S-Oil Corp. has donated funds to the family of a firefighter who died on duty only a couple days before Chuseok, the Korean thanksgiving, the company said on Tuesday. The country’s third-largest oil refiner delivered 30 million won ($27,000) to the bereaved family of Kim Seong-eun, the deceased firefighter.Kim died after inhaling an excessive amount of toxic gas while extinguishing fire at a corporate warehouse in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province, on Sept. 27. The firefighter was immediately transfe

Oct. 3, 2012

KFS Minister Lee says AFoCO will be locomotive in global green growthHaving gained worldwide recognition through hosting the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification last year, Korea is hoping to make Korea Forest Service a future global hub for green growth. For KFS Minister Lee Don-koo, a key milestone in the drive for green growth was the establishment of the Asian Forestry Cooperation Organization early this month. The organization is the result of an agreement on forestry cooper

Sept. 24, 2012

Korea-Latin America Economic Cooperation Week kicked off Monday in Seoul with a grand opening ceremony in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of their economic partnership. Hosted by the Ministry of Knowledge Economy and organized by the Korea International Trade Association, Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency, Korea Institute for International Economic Police and Korean Council on Latin America and the Caribbean, the seven-day convention takes place from Sept. 24-28 and from Oct. 4-5, an

Sept. 24, 2012

Cultural understanding should be sought before doing business in Korea: French chamber chiefSome Korean branches of major French luxury goods companies have come under criticism from news media here when they reported an increase in sales or net profit. The Korean branch of the world’s best-selling luxury brand Louis Vuitton S.A. reportedly raked in about 497.4 billion won ($440 million) in sales and about 44.9 billion won in net profit between 2009 and 2010. The luxury giant received a cool res

Sept. 24, 2012

A group of 96 U.S. congressmen helping children suffering from cancer presented the star-spangled banner which had been hung in the Capitol in Washington D.C. to Hyundai Motor Co., in appreciation of the Korean carmaker’s support for the campaign, company officials said on Friday.Hyundai Motor is currently the only private company that the U.S. organization Childhood Cancer Caucus has invited for two consecutive years as an official partner for the community service program, the officials said.

Mobility Sept. 21, 2012

Excitement filled the air as thousands of participants surged in through the northern gate of COEX Convention Center, southeast Seoul, on Thursday, to attend the Herald Design Forum 2012. Diverse in age, occupation, social status and interest, guests convened at the grand auditorium of the beautifully designed building. Passion for design and creation became the common interest to hold together thousands of individuals.  Following the grand opening ceremony, three globally renowned designers ― T

Arts & Design Sept. 20, 2012

Zhang Xiaogang, one of the best-selling artists in contemporary Chinese art, said he is not swayed by his tremendous success and still follows his heart,“Art is not about business but life. If art were business, I would have studied and followed the example of successful people ― but that just isn’t my way of doing art,” Zhang said in a lecture at the Herald Design Forum 2012 in COEX Auditorium, Seoul, on Thursday.“Whether I can succeed or not, I follow my heart. What really counts in art is how

Arts & Design Sept. 20, 2012

French economist and columnist Guy Sorman said Tuesday that the global economy was still optimistic despite its continued economic slowdown and the financial struggles in the eurozone. “The worst scenario in an (economic) crisis is to overreact to the crisis. Crises are bad, but they cannot be avoided,” the author of “Diary of an Optimist” said in a global business forum co-hosted by the Institute for Global Economics and Samsung Electronics. Sorman stressed that economic recovery requires a sta

Sept. 18, 2012

Wolsung Unit-1 nuclear power plant in North Gyeongsang Province broke down on Sunday at 4:51 p.m., amplifying concern over old nuclear plants. The Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Co. said that the plant stopped producing power as its power transformer failed, leading the power-generating turbine to grind to a halt. The KHNP said that it would take approximately three days to replace the parts. The accident took place amid the state assessment period of the unit’s suitability for continued operatio

Sept. 17, 2012

Transparency in decision-making  process is vital to win residents’ supportOn March 11, 2011, the world witnessed how an ill-managed nuclear plant can affect people’s daily lives. The infamous Fukushima nuclear disaster has become a mark of shame for the entire nuclear power industry ever since.Experts agree that one of the toughest items on the agenda for pro-nuclear energy countries like Korea is safety. Nevertheless, the Korean Ministry of Knowledge Economy and nuclear-related institutions un

Sept. 16, 2012