International Business Machines chief executive officer Ginni Rometty will face a skeptical audience when she speaks to Wall Street analysts tomorrow. As she’s worked to revamp the company in a shifting technology industry, Rometty has kept herself bound to IBM’s target of at least $18 a share in adjusted earnings this year ― a number that 60 percent of analysts anticipate the company will miss. After eight consecutive quarters of revenue declines, she must start increasing sales or reduce expen

Technology May 14, 2014

Samsung Electronics saw its market share in tablet PCs reach a record-high level in the first quarter of the year, data showed Tuesday, narrowing its gap with U.S. rival Apple. The world’s biggest smartphone maker took up 22.6 percent of the global tablet PC market by shipping 12.8 million units of such devices in the January-March period, the data by market researcher Strategy Analytics showed. It marked a 3.7 percentage points increase from the 18.9 percent posted in the previous year, when Sa

Industry May 13, 2014

The bad loan ratio of local banks rose slightly in the first quarter of this year from three months earlier from an increase in fresh overdue debts, the financial watchdog said Tuesday.The combined bad loan ratio stood at 1.81 percent at the end of March, up 0.02 percentage point from the previous quarter, according to the Financial Supervisory Service.The bad loan ratio refers to the proportion of a bank’s nonperforming loans to their total lending. A debt that has been in arrears for more than

Industry May 13, 2014

South Korea is considering a sale of dollar- and euro-denominated bonds amid the best start to a year for sovereign debt since 2009. Asia’s fourth-largest economy plans to meet investors in the U.S. and Europe from May 21 to discuss a possible offering, a person familiar with the matter said yesterday, asking not to be identified because the details are private. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government intends to price five-year dollar notes as soon as today, a separate person said.Sovereign bonds in t

Industry May 13, 2014

The country’s exports of information and communications technology products rose 4.5 percent in April from a year earlier on growing shipments to China and the U.S., the government said Tuesday.Outbound shipments of ICT products came to $14.76 billion last month, compared with $14.12 billion in the same month last year, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.The April figure, however, marks a 1.5 percent drop from $14.98 billion posted in the previous month. “Overall exports of

Industry May 13, 2014

The fifth Clean Energy Ministerial meeting opens Monday in Seoul and run for two days under the theme of “Act Together, Think Creative,” according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on Sunday.CEM is a voluntary and collaborative global forum of energy ministers from 23 governments with the distinctive goal of accelerating the world’s clean energy transition.During the meeting, Korea, as the host country, will call for lowering trade barriers to products and services related to renewab

May 11, 2014

South Korea’s exports of agricultural and food products rose from a year earlier last month on a large increase in shipments to the United States and Southeast Asian nations, the government said Sunday. Shipments of farm goods amounted to $556.6 million in April, up 13.8 percent from the same month last year, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. Exports to Japan, the world’s single-largest importer of Korean farm products, gained 3.4 percent on-year to reach $110.5 m

Industry May 11, 2014

South Korean manufacturers think 1,052.3 won to the U.S. dollar is the break-even exchange range and that the present strengthening of the local currency is eating into their profitability, a poll carried by a local business group showed Sunday. The survey conducted on 120 large manufacturers by the Federation of Korean Industries showed many are struggling with current conditions and warned if this trend continues, they may have to reassess their corporate goals. The appreciation of the Korean

May 11, 2014

South Korea was ranked eighth in the world in goods transactions in 2012, but in terms of combined global flow of goods, services, finance, people and data, the country placed 20th, according to a report by U.S.-based management consultancy McKinsey. The result was based on the McKinsey Global Institute Connectedness Index, which measured 131 countries’ levels of global integration between 1980 and 2012 through a study of different types of global flows, including goods, services, finace, people

Industry May 7, 2014

The South Korean won has recently advanced the most against the U.S. dollar among major currencies thanks to its continued current account surplus, market watchers said Tuesday. In April alone, the local currency strengthened 3.05 percent against the greenback, the biggest appreciation among the world’s 40 major currencies, according to the watchers. On Friday, the South Korean currency finished at 1,030.33 won to the dollar, the highest level in nearly six years.The won’s recent appreciation ag

May 6, 2014

Shares of South Korean shipbuilders dropped on Friday as their worse-than-expected first-quarter earnings and dim outlook disappointed investors, analysts said. Shares of Hyundai Heavy Industries, the country’s top shipbuilder, closed at 188,000 won ($184) on the Seoul bourse, down 2.84 percent from the previous session’s close. Samsung Heavy Industries shed 2.03 percent at 27,550 won and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering also sank 4.85 percent to finish at 28,450 won.“A decline in shipbu

Industry May 2, 2014