Most Popular
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Ex-presidential official’s leaked phone call rattles conservative bloc
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Man escapes DUI charges by downing bottle of soju while pulled over
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Pay debate plagues foreign nanny pilot
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K-pop star lip-syncing controversy flares up again
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35% of S. Koreans view unification 'unnecessary'
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Slew of top K-pop stars ready to return from military
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S. Korea, US clinch 2026-30 defense cost-sharing deal in pre-election push
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[Reporter’s Notebook] Was Netflix film opening BIFF really a bad thing?
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N. Korean leader's sister derides Seoul's Hyunmoo-5 missile as 'useless'
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Controversial cult leader’s sentence reduced to 17 years
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Korea plans to reduce electricity reserve rate by 2% in 2030
South Korea is planning to reduce the electricity reserve rate by up to 2 percent in 2030 amid its new energy policy to phase out nuclear power plants, the government said Friday.A government panel to outline the country's biennial power supply road map said that it determined the reasonable electricity reserve rate to be 20-22 percent in the cited year, compared with 22 percent estimated two years earlier.A 1 percentage-point drop in the reserve rate can allow the government not to build a powe
Aug. 11, 2017
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Korea's overseas direct purchases surge in H1
Korea's overseas direct investment fell slightly in the second quarter from a year earlier due to a drop in investments to China and Vietnam, government data showed Friday.Investment made by South Korean companies in other countries totaled $8.47 billion in the April-June period, down 3.2 percent from $8.74 billion tallied a year ago, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Strategy and Finance.It also marked a 37-percent on-quarter slump from a record $13.45 billion tallied in the pre
Aug. 11, 2017
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Venture firms' exports soar 16% in H1
South Korean venture firms' exports jumped 16 percent on-year in the first half of 2017 on strong shipments to major markets, a local trade body said Friday.According to the Korea International Trade Association, outbound shipments by local venture firms came to $9.86 billion in the January-June period.With the current pace, venture companies' full-year exports are expected to expand at a double-digit rate for the first time since the 50.7 percent spike in 2010.Venture firms' outbound shipments
Aug. 11, 2017
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Former Kogas CEO wins litigation nullifying his dismissal
A Seoul court ruled in favor of the former head of Korea Gas Corp. in an administrative litigation that demanded the withdrawal of his dismissal on Thursday. The Seoul Administrative Court made a ruling for Jang Seok-hyo, the former CEO of Kogas, who sued former President Park Geun-hye, the Kogas CEO that replaced him, Lee Seung-hoon, and the state. Lee handed in his resignation in July. Jang Seok-hyo (Yonhap)The court judged Jang’s dismissal was unfair considering that he was acquitted of brib
Aug. 10, 2017
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Korean Air Line suffers losses in Q2
Korean Air Lines Co., South Korea's top airline, said Thursday that it suffered a loss in the second quarter on currency-related issues.The country's flag carrier logged a net loss of 200 billion won ($175 million) in the April-June period, the company said in a regulatory filing. But its operating income surged 8.5 percent on-year to reach 173 billion won, with sales also rising 3.1 percent to 2.9 trillion won over the cited period.In the first six months of the year, Korean Air posted an opera
Aug. 10, 2017
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[Herald Interview] ‘Telcos seek big data tie-ups with Mobileye’
Korean telecom operators are seeking partnerships with Israeli automotive tech firm Mobileye to maximize their presence in the self-driving car industry by combining their fast network capacities with the company’s big data technologies. Mobileye, which was acquired by Intel for $15.3 billion in March, is a leading advanced driver-assistance system solution provider to most global automakers. ADAS solution is a vehicle safety system which alerts drivers to potential collisions or accidents, by g
Aug. 10, 2017
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BAT challenges PMI in heated tobacco market with Glo
Dunhill maker British American Tobacco is throwing its hat into Korea’s heated tobacco market with the upcoming release of Glo, presenting an alternative to Philip Morris International’s existing IQOS products.On Thursday, BAT announced through a press conference at The Four Seasons Seoul that it will be opening its first Glo flagship store in the Garosugil shopping district of Seoul on Sunday, kicking off its sales in Korea. BAT Korea Executive Director of Legal and External Affairs Bae Yoon-su
Aug. 10, 2017
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[Inside Tech] Beauty meets IT for customized experience
The Korean cosmetics market is a jungle. With its vast spectrum of cosmetics brands at every price point and rapid-fire changes in the latest trends, it is one of the most competitive consumer industries here.But the zeal of brands to constantly come up with new, exciting products can often overwhelm consumers who find it difficult to decide on products to buy.To increase convenience for customers and to help them find the best products, Korean cosmetics companies have found ways to incorporate
Aug. 10, 2017
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Automakers threaten to move factories offshore ahead of court ruling on wages
South Korea's automakers on Thursday warned they may have to move their factories offshore pending an imminent court ruling that could increase the cost of salaries by trillions of won.The Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association, representing the country's five car producers, said in a joint statement that a ruling to include bonuses and other extra stipends as part of regular wages would be a "deadly blow" not only to themselves but to their chain of subcontractors."If the prospects of incre
Aug. 10, 2017
