Local companies making large investments in state-led reclamation sites will be given the same benefits in land leases as foreign companies starting from June, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said Thursday.A law revision pre-announced by the ministry would allow 100-year use of national and public land for companies investing 1 billion won ($872,448) in the Saemangeum reclaimed land, some 280 kilometers south of Seoul. Completed in 2006, Saemangeum has a seawall stretching 33.

Industry Feb. 9, 2017

Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., a major South Korean shipbuilder, reported Thursday that it swung to the black last year from a year earlier, thanks in part to reduced costs and improvement in its non-shipbuilding business. Net income came to 682 billion won ($595 million) last year on a consolidation basis, a turnaround from a loss of 1.36 trillion won a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing.(Yonhap)Sales dropped 15 percent on-year to reach 39.32 trillion won, while it logged an o

Industry Feb. 9, 2017

Hyundai Merchant Marine Co., a major shipping line here, said Thursday that it returned to the red last year from a year earlier largely due to low freight rates and continued operating loss.Net loss came to 44.3 billion won ($38.7 million) last year, compared with a net profit of 622 billion won a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing.(Yonhap)Operating loss widened to 833 billion won from 279 billion won over the cited period, it said.Sales also fell 18.8 percent on-year to 4.58

Industry Feb. 9, 2017

The Seoul city government on Thursday gave the final nod for the country's retail giant Lotte to open South Korea's tallest skyscraper for business.The Seoul Metropolitan Government said it has approved the use of the 123-story Lotte World Tower in southern Seoul, which has long been a coveted dream of group founder Shin Kyuk-ho.This file photo provided by Lotte on Nov. 4, 2016, shows a marching band playing a Christmas carol the previous day in front of Lotte World Tower. (Yonhap)After the reta

Industry Feb. 9, 2017

With just a year to go before South Korea's first Winter Games in PyeongChang, the government here announced Thursday detailed plans to add more cultural elements to the global sports event.The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism outlined the plan for the "PyeongChang Cultural Olympiad" during the 10th meeting of the PyeongChang Olympics Supporting Committee chaired by Acting President and Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-Ahn.  Acting President and Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn gives an opening addre

Politics Feb. 9, 2017

About 1 in 5 private companies in South Korea used telecommuting last year, allowing their employees to work via mobile telecommunications technology, not at their office buildings, a survey showed Thursday. According to the survey of 1,700 employees and 300 managers, 18.6 percent of the respondents said they worked from home and other places without commuting to their offices last year, up 4.4 percentage points from 2015.(Yonhap)The survey was jointly conducted by the Ministry of Science, ICT a

Industry Feb. 9, 2017

LG Electronics Inc. said Thursday it will launch two smartwatches that run on the next Android operating system in the United States later this week.LG's Watch Style and Watch Sport -- which are Google Inc.'s first Android Wear 2.0 wearables -- will hit the shelves in the US on Friday (local time), the South Korean tech company said. LG Electronics Inc. will launch two smartwatches that on the next Android operating systems (OS) in the United States on Feb. 10, 2017. (LG Electronics Inc.)Android

Technology Feb. 9, 2017

South Korea's finance minister on Thursday dismissed speculations that Asia's fourth-largest economy could suffer another financial crisis similar to one that hit the country two decades ago, citing its solid fiscal fundamentals.The talk of another crisis has recently emerged as the country has been grappling with weak exports, flagging domestic consumption and a leadership crisis triggered by the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye over a corruption scandal. Yoo Il-ho, South Korea's finance

Feb. 9, 2017

South Korea's military has revised its long-term defense reform plan to better cope with North Korean threats, including the creation of special units tasked to neutralize its leadership and key facilities in case of contingencies, officials said Thursday. "We have made the revision in a bid to secure the most urgent defense capabilities against North Korean threats over the next five years (through 2021)," a high-ranking ministry official told reporters in a background briefing. "Under the chan

Defense Feb. 9, 2017

South Korea, Japan and China will hold a trilateral meeting to coordinate their policies on cyber security in Tokyo this week, including their joint response to North Korea's evolving cyber threats, the foreign ministry said Thursday.South Korean Ambassador for International Security Affairs Shin Maeng-ho will meet with his counterparts, Koichi Mizushima of Japan and Long Zhou of China, in the third round of the Cyber Policy Consultation set for Friday, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affai

Defense Feb. 9, 2017

Samsung Electronics Co. emerged as the leader in the global virtual reality market in 2016, accounting for more than 70 percent of 6.3 million VR devices shipped worldwide, a report showed Thursday.The South Korean tech giant sold about 4.51 million units last year, or 71.6 percent of total shipments, the report by analytics firm SuperData showed. (Samsung Electronics Co.)Samsung launched the Gear VR in 2014 in cooperation with the Oculus VR, which connects to high-end Samsung smartphones. The G

Technology Feb. 9, 2017

KB Financial Group said Thursday its net profit jumped 26.2 percent last year to exceed 2 trillion won ($1.7 billion) largely on improved profitability.The South Korean banking giant posted 2.14 trillion won in full-year net profit, up 26.2 percent from a year earlier. It marks the first time in five years for the group's net profit to top 2 trillion won. A man passes by a Seoul building of KB Financial Group and KB Kookmin Bank in this photo provided by Yonhap News TV. (Yonhap)KB cited increase

Feb. 9, 2017

Any restart of denuclearization talks with Pyongyang will likely end up as a “great fraud” due to its firm resolve to master its nuclear program, massive political risks for South Korean and US leaders, and the lack of solid monitoring mechanisms, a former senior North Korean diplomat said Thursday. Thae Yong-ho, who served as the No. 2 man at the communist state’s embassy in London before defecting to the South last summer, said that despite calls for dialogue, a new round of gathering would on

North Korea Feb. 9, 2017

The Constitutional Court actively intervened in the questioning process during the impeachment trial of President Park Geun-hye on Thursday, in an apparent attempt to quicken the proceedings. During the 12th hearing of the trial, justices interrupted both legal representatives of the president and the parliament several times and asked for “efficiency” in the questioning process, taking issue with their repetitive and unclear questions. “He already answered the question. The purpose of the quest

Politics Feb. 9, 2017

The special counsel team investigating the President Park Geun-hye scandal on Thursday cried foul over the Presidential Office’s unilateral cancellation of an interrogation of the president. “There has been no contact between the probe team and the Blue House (to reschedule the session) since the cancellation,” said Lee Kyu-chul, the counsel office’s spokesperson, at a press briefing.“Since we ruled out a forced investigation on the president, there is no possibility of a Park interview, if the

Social Affairs Feb. 9, 2017