The Korea Herald

Seoul seeks to start beef exports: minister

Korea will seek to begin exporting beef within a few years as part of its efforts to help stabilize prices, the agriculture minister said Tuesday.“Considering wagyu (Japanese beef) is 1.5 times more expensive than Korean beef but that Japan still exports beef, I believe we, too, can export Korean beef,” Suh Kyu-yong, the minister of food, agriculture, forestry and fisheries, told a press briefing.Suh, however, noted it will take some time before the country can begin shipping its beef overseas.“

Jan. 10, 2012

Korea overtakes China as world’s top shipbuilder

South Korea regained its status as the world’s leading shipbuilding nation in 2011 by beating its archrival China and securing deals for large, value-added vessels, data showed Tuesday.According to London-based market researcher Clarkson Research Services, South Korean shipbuilders won a combined 13.55 million compensated gross tons in new orders last year, while Chinese shipbuilders clinched a total of 9.2 million CTGs.Last year, South Korea accounted for 48.2 percent of a total of 28.11 millio

Jan. 10, 2012

Samsung Electronics aims to exceed half of group’s total sales this year

LAS VEGAS ― Samsung Electronics, the world’s top television maker, will make greater investments this year compared to last year, taking over half of the Samsung Group and its affiliates sales for 2012, said its chief executive on Tuesday.Choi Gee-sung, vice chairman of the group’s flagship electronics arm, said the investment sum, including the sum given to software development, is likely to go over the amount listed on its 2012 business scheme by the year’s end, considering that the firm must

IndustryJan. 10, 2012

Samsung Electronics aims to exceed half of group’s total sales this year

Prices of daily necessities rise in December: report

Prices of most daily necessities in South Korea increased in December despite government efforts to fight rising inflation, a report by the state-run consumer protection watchdog showed Tuesday.The report by the Korea Consumer Agency showed that of the 102 everyday consumer necessities monitored such as sugar, cereals and detergents, prices of 70 products, or 68 percent, went up in December from a month earlier. Prices for 28 products fell or remained unchanged over the cited period, it showed.T

Jan. 10, 2012

LG Display targets expansion into OLED displays for small devices

LAS VEGAS ― LG Display, a major player in the international flat-screen panel market, said it intends to inject more investment into mobile organic light-emitting diode displays, according to its chief executive on Tuesday.Han Sang-beom, LG Display’s chief executive officer, said the firm has already produced a plastic OLED prototype for mobile phones which is deemed to be thinner, lighter and unbreakable, in a meeting with the Korean press held on the sidelines of the Consumer Electronics Show.

IndustryJan. 10, 2012

LG Display targets expansion into OLED displays for small devices

Asian woes may pose risks to Korean economy

China and other Asian economies are saddled with a raft of downside risks, adding to fears they may hurt the South Korean economy along with lingering eurozone debt woes, a report showed Tuesday.The report by the Korea Center for International Finance said that such risks could further undermine the global economy already buffeted by the impact from the long-standing eurozone debt crisis.According to the report, China is likely to see its economic growth rate fall by up to 1.5 percentage points

Jan. 10, 2012

Cho You-mi named to head Leo Burnett Korea

Leo Burnett Korea said Tuesday that it has named current general manager Cho You-mi the new managing director at the Korean branch of the world’s leading advertising company. With her recent promotion, Cho has become the first female president among the heads of the nation’s top 20 advertising companies, the company said. The 40-year-old joined Leo Burnett in 2002 and has participated in commercial productions for global and domestic companies such as P&G, McDonald’s and Pfizer Korea. “I will e

IndustryJan. 10, 2012

Cho You-mi named to head Leo Burnett Korea

Real estate fund market grows rapidly

Trend expected to continue as investors diversify portfoliosKorean investors, faced with a dearth of reliable assets, are shifting their eyes toward the real estate investment funds. Local real estate funds have drawn a total of 13.2 trillion won ($11.4 billion) as of Jan. 5, up from 7 trillion won recorded in September 2008, according to the data by the Korea Finance Investment Association. The tally covers money from both public and private sector, underscoring that the trend is a reflection o

Jan. 10, 2012

Stronger won exposed to more volatility

Sino-U.S. currency friction could amplify Korean currency fluctuation in 2012It has been a familiar year-end scene. Korean financial officials try to shore up the value of the nation’s currency to help local companies that settle accounts in December avoid exchange losses.In the closing days of 2008, a year when the Korean won fell sharply against the U.S. dollar amid the global financial crisis, some foreign exchange dealers in Seoul were pressed to withdraw their orders to buy the greenback.At

Jan. 10, 2012

Woori Financial eyes three overseas M&A deals

Woori Financial Group has been pushing for takeover deals in three overseas markets simultaneously, its chairman Lee Pal-seung told reporters Tuesday.“We have been in mergers and acquisitions talks in two regions (countries) in Southeast Asia. One of the two negotiations has seen good progress,” he said.He added that Woori Financial is also carrying out merger talks with a financial company in a country linking Asia and Europe.Group executives had said they were considering increasing the compan

