Seoul shares expected to gain ground next week

South Korean stocks are forecast to move upward next week, analysts said Saturday, with the Greek prime minister's latest victory in a confidence vote and an upcoming meeting among European financial ministers likely to embolden investor sentiment.   The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Pri

Nov. 5, 2011

EU questions Samsung, Apple for possible probe

The European Commission said Saturday that it has requested Samsung Electronics Co. and Apple Inc. to provide details on their wireless patents as part of an initial procedure in antitrust investigations.   The commission sent requests for information to Samsung andApple regarding the enfo

TechnologyNov. 5, 2011

Big firms banned from tofu, 24 other businesses

A presidential panel to promote shared growth on Friday released an updated list of 25 industry sectors where conglomerates will be advised to withdraw or have their business expansion restricted. The Commission on Shared Growth for Large and Small Companies said large companies will be banned from expanding into over-competitive sectors or those traditionally occupied by small businesses, including tofu, plate glass and ready-mixed concrete.The decision is the latest instruction after a series

IndustryNov. 4, 2011

Seoul shares soar 3.13% on eased Greek woes

South Korean stocks surged 3.13 percent on Friday, boosted by hopes Greece will abandon a controversial national vote on terms of a eurozone bailout package, analysts said. The local currency shot up against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index jumped 58.45 points to 1,928.41. Trading volume was heavy at 461.5 million shares worth 7.1 trillion won ($6.4 billion), with gainers far outnumbering losers 706 to 147. “The referendum called by Greek Prime Minister George Papa

Nov. 4, 2011

IBK Q3 net rises 12%

South Korea’s state-run Industrial Bank of Korea said Friday that its third-quarter earnings rose 12.5 percent from a year earlier due to an increase in interest income. Net income amounted to 410.3 billion won ($369.3 million) in the July-September period, compared with 366.3 billion won the previous year, the state-run bank, which mostly caters to small and medium enterprises, said in a regulatory filing.Compared with three months earlier, net profit declined 14.7 percent as the bank recorded

Nov. 4, 2011

New agency to protect financial comsumers

Korea’s two financial regulatory bodies agreed to set up an agency aimed at protecting consumers after ironing out many of their differences. The new agency will be established early next year.The Financial Services Commission, whose primary role is to set financial policies, and the Financial Supervisory Service, an agency authorized to inspect and punish financial firms that fail to protect consumers, were locked in a battle for influence over the new organization.FSC officials said on Friday

Nov. 4, 2011

SK Telecom, KT start to accept preorders for iPhone 4S

South Korea's two leading mobile carriers SK Telecom Co. and KT Corp. on Friday began receiving preorders for Apple Inc.'s latest iPhone 4S, which is slated to hit the local market next week.South Korean customers could preorder the iconic smartphone on the companies' Web sites from Friday. Preorder

TechnologyNov. 4, 2011

Korea to export tomatoes, grapes to N. America

South Korea will export tomatoes and grapes to the North American market starting in 2012 after meeting quality control and quarantine safety requirements, the government said Thursday.The Agriculture Ministry’s Animal, Plant and Fisheries Quarantine and Inspection Agency said negotiations with the United States to ship tomatoes were successfully concluded last month.“Farms that can meet quality control requirements will be checked by inspectors and be registered as exporters,” it said. “Actual

Nov. 3, 2011

Korea should focus on economic stability: report

South Korea needs to frame its macroeconomic policy in order to stabilize overall economic situations as the country still faces high global uncertainties that could impede its recovery and growth, the Finance Ministry said Thursday.A slowing private-sector recovery, deepening fiscal debt problems in advanced nations and belt-tightening by emerging countries will also likely combine to further slow global economic growth, the ministry said.“The global economy is expected to stay on a low-growth

Nov. 3, 2011

N.K. economy shrinks for 2nd year: BOK

The North Korean economy contracted for the second straight year in 2010 due to tougher international sanctions and sluggish agricultural production, the South Korean central bank estimated Thursday.The Bank of Korea estimated that the communist country’s economy shrank 0.5 percent on-year last year, compared with a 0.9 percent contraction in 2009. The data stood in sharp contrast to the 6.2 percent expansion of the South Korean economy in 2010.The North Korean economy grew 3.1 percent in 2008 o

Nov. 3, 2011

SC First Bank mulls 24-hour service branches

CEO Hill promotes reform to compete with local commercial banksStandard Chartered First Bank is pushing for operational reforms to enhance its competitiveness in the banking sector after suffering from months of striking by its unionized staff. Bank CEO Richard Hill disclosed its intention to open several branches which offer offline and online services 24 hours a day and seven days a week. These would be the first of their kind in the local financial sector.Meeting reporters in New York on Wedn

Nov. 3, 2011

KFDA warns against ‘smart pill’ abuse

The Korea Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday issued a warning against so-called “smart pills” that contain narcotics. According to the drug agency, the pills prescribed to treat attention deficit hyperactive disorder are often used by students to ward of sleepiness and enhance concentration. However, the main ingredient of the drug, methylphenidate, can cause anxiety and depression as well as seizure during sleep, even if taken by someone who is healthy.The KFDA revealed that a total of 306

TechnologyNov. 3, 2011

Seonam to look after N. Korean defectors

Seonam Hospital will take care of North Korean defectors as part of efforts to help them settle in South Korea and enhance their health, the hospital said Tuesday. The hospital has allied with Hana Center, a state-run institution to assist settlement of North Korean defectors in South Korean society, to provide them with medical care. The hospital will reorganize itself to better treat North Korean defectors and develop health programs suitable to them. (baejisook@heraldm.com)

TechnologyNov. 3, 2011

Cancer’s most isolated patients: Adolescents and young adults

LOS ANGELES ― She has had four surgeries to remove her thyroid, parathyroid and vocal cord nerve, along with muscle and tissue.Once a year, she goes to a hospital and swallows a radioactive iodine capsule to attack the remaining cancer cells ― and then remains in isolation for four days. During what she calls her quarantine, she can’t touch ― or even be in the same room as ― anyone else. The treatment causes soreness, swelling, nausea and headaches.Each year, as the ordeal approaches, she scans

TechnologyNov. 3, 2011