Most Popular
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Military aircraft evacuating S. Koreans in Lebanon returns home
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Yoon set for talks with Marcos in Philippines
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Korean bands get their day in the sun, finally
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Baseball star Hwang Jae-gyun, T-ara's Jiyeon file for divorce mediation
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2 US B-1B bombers conducted joint drill with S. Korean Air Force on Oct. 1 Armed Force Day
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Seoul Fireworks Festival ends smoothly, but leaves piles of trash
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[AtoZ into Korean mind] The price of numbers: How rankings shape lives in Korea
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Firefighters’ 3,000 won meals spark nutrition concerns
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From thrillers to animation: Netflix's 2025 Korean originals promise universal fun, fresh stories
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Injured captain Son Heung-min dropped from nat'l team for World Cup qualifiers
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LS Networks spins off Skechers
[THE INVESTOR] LS Networks will spin off its Skechers division, it announced on July 27. The new company, temporarily named Skechers Korea, will remain private and be solely devoted to import, distribution and sales of Skechers, a US footwear brand.The consumer goods affiliate of LS Group will remain a public company and continue the rest of its businesses including managing brands such as Prospecs and Mont-Bell, as well as trade and real estate lease. The due date for the physical division is S
July 28, 2016
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No. of new companies in H1 at record high
[THE INVESTOR] The number of corporations established during the first half of the year came to a new half-year record, the Small and Medium Business Administration said on July 28.According to the SMBA, 48,263 new companies were established during the first six months of the year, rising 4 percent from a year ago to set a new record. Retail and wholesale businesses were the most numerous at 11,168, accounting for 23.1 percent of the total, followed by manufacturing and construction businesses.
July 28, 2016
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Peter Thiel to invest W37.5b in Hanmi Semiconductor
[THE INVESTOR] Peter Thiel, the early investor in Facebook and PayPal, has recently decided to invest 37.5 billion won (US$33 million) in Hanmi Semiconductor, a Korean semiconductor equipment manufacturer. The plan comes after his first investment worth 37 billion won in the company back in 2013. Peter ThielAccording to the Korean firm on July 27, it will sell 2.5 million treasury shares at 15,000 won per share on Sept. 23. Thiel-backed Crescendo Equity Partners and CEP Semicon Holdings will pur
July 28, 2016
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Gov’t to spend W30b to boost fashion, lifestyle industries
[THE INVESTOR] The South Korean government will nurture premium fashion and lifestyle brands spending 30 billion won next year, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on July 28. As part of an effort to boost exports of consumption goods, it will double the R&D budget and support the whole process, from design to marketing for export, for seven categories: furniture, bags, kitchenware, stationery, sports and leisure, eyeglasses and watches. To raise added value to fashion and appar
July 28, 2016
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Thales to sell stake in Hanwha joint venture
[THE INVESTOR] Thales, the French defense giant, has decided to sell its 50 percent stake in Hanwha Thales, a defense electronics joint venture that Hanwha Group acquired from Samsung Group as part of a 1.9 trillion won (US$1.7 billion) deal in 2014. Thales had long considered selling off the stake since the Samsung-Hanwha deal was announced. According to industry sources, the company saw little benefits from working with the new partner as it had already enjoyed hefty dividends from the venture
July 28, 2016
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Sales at department stores, discount retailers up in June
South Korea's major department stores and discount chains saw their sales rise in June from a year earlier due to an increase in holidays, government data showed Thursday.The combined sales of three department stores -- Hyundai, Lotte and Shinsegae -- increased 11.8 percent on-year last month, while those of major discount retailers -- E-Mart, Lotte Mart and Home Plus -- edged up 0.9 percent during the same period last year, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and E
July 28, 2016
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SKT's bid to take over No. 1 cable TV operator officially terminated
Top mobile carrier SK Telecom Co.'s bid to buy the country's leading cable TV operator was officially terminated following the antitrust watchdog's earlier decision to reject the plan, the science ministry said Thursday.The Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning said it reached a decision not to allow SK Telecom's bid to purchase CJ Hellovision Co. from its parent firm CJ O Shopping, officially terminating the evaluation process of what would have been one the country's biggest mergers and
July 28, 2016
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CJ O’Shopping, Baozun to bring Korean goods to Chinese online shoppers
[THE INVESTOR] CJ Group’s shopping network CJ O’Shopping will join hands with China’s Baozun to launch e-commerce solution business in China for South Korean brands, it announced on July 28. The two companies will invest a total of US$6.7 million and establish a joint venture named BCJ (Baozun-CJ E-commerce) next month, set to start operating in September. CJ will own 49 percent stake and its Chinese partner 51 percent stake.CJ O'Shopping president Heo Min-heoiBased on its local platform network
July 28, 2016
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Ssangyong, Jaguar to recall vehicles
[THE INVESTOR] Ssangyong Motor will recall over 2,600 units of its flagship Korando C sport utility vehicle sold here for faulty seatbelts, the Transport Ministry said on July 28.The car is one of six vehicle models, including two types of two-wheeled vehicles and a commercial truck, from five separate manufacturers that failed government tests, according to the ministry.The latest government test involved 16 vehicle models that were sold under a self-certification system. The government regular
