury hotels here and one in Vladivostok, Russia, through its affiliate Hotel Hyundai. Some 240 kilometers east o

IndustryJan. 18, 2012