Jan. 10, 2012

Woori Financial eyes three overseas M&A deals

Mahindra to import Ssangyong’s Rexton

DELHI, India ― In an industrial town 1,200 kilometers southwest of Delhi, India’s fourth-largest carmaker Mahindra & Mahindra has completed a facility to reproduce Ssangyong’s SUV Rexton starting in April this year.“The factory here will start importing pre-assembled parts of Rexton from Korea in the second quarter. It will be our home base as we enter the Indian market,” said Chung Moo-young, Ssangyong Motor public relations official on Sunday.The M&M Vehicle Manufacturers Ltd sits in Chakan of

IndustryJan. 10, 2012

Investing in communities beyond borders

Korean firms look to create social impact via education, donations and volunteeringThese days, the concept of “giving back” among businesses is not rare.With an increasing number of Korean firms going global, their responsibility to the community stretches beyond their home turf. POSCO opened foster care centers and agricultural training facilities in Africa. Samsung Electronics nurtures engineers in the Middle East and India. Hyundai Motor backs China’s fight against desertification and pediatr

IndustryJan. 10, 2012

Korea’s ETF trade surges on short-term investors: data

Korea’s exchange-trade funds market has emerged as the biggest in Asia in terms of trading value, data showed Tuesday.The sharp rise of ETF trades in Korea demonstrates that investors put more of their short-term funds in the investments amid a positive outlook for the overall ETF market this year. ETF is an investment fund traded on stock exchanges with attractive features such as low cost, tax efficiency and stock-like characteristics. According to the Korea Exchange, the country’s average dai

Jan. 10, 2012

Samsung, LG unleash tech prowess

Global companies unveil new products as technology trade show CES kicks off in Las VegasLAS VEGAS ― The 2012 International Consumer Electronics Show kicked off here on Tuesday with more than 20,000 new consumer technology products to be launched at the world’s biggest industrial trade fair.Industrial giants, including Samsung and LG Electronics, Intel, Microsoft, Sony and Qualcomm, are taking part in the show, holding global press conferences at nearby hotels.Samsung Electronics and LG Electroni

IndustryJan. 10, 2012

Car exports reach record high in 2011

The auto industry’s exports posted a record high last year, up 13.7 percent from the year before as shipments to Europe and emerging markets proved surprisingly buoyant, government data showed Tuesday.The industry shipped a total of 3,151,930 vehicles last year, surpassing three million for the first time and posting a considerable jump from 2,772,107 in 2011, the Ministry of Knowledge Economy said.“Demand from the U.S. and Europe continued to recover and growth in emerging markets was solid in

IndustryJan. 10, 2012

Avante wins top award in Detroit

Hyundai edges out Ford, Volkswagen for North American Car of the YearHyundai Motor’s Avante, dubbed the Elantra in overseas markets, has been named the 2012 North American Car of the Year.The winner was confirmed at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit after the compact sedan polled the highest number among a group of 50 motoring journalists from the U.S. and Canada. The Avante has been in a tight race with its fellow finalists ― the Volkswagen Passat and the Ford Motor Focus. T

Jan. 10, 2012

Google to support global success of Korean IT startups

Google Inc. will help the global success of Korean IT developers as the California-based search giant agreed on Tuesday to participate in the Korean government’s program supporting Internet startup businesses here. Google and the Korea Communications Commission signed a memorandum of understanding on Tuesday to cooperate for the state telecom regulator's startup support program called “Global K-Startup Program.”The agreement came after President Lee Myung-bak and Google chairman Eric Schmidt me

IndustryJan. 10, 2012

Google to support global success of Korean IT startups

Shares rise 1.46% on institutional buying

South Korean stocks rebounded 1.46 percent Tuesday as institutions scooped up shares following the U.S. markets’ rally, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar.Snapping a four-session losing streak, the benchmark KOSPI gained 26.73 points to 1,853.22. Trading volume was moderate at 383.2 shares worth 4.86 trillion won ($4.18 billion), with gainers outpacing losers 591 to 238. “After undergoing losses for the last four days, investors increased their bets, boosted by a Wall

Jan. 10, 2012

Government to keep watch on falling satellite

As a Russian Mars probe that stalled in orbit may fall to the Earth sometime next week, the government announced Tuesday that it would broadcast its location real time on the websites of related agencies and via Twitter until its crash.The 13.2-ton probe named Phobos-Grunt, launched last November, w

TechnologyJan. 10, 2012

Hyundai hit by stoppage after worker suicide bid

Unionised workers at South Korea's largest carmaker Hyundai Motor stopped work at engine plants in one factory Tuesday after a union member set himself ablaze due to alleged bullying by bosses. (Yonhap News)The union said workers at the five engine plants in the southeastern city of Ulsan stopped pr

MobilityJan. 10, 2012

Hyundai hit by stoppage after worker suicide bid