The Korea Herald

Hynix CEO new head of chip association

IndustryJul 1, 2011

Kwon Oh-chul, chief executive of Hynix Semiconductor, on Friday was inaugurated as the chairman of the Korea Semiconductor Industry Association. Kwon became the first executive not come from Samsung Electronics to become chairman. Kwon’s term will be until March of 2013. Kwon Oh-chul“Semiconductor demand has been sluggish on the back of a slower than expected recovery in the global economy, makin
SC First union prolongs condo strike

IndustryJul 1, 2011

Unionized workers at SC First Bank are expected to drag out their strike for an extended period of time in opposition to the management’s push for a performance-based pay system.The dispute between the management and workers continued as about 3,000 workers went on strike for a fifth day on Friday, leading to customer concerns of a prolonged walkout.The local unit of Standard Chartered Plc is tryi
Builders’ H1 overseas contracts drop 35%

IndustryJul 1, 2011

The value of overseas contracts won by Korean construction firms during the first half of the year fell 35 percent compared to the same period last year, industry data showed Friday.According to the International Contractors Association of Korea, local construction firms won 243 contracts during the first six months of the year, the combined value of which came in at $23.6 billion.In comparison, t
KAFS marks anniversary, thanks U.S. service members

DefenseJul 1, 2011

Korea America Friