For The Face Shop, global expansion will be high on the list of priorities this year as it seeks to mark new territory outside of the saturated Korean market. “The Face Shop will be driven to look outside of Korea,” said Park Eun-kyung, an analyst at Samsung Securities. In 2013, The Face Shop, owned by LG Household & Healthcare, saw sales rise about 20 percent on-year to a record high of 523 billion won ($503.7 million). The stellar performance was mainly thanks to a rise in overseas sales. Acco

Business April 22, 2014

The management of GS Group, said Wednesday that the energy, retail and construction conglomerate would invest 3 trillion won ($2.9 billion) in its core and new businesses this year.The 2014 investments are larger than the average annual amount of around 2 trillion won. The decision came in a second-quarter meeting of group executives, led by GS Group chairman Huh Chang-soo, the group said in a press release. “The global economy faces more uncertainties at the moment. To turn a crisis into an opp

Business April 16, 2014

To most modern women, shoes do more than merely cover one’s foot for protection. “Shoes have become an important fashion item, in particular, for women who want to express themselves,” said Diana Kang, chief executive of GRI Korea, in an interview with The Korea Herald. “Riding on the trend, a growing number of Korean women are seen with growing shoe collections that are meant to match their daily outfits,” Kang said. GRI is a Hong Kong-based international apparel and fashion accessories retail

Business April 15, 2014

It had long been obvious that the hard-pressed financial companies suffering from a continued fall in profits would drastically downsize at some point, and it was Samsung Group that triggered the restructuring tide in the financial sector. A rumor has been circulating that the nation’s top conglomerate is trying to slim down its financial sectors for the sake of heir apparent Lee Jay-yong, who is expected to take over the group’s financial affiliates, as well as the lucrative electronics busines

April 13, 2014

Rising interest rates pose a risk to the global economy, said Finance Minister Hyun Oh-seok, whose country is grappling with record household debt.The speed and degree at which major economies taper monetary stimulus and the “interest rate increases that will follow should always be monitored,” Hyun, 63, said in an interview in Washington D.C., where finance and central bank officials from Group of 20 nations are meeting. Foreign-exchange rates are set by economic fundamentals and capital flows,

April 13, 2014

Many behind-the-scenes stories about Apple’s former CEO Steve Jobs have received attention since he died in 2011.His meeting with Softbank CEO Son Masayoshi, who brought a rough concept image of a phone-capable iPod for a business partnership before the first iPhone was developed, was one of the latest episodes divulged. Another episode related to Steve Jobs and the evolution of the iPhone recently emerged from a local firm.In a recent interview with The Korea Herald, CrucialTec CEO Charles Ahn

Technology April 13, 2014

Samsung Electronics called the first of as many as seven witnesses to begin making its case in a $2 billion patent trial that Apple’s true target in the lawsuit is the Android operating system. Hiroshi Lockheimer, Google’s vice president of Android engineering, testified yesterday in federal court in San Jose, California, about the development of the Android operating system used in Samsung phones. Apple contends, and Samsung denies, that several Android features in Galaxy devices infringe the i

Technology April 13, 2014

T’way Air may be the nation’s smallest budget carrier with just seven short- and midrange aircraft, but it is quickly building a reputation as an innovative player in a market which is reaching a fever pitch of competition. The carrier, for instance, moved faster than other low-cost carriers to become the first to launch a route between Daegu and Jejudo Island in March.The same month, the carrier created a sensation by introducing the cheapest-ever early bird promotion fares for domestic and int

Business April 10, 2014

A growing number of Korean companies are beginning to invest in tree-planting projects overseas as prices for wood in the global market have continued to rise. “One of the key reasons for the price surge is a drop in the global log supply amid growing demand in China,’’ said Won Yoo-gil, an official of Hansol Homedeco’s global business. “Tree planting has become a high-yield business. International wood prices have increased 5.5 percent per year on average for the past decade, which is high enou

Industry April 4, 2014