Most Popular
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Yoon, Marcos agree to upgrade military, infrastructure, nuclear ties
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'Culinary Class Wars' producers deny trying to spice up results
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Ex-president's daughter investigated for drunk driving accident
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Seoulites celebrate coexistence at Wellness Seoul 2024
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Netflix, streaming platforms come under fire for loose ratings
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S. Korea, Singapore seal supply chain agreement
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20 minors registered as CEOs making over 100 million won
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North Korean troops killed, wounded in Ukraine war: Seoul defense minister
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Yoon honors veterans of Korean War in trip to Philippines
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K-pop CEOs sidestep key issues at National Assembly audit
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Number of firms on watchdog's list down in Dec.
The number of business group affiliates subject to restrictions on mutual investments and loan guarantees declined in December from a month earlier, the antitrust watchdog said Monday.The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) said the number on the watch list stood at 1,675 from 63 business groups as of Monday, down 9 from the previous month.Sixteen firms including four Hyundai Motor affiliates were taken off the list following a stake sale or a merger, while seven were newly added, the watchdog said.Unde
Dec. 1, 2014
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Samsung seeks stability in personnel reshuffle amid challenges
South Korea's top conglomerate Samsung Group sought stability over risk in its first personnel reshuffle announced Monday since the hospitalization of its de-facto head Lee Kun-hee in May, with his heir taking a wait-and-see stance in expanding his presence."This year, Samsung Electronics Co., as well as many other companies suffered in their earnings compared to a year earlier,"said Samsung's top spokesman Lee June. "Therefore, we have decided to narrow the scope of personnel reshuffling."Under
Dec. 1, 2014
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KOSPO pursues shared growth in Busan
Korea Southern Power, a state-owned electric power supply company, pledged to contribute to local economic growth and support energy businesses in Busan, where it recently relocated its headquarters. The company, which is in charge of 12 percent of the country’s total electric power supply, moved its headquarters to Busan International Finance Center in October, in line with the government’s balanced national development plan. “With our move to Busan, KOSPO will seek ways to boost the local econ
Nov. 30, 2014
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[Design Forum] At Herald Design Market, design enhances lifestyle
The Herald Design Market, a sideline event of the Herald Design Forum 2014, was a rare occasion for visitors to experience how design enriches our daily lives. During the five-day event that ended Sunday, nearly 6,000 people visited the venue at the Dongdaemun Design Plaza in central Seoul. Under the theme “Design Your Life NOW,” the annual design market featured some 60 up-and-coming design and food companies this year. They also put their works and products on sale after a through screening by
Nov. 30, 2014
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KT, LG Uplus fined for "excessive" prices cuts in corporate messaging
South Korea's antitrust watchdog said Sunday that it has fined KT Corp. and LG Uplus Inc. a combined 6.2 billion won (US$5.6 million) for undermining fair market competition by excessively lowering prices of their corporate messaging services.KT and LG Uplus were fined 1.9 billion won and 4.3 billion won, respectively. The amount is preliminary and will be adjusted later after calculating related sales, according to the Fair Trade Commission (FTC).The two major mobile carriers are accused of tak
Nov. 30, 2014
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Samsung's Galaxy named S. Korea's most valuable brand for 4th year
Samsung Electronics Co.'s smartphone brand Galaxy was named South Korea's most valuable brand for the fourth straight year, a survey showed Sunday. Brandstock, a South Korean market research firm that determines rankings of the top 100 local brands, said in its latest survey that the Galaxy name retained the top spot for 2014, by getting a brand index reading of 936 points, out of a possible 1,000 points.The world's largest smartphone suffered setbacks in sales and earnings this year, mainly due
Nov. 30, 2014
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Samsung's chip sales expected to jump 15.6 pct this year
Samsung Electronics Co.'s semiconductor sales are expected to jump 15.6 percent on-year in 2014, closing the gap with industry leader Intel Corp., a global market tracker said Sunday.According to IHS Technology, Samsung chip sales are expected to reach a little over US$38.27 billion this year, up 15.6 percent from $33.11 billion tallied last year.This will push up the company's global market share to 10.9 percent from 10.3 percent in 2013, which will easily place it second in the semiconductor h
Nov. 30, 2014
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Watchdog mulls pushing again to sell Woori Bank next year
South Korea's financial authorities are considering trying again to sell a controlling stake in state-owned Woori Bank next year following the latest failure to put the lender in private hands, sources said Sunday.An auction to sell Woori Bank fell through Friday due to a lack of bidders, the government's fourth failure to privatize South Korea's No. 3 bank."There is no change in the government's stance of privatizing Woori Bank at an early date," said an official at the Financial Services Commi
Nov. 30, 2014
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[Weekender] Overseas shopping one click away
Lee Jeong-kyu, a 65-year-old pensioner, recently bought a Barbour waxed jacket, a hot-selling fashion item in Korea, on a U.K. online shopping site. “The price was 20 to 30 percent cheaper than in Korea. Free shipping was also available,” he said. “Among other things, it’s great to feel like a young trend-setter because overseas shopping was unthinkable when I was young.”In the era of one-click Internet shopping, Korean customers are flocking to global online shopping sites. For cheaper deals, t
Nov. 28, 2014
