DOHA, Qatar (Yonhap) -- South Korea's Chung Mong-joon came up short in his bid for re-election as FIFA vice president for a fifth run.In a vote held here Thursday during the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Congress, Chung lost 25-20 to Jordanian Prince Ali bin al-Hussein, head of the Jordan Football Association. Prince Ali will serve until 2015.Chung, 59, had been the vice president of the worl

Soccer Jan. 6, 2011

LG Electronics Inc., the beleaguered world's third-largest handset maker, said Thursday that it will introduce a new smartphone model with an enhanced screen display that has significantly lowered power consumption.The Optimus Black is the company's first model to use a "NOVA" display, which cuts power consumption in half in comparison to previous products and features an enhanced visibility even

Industry Jan. 6, 2011

The number of registered cars in South Korea jumped last year as consumers purchased more vehicles amid recovering economic conditions, the transportation ministry said Thursday.The number of registered cars reached 17.94 million at the end of last year, up 616,000 from a year earlier, according to the ministry. The increase was the second largest following a jump of 637,000 in 2003.The ministry a

Jan. 6, 2011

Mortgage loans extended by South Korean financial firms grew by the largest amount in four years in December, as low borrowing costs and eased rules on home-backed lending spurred demand, data showed Thursday.Home-backed loans handled by local financial institutions grew by 4.9 trillion won (US$4.36 billion) on-month to 379.3 trillion won in December, according to data by the Financial Supervisory

Jan. 6, 2011

Hynix Semiconductor Inc., the world's second-largest maker of computer memory chips, said Thursday that it will spend 3.4 trillion won (US$3.03 billion) on plants and equipment in 2011, around the same level as last year.The investment plan is subject to change depending on market conditions, the company said in a regulatory filing.Hynix, which trails its bigger industry rival Samsung Electronics

Industry Jan. 6, 2011

North Korea on Wednesday proposed the two Koreas unconditionally reopen governmental talks to resolve the current crisis between the countries."We courteously propose having wide-ranging dialogue and negotiations with the political parties and organizations of South Korea including its authorities," the North said in a joint statement adopted in a meeting of the North Korean government, political

North Korea Jan. 6, 2011

 WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Wednesday met with Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi as they seek to prepare for Chinese President Hu Jintao's visit to Washington this month on North Korea, the trade imbalance and other issues.   "We are preparing diligently for the upcoming state visit by President Hu Jintao," Clinton said just before the start of the meeting at

North Korea Jan. 6, 2011

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- The United States on Wednesday expressed skepticism about North Korea's proposal for unconditional dialogue with South Korea to ease tensions, saying Pyongyang must first apologize for recent provocations and show commitment for denuclearization. "We all understand that ultimately to resolve the challenge of North Korea, there has to be dialogue," State Department spokesman

North Korea Jan. 6, 2011

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- South Korea's Hyundai Motor Co. notched record sales in the United States last year amid a surging auto market in the world's biggest economy after the worst recession in decades.Hyundai Motor America (HMA) sold 538,228 vehicles in 2010, up 24 percent from a year earlier and an all-time sales and market share record, HMA said in a statement.Hyundai's affiliate Kia Motor Co.

Industry Jan. 5, 2011

The economic gap between South and North Korea remained wide across the board with differences in income level and trade more apparent than in other areas, data showed Wednesday.According to the data by Statistics Korea, South Korea's per-capita gross national income (GNI) amounted to US$17,175 at the end of 2009, about 18 times larger than the $960 tallied for the North.During the cited year, the

Jan. 5, 2011