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Hanwha Chemical Q2 net dips 20% on one-time factor
Hanwha Chemical Corp., a major chemicals firm, said Thursday that its second-quarter earnings sank almost 20 percent from a year earlier, due to a one-off factor.Net profit reached a record 249 billion won ($218 million) in the April-June period, compared with a profit of 310 billion won a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing. Hanwha Chemical Corp.`s plant in Yeosu, South Korea. (Yonhap)Operating income also dipped 25 percent on-year to reach 219 billion won, while sales edged u
Aug. 10, 2017
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Kakao's Q2 net edges down 5.6%
Kakao Corp., the operator of South Korea's top mobile messenger KakaoTalk, on Thursday said its second-quarter net profit moved down 5.6 percent on increased costs and tax payment.Net profit reached 12.5 billion won ($10.9 million) on a consolidated basis in the April-June period, compared with 13.2 billion won the previous year, the company said in a regulatory filing. But its operating income surged 67.7 percent on-year to 44.6 billion won, and sales rose 24.4 percent to 468 billion won. (Yon
Aug. 10, 2017
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Court rules in favor of Samsung over Note 7 debacle
A local court on Wednesday ruled in favor of Samsung Electronics Co. in a class action suit filed by some 1,900 owners of the tech giant's ill-fated Galaxy Note 7, saying that it is hard to believe their inconvenience in the wake of the recall of the device and the production discontinuation was unacceptable.Last year, Note 7 consumers filed the suit with the Seoul Central District Court seeking a combined 935 million won($822,000) in compensation. A customer holds a Galaxy Note 7 at Samsung Ele
Aug. 10, 2017
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Search begins for pension fund’s new head
The search for the head of the world’s fourth-largest pension fund has begun, with a high-profile trial on an alleged bribery case involving the nation’s former leader, Samsung’s chief and the pension operator nearing an end. The National Pension Service said Wednesday that it has formed a committee to pick candidates for the chairman post, which has been vacant since late last year. Former NPS Chairman Moon Hyung-pyo was found guilty of pressuring the pension fund to back a controversial merger
Aug. 9, 2017
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SK Energy to import 1m barrels of US crude
Korea’s top refining company SK Energy has signed a deal to import US crude oil in an attempt to seek better profits on the back of recent price hikes in crude from the Middle East.A shipment of 1 million barrels of US West Texas Intermediate is expected to arrive at the company’s refining facility in Ulsan in mid-October, the company said. (Yonhap)SK Energy’s order came as the prices of Middle East crude started to increase after OPEC decided to cut its output through March next year to prop up
Aug. 9, 2017
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LS Cable & System wins W20b cable supply deal in Italy
South Korean cable manufacturer LS Cable & System has won an optical cables supply deal in Italy, the company said Wednesday.The deal signed with Italy’s telecoms network company Open Fiber is estimated to be worth 20 billion won ($17.6 million), the largest amount of optical cables to be exported by a Korean company, according to the company. LS will be providing optical cables for Open Fiber’s high speed network construction project until 2018. (LS Cable & System)Open Fiber is owned by the st
Aug. 9, 2017
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Golden Blue's sales continue rise boosted by Phantom
Local whisky maker Golden Blue said Wednesday that its sales for the first half of 2017 exceeded expectations, boosted by the popularity of its Phantom whisky products in a stagnant spirits market.Golden Blue sold 180,000 9-liter cases of its signature Golden Blue whisky and Phantom products in the first half of 2017, rising nearly 10 percent on-year. Phantom whisky products (Golden Blue)The major driver of sales was Phantom, a new line of products released last year that is mainly marketed to t
Aug. 9, 2017
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McDonald’s requests injunction against consumer agency’s probe report
McDonald’s Korea has asked the local court to block the release of results from a consumer group’s analysis of hamburgers being sold at fast-food chains and convenience stores in Korea.According to McDonald’s Korea, the survey’s results are invalid because the analysis did not follow proper procedures. “We were able to verify through security cameras that a sample collected for the survey was not stored and shipped according to protocol,” an official with McDonald’s Korea said. The official said
Aug. 9, 2017
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‘Organica hopes to spark a food revolution’
Consumers today are bombarded each waking moment with advertisements. Every day, there is a new product that proclaims to be bigger and faster than the last. Weighed down by what has been dubbed “ad fatigue,” consumers are now seeking something more -- true value behind products and principled actions by brands.This is the secret behind the rapid growth of Herald Corp.’s premium food brand Organica, according to the group’s Chairman Jungwook Hong. Herald Corp. Chairman Jungwook Hong (Lee Sang-su
Aug. 9, 2017
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Samsung unveils world’s largest-capacity V-NAND
Samsung Electronics said Wednesday it unveiled the world’s largest-capacity Vertical-NAND memory solutions amid growing demand for data-intensive applications across many industries using artificial intelligence and Internet of Things technologies. The world’s largest memory chip maker showcased 1-terabit V-NAND technology and an array of new solid state drives at the annual Flash Memory Summit held in California on Tuesday. Samsung said these solutions will be at the forefront of enabling data-
Aug. 9, 2017
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Korea retakes top spot in global ship orders in July
South Korean shipyards recaptured the No. 1 position in new orders worldwide in July amid a plunge in overall numbers, outpacing Chinese rivals, industry data showed Wednesday.According to the data compiled by global research firm Clarkson Research Institute, local shipbuilding companies clinched new orders worth a combined 306,000 compensated gross tons last month to build nine vessels.Chinese rivals came next with 295,000 CGTs, or 13 ships. Japanese shipyards' orders came to nil.Globally, new
Aug. 9, 2017