South Korean stocks closed 0.46 percent higher on the back of the country's brisk exports that offset investors' concerns over U.S. tapering of its economic stimulus, analysts said. The local currency ended unchanged against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 9.33 points to finish at 2,039.42. Trading volume was light at 290.1 million shares worth 3.59 trillion won ($3.37 billion) with gainers outstripping losers 402 to 394. The main index kept its upwar

Nov. 1, 2013

About four out of every five smartphones shipped globally in the third quarter ran on Google Inc.'s Android platform, data showed Friday, further cementing its dominance over other operating systems (OS).Shipments of Android-powered smartphones totaled a record 204 million units in the July-September period, according to the data by Strategy Analytics.That translates into the Android platform powering 81.3 percent of smartphones shipped during the cited period, also a record high, the data showe

Technology Nov. 1, 2013

The International Monetary Fund said Friday that it has decided to maintain its previous 2014 growth outlook for South Korea at 3.7 percent but expressed concerns over the relatively weak domestic demand caused by "debt overhang" in the household and corporate sectors. The decision was made by an IMF team led by Isabelle Mateos y Lago, the deputy chief of the IMF's Asia-Pacific bureau. It completed its two-week-long annual meeting here with South Korean policymakers to assess its overall economi

Nov. 1, 2013

Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit South Korea later this month for a summit with President Park Geun-hye about bilateral relations, peace and security on the Korean Peninsula, and other issues of cooperation, her office announced Friday.The Nov. 12-13 visit will mark the second time Park meets with Putin since she took office in February. In September, the two leaders met bilaterally on the sidelines of a Group of 20 major economies meeting in Russia's second-largest city of Saint Pete

Foreign Affairs Nov. 1, 2013

State prosecutors on Friday raided the offices of KT Corp., the country's top fixed-line operator and No. 2 mobile carrier, as part of their ongoing corruption probe into its chairman.A team of prosecutors and investigators obtained computer hard drives and confidential documents, including accounting books, from the company's three offices and houses of several executives to corroborate the charges, prosecutors said.The raid comes just 10 days after the prosecution office first swooped down on

Social Affairs Nov. 1, 2013

South Korean stocks traded 0.3 percent higher late Friday morning, led by bullish tech firms and insurers, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 5.64 points to 2,035.73 as of 11:20 a.m.Chip giant SK hynix widened its gains further to surge nearly 4 percent. Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance, a major non-life insurer, shot up 2.5 percent.  In contrast, retail blue-chip Lotte Shopping slumped more than 3 percent, with LG Chem, a leading chemical producer fallin

Nov. 1, 2013

South Korea is poised to buy four Global Hawks from Northrop Grumman through the U.S. Foreign Military Sale (FMS) program, with a decision expected to come early next year, a government source said Friday.Seeking better surveillance capabilities on North Korea, Seoul has sought to buy the high-altitude, long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), obtaining sales approval for four airplanes from the U.S. government in April.But the higher-than-expected cost for four RQ-4 Block 30s, which was

Defense Nov. 1, 2013

Overseas credit card purchases by South Koreans rose 41.7 percent over the past five years, data showed Friday, raising concerns that the trend may spark a social disharmony amid the economic slump.Overseas credit card bills totaled 5.5 trillion won ($5.1 billion) last year, rising sharply from the 3.1 trillion won tallied in 2008, according to the data compiled by the Credit Finance Association submitted to parliament.The number of cardholders making purchases overseas doubled over the cited pe

Nov. 1, 2013

Having once been in the driver's seat to take the Korean Series, the Doosan Bears suddenly find themselves on the brink of a historic collapse against the surging Samsung Lions.And the Bears don't have anyone but themselves to blame, for it's their own inability to drive in runners in scoring position that has hurt them.The Bears have lost a 3-1 series lead in the championship final for the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO), having dropped the fifth and sixth games of the best-of-seven showdown.

Baseball Nov. 1, 2013

KT Corp., South Korea's top fixed-line and No. 2 mobile operator, said Friday its third-quarter net profit plunged 63 percent from a year earlier due to a decline in sales and currency losses.Net profit reached 136 billion won ($128 million) in the July-September period, compared with 369 billion won a year earlier, the Seoul-based company said in a regulatory filing.Sales fell 7.3 percent on-year to reach 5.73 trillion won over the cited period, while operating income surged 23 percent to 307 b

Industry Nov. 1, 2013

South Korean stocks began higher Friday as blue-chip exporters gained on the back of record-high exports for October, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 8.93 points, or 0.44 percent, to 2,039.02 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Samsung Electronics soared 1.7 percent, with Hyundai Motors rising 0.4 percent. Chip giant SK hynix hiked more than 2 percent. The trade ministry said South Korea's trade surplus reached an all-time monthly high of $50.5 billion

Nov. 1, 2013

South Korea's exports surged to a new monthly high last month on growing shipments to the United States and Europe, posting a trade surplus for the 21st consecutive month, the government said Friday.The country's total outbound shipments came to $50.5 billion last month, up 7.3 percent from the same month last year, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.The previous monthly record was at $48.95 billion posted in July 2011. It also marks the first time the country's monthly expo

Nov. 1, 2013

South Korea and the United States are discussing how Seoul can contribute more to regional missile defense, a senior U.S. official said.Rose Gottemoeller, acting under secretary of state for arms control and international security, emphasized bolstering missile defense in the region is crucial in promoting diplomatic efforts toward North Korea."The United States stands ready to work with the Republic of Korea (ROK) to strengthen its ballistic missile defense (BMD) capabilities," she said at a mu

Defense Nov. 1, 2013