Incheon International Airport Corp. announced Tuesday it has acquired a 10-percent stake in Khabarovsk Airport in Russia’s Far East, stepping up its charges into the development of the Russian partner.This makes the IIAC the first foreign airport operator to step into management of a Russian airport, which has been safeguarded by the government there as a national strategic industry.As the third-l

Industry July 5, 2011

Korea will crank up its push for exploit indium and lithium around the world by facilitating local companies’ direct investment into the two scarce metals by law, the government said Tuesday.The Ministry of Knowledge Economy said it plans to place indium, a key element of liquid crystal displays and touch-screens, on a list of 49 foreign rare metals. Lithium, used in aircraft and electric car batt

July 5, 2011

Ministry: 166 firms reduced 56,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions during last 2 yearsKorea’s efforts to shrink its carbon footprint are progressing through partnerships between big and smaller companies.The Ministry of Knowledge Economy said Monday that 166 local businesses have reduced more than 56,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions over the last two years in a green collaboration program, a

Industry July 4, 2011

The Korea International Trade Association said Sunday the number of people who found jobs through its online recruitment services has topped 10,000 in less than two years. The website, named JobTogether (http://jobtogether.net/), was opened in September 2009 as part of KITA’s campaigns to tackle labor shortages in the local trade industry and rising unemployment in Korea. As of May, 10,838 job see

Industry July 3, 2011

Korea’s state pension fund is said to inject at least 250 billion won ($234.3 million) into a Korean-led consortium for its project to buy Titleist golf brand, industry sources said Sunday.The group led by Fila Korea Ltd. struck a deal with Fortune Brands Inc. in May to take over the U.S.-based liquor firm’s golf equipment unit Acushnet for $1.23 billion. Other partners include Mirae Asset Private

Industry July 3, 2011

Korea has found rare earths reserves in the North Chungcheong and Gangwon provinces, with a sufficient supply for the next 50 years, a state-run think tank said Wednesday.The deposit in Chungju, 147 kilometers southeast of Seoul, contains 71,500 metric tons of rare earths. The one in Hongcheon in the country’s east has about 76,000 metric tons, the Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resourc

June 29, 2011

SK Group sold its 24-million-share stake in SK Securities Co. in a block deal on Tuesday, a move seen as a measure to preclude penalties for breaking the fair trade law. The shares owned by SKC Inc., the group’s industrial film-making affiliate, account for 7.73 percent of the total and were traded at 1,920 won ($1.77) each, about 10 percent down from Monday’s closing price. Samsung Asset Manageme

Industry June 28, 2011

South Korea’s trade volume will likely cross the $1 trillion threshold this year on the back of brisk recovery, a report showed on Sunday.According to the study by the Korea International Trade Association, the country will log $561 billion in exports and $530.5 billion in imports by the end of the year. The trade surplus would amount to $30.5 billion, the association said. This would make Korea a

June 26, 2011

Samsung Electronics announced Sunday that it has been named the best manufacturer for portable media and home audio-visual products by U.K.-based “Which?” Magazine. Samsung outstripped other finalists ― Panasonic Corp. and Sony Corp. ― in the “Best Home Audio-Visual Brand” category. “Samsung has a strong presence across many of our product areas we cover,” the judges said. “Its innovation and atte

Industry June 26, 2011

The government said Thursday it plans to boost support for growth industries in the country’s provincial metropolitan areas by injecting 285 billion won ($265 million) this year.The program is the latest in a string of projects that the Ministry of Knowledge Economy has pushed since 2009 to develop regional technology hubs.Under the plan, the ministry will fund nearly 20 billion won this year for

Industry June 23, 2011

The Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs unveiled a draft package of traffic safety measures at a public hearing in Seoul on Thursday, which consists of increased speeding fines, brighter crosswalks and tougher penalties for drunk driving. Though the number of deaths from road accidents in Korea has declined by nearly half over the last decade to about 5,500 in 2010, the figure per 10,

June 23, 2011

The Korea Trade Insurance Corporation, known as K-sure, said Tuesday it has been selected as the best Asian export credit agency by the U.K.-based Trade Finance Magazine.K-sure is one of the country’s two export-import insurance agencies other than the Export-Import Bank. It provides insurance products and project financing and issue bonds to exporters for their shipment, overseas construction wor

Industry June 22, 2011