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[Weekender] Bargain hunting overseas changes local retail landscape
Forget city traffic and the shortage of parking spaces in shopping areas. More South Koreans are shopping on overseas e-commerce sites, with products ranging from simple fashion items to appliances.The so-called “jikgu-jok” — a tribe of shoppers buying goods directly on foreign websites — is growing rapidly here, as more people seek to dodge local retailers’ high markups on imported goods and have a wider range of choice.Jikgu-jok calls themselves “smart consumers.” They claim they pay less for
Nov. 28, 2014
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[Weekender] Korean retailers offer bargains to compete with Amazon on Black Friday
South Korean retailers are offering Black Friday bargains to lure local consumers who are buying Samsung TVs and foreign goods overseas with just the click of a mouse.Local department stores and e-commerce sites have launched sales ― with up to 60 percent off ― ahead of U.S. retail sales on Friday, challenged by the increasing popularity of direct-buying at foreign e-commerce sites. “Many retailers are afraid of losing young consumers, who go to U.S. websites to buy Samsung and LG’s electronic d
Nov. 28, 2014
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[Weekender] Asian shoppers flock to Korean online shops
When Connie Pang, 33, wanted to buy Korean cosmetics, she had only two options until a decade ago: Taking a four-hour flight to Korea or buying overpriced imports.Now, things have changed. The Chinese office worker simply turns to Korean online shopping malls to buy Korean items ranging from clothing to home appliances. It saves her both time and money, she said.“I visit Korean Web stores whenever I need Korean goods. It is much cheaper, even considering the overseas shipping fees and tariffs,”
Nov. 28, 2014
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[Weekender] Language barrier, online security turn foreign shoppers away
Despite a surge in foreign purchases on Korean online shopping sites, some barriers still hamper the shopping experiences. Common complaints include: poorly translated websites, excessive Internet security and limited delivery options. In a bid to meet the growing demand from foreign nationals, major online retailers have launched foreign language services, mostly in English and Chinese. But much of the content is poorly translated, with some detailed information only available in Korean. “It is
Nov. 28, 2014
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Homeplus showcases Korean food in Malaysia
Homeplus, the nation’s second-largest supermarket chain, launched a Korean food fair in Malaysia with Korea’s Agriculture Ministry on Thursday, the company said. A total of 20 food companies participated in the two-week-long food fair, part of the retailer’s global shared growth program, “Taste of Korea.” The Korean arm of U.K.-based Tesco is showcasing more than 150 Korean food products at 20 stores during the fair, including about 30 halal products that target the nation’s large Muslim populat
Nov. 28, 2014
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Falling oil prices may lift consumption, investment
Tumbling oil prices, caused by Thursday’s decision by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries to maintain oil production levels, is expected to improve consumption and investment in oil-dependent companies, industry sources said. However, there are lingering worries that oil’s continued slump may push consumer prices low enough to cause deflation, damaging economic growth. “The drop in the cost of oil imports may be a good sign for the Korean economy as a whole except some industri
Nov. 28, 2014
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Retailers eye Incheon duty-free bids
A new bidding war has started among retail giants over business licenses to operate duty-free stores at Incheon International Airport, the main gateway to Korea. Lotte and Shilla currently dominate the business. On Thursday, the Seoul Customs Service made a public notice about the opening of a bid, as the current business contracts expire in February. Since 2000, Incheon International Airport Corp., the airport operator, has renewed duty-free business licenses every five years. Sales at duty-fre
Nov. 28, 2014
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Hanwha names Kim as chemical arm CEO
Kim Chang-beumHanwha Group, the nation’s 10th-largest conglomerate by assets, named Kim Chang-beum, CEO of Hanwha Advanced Materials, as new head of its chemical arm Hanwha Chemical. “Top management of Hanwha Chemical will take a bigger role in the group’s business portfolio, following a recent deal with Samsung,” the group said in a press release. By taking the two chemical arms of Samsung ― Samsung General Chemicals and Samsung Total ― Hanwha has taken the top post in the nation’s petrochemica
Nov. 28, 2014
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Mobile carriers to sell new iPads from next week
South Korea’s mobile carriers said Friday they will start selling the new iPad Air 2 and iPad Mini 3 from early next month, following their Seoul debut in October. The latest tablet series by Apple will be available for purchase at retail stores from Dec. 3, SK Telecom and KT Corp. said in a press release. The release comes about a month after the tablets were first unveiled in South Korea on Oct. 31. A few thousand of them will be available for prepurchase, starting from Friday, until the stock
Nov. 28, 2014
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SK ends battery venture with Germany’s Continental
SK Innovation, South Korea’s top petrochemicals company, said Friday it will end a battery-cell joint venture with German partner Continental AG due to slow growth in demand for electric cars.SK Innovation and Continental, Europe’s second-largest car parts maker, established a joint venture in January 2013 to develop and produce lithium-ion battery systems for vehicles. Although the companies agreed to invest 270 million euros ($336 million) over five years, they are ending the partnership early
Nov. 28, 2014
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Korean unit of Macquarie Funds Group censured for malpractice
The South Korean unit of Australia-based asset manager Macquarie Funds Group faces a three-month business suspension and was fined 100 million won(US$91,000) for business malpractice linked to bond trading, the country's financial watchdog said Friday.According to the Financial Supervisory Service, Macquarie Investment Management Korea has been involved in the business malpractice of "parking" bonds at brokerages for a certain period, not immediately recording bond purchases on the balance sheet
Nov. 28, 2014