July 28, 2016
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Prosecutors open probe into Samsung chairman’s prostitution case
[THE INVESTOR] South Korean prosecutors have launched an investigation into a video clip that captured Samsung Electronics chairman Lee Kun-hee allegedly buying sex from prostitutes.The Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office said on July 27 that the case is being allocated to a division specializing in crimes against women and children. So far, three complaints related to the case have been filed by a civic group and an Anyang resident surnamed Park who asked prosecutors to clarify the suspi
July 28, 2016
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HHI to have idle docks from H2 2017
[THE INVESTOR] Hyundai Heavy Industries will have idle docks from the second half of 2017 due to the shortage of orders, the company’s chairman Choi Kil-seon said on July 27.In an open letter to the employees, Choi said that work is dwindling across the board, and called on the union to call off its strike. “Some of the docks becoming idle will be a reality from the second half of next year,” Choi said. Ships are being built at Hyundai Heavy Industries' docks. / The Investor“From September, the
July 28, 2016
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Samsung C&T named top Korean builder in 2016
Samsung C&T Corp., the largest builder in South Korea in terms of sales, has been named the best builder in terms of building capacity, the government said Thursday.The construction unit of the country's top conglomerate Samsung was ranked top among 56,067 local construction firms evaluated, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.Those evaluated account for about 90 percent of 62,533 construction firms here.Samsung C&T took the top position for the third consecutive year
July 28, 2016
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Hyundai Heavy returns to profit in Q2 on cost reduction
[THE INVESTOR] Hyundai Heavy Industries bounced back into profit in the second quarter, driven by cost-cutting efforts under the industry-wide restructuring program and strong performance in its non-shipbuilding sectors. The world’s largest shipbuilder posted operating profit of 557.2 billion won (US$490.70 million), a huge turnaround from a loss of 171 billion won from a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing on July 27. Hyundai Heavy's shipyardIn the April-June period, the ship
July 27, 2016
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Hyundai Oilbank posts record H1 operating profit
[THE INVESTOR] Hyundai Oilbank, a refinery affiliate of Hyundai Heavy Industries disclosed on July 27 that its consolidated operating profit for the first half of the year came to record high of 524.8 billion won (US$461.97 million). The company has now recorded operating profits for the 16th consecutive quarter. Its second quarter revenues came to 2.81 trillion won, and operating profits came in at 323 billion won. With second-quarter operating profits rising 37.9 percent compared to the same p
July 27, 2016
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Samsung C&T returns to profit in Q2
[THE INVESTOR] Samsung C&T, a construction and trading affiliate of Samsung Group, bounced back into profit in the second quarter, on the back of its construction and resort segments. In the April-June period, the company posted operating profit of 176.81 billion won (US$158.88 million), reversing a loss of 434.81 billion won in the previous quarter, it said in a regulatory filing on July 27. Net profit came to 134.58 billion won, a turnaround from 516.63 billion won loss from the January-March
July 27, 2016
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Seoul to codify int'l safety standard for makgeolli
South Korea plans to submit a draft on the international food standard for makgeolli, as part of its efforts to export the indigenous traditional rice wine overseas, the agricultural ministry said Wednesday.The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said it will officially submit a plan to codify safety standards for makgeolli to the Asian office meeting of the Codex Alimentarius Commission in September.The ministry said it aims to establish an international food standard for makgeolli
July 27, 2016
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Korea's imports of Norwegian mackerel up 73% in H1
South Korea's imports of Norwegian mackerel rose 73 percent in the first six months of this year from a year earlier, data showed Wednesday, as the Asian country banned catches of mackerel in its waters for one month during the first half.South Korea imported 10,751 tons of mackerel from Norway in the January-June period, compared with 6,199 tons during the same period last year, according to data from the Norwegian Seafood Council.South Korea caught 28,687 tons of mackerel in the first five mon
July 27, 2016
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Builders see rise in Q2 operating profits
Korea’s major construction firms have seen a rise in their operating profits of the second quarter, thanks to the jump of orders and expansion to the overseas market, industry analysts said. Hyundai Engineering and Construction said on Wednesday that its operating profit rose by 5.5 percent to 268 billion won ($236 million) in the second quarter on-year.The sales dropped by 2.7 percent to 4.69 trillion won but the net profit jumped by 16.4 percent to 167.7 billion won. In the first half of this
July 27, 2016
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Daewoo boosts presence in energy infrastructure
Korean builder Daewoo Engineering & Construction is boosting its efforts in the energy field, with various projects in both fossil fuel and renewable fields. Last year, the company mapped out a long-term plan to become a “global infrastructure and energy developer“ by 2025 with an aim to offer a comprehensive solution from planning and construction to power plant operation.Since 2013, the company has focused on projects concerning an independent power producer that helps generate electric power
July 27, 2016
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More than 60% of S. Korean firms’ subsidiaries based abroad
[THE INVESTOR] More than 60 percent of listed South Korean companies’ subsidiaries are based overseas, Financial Supervisory Service said on July 27.According to the FSS, 6,330 of 10,327 subsidiaries of listed companies are based abroad. Of the total, 573 were established last year, the FSS said. FSS’s analysis also showed that of the top 100 largest companies’ overseas subsidiaries were based in Asia, with China-based subsidiaries accounting for half of Asia-based subsidiaries of Korean compani
July 27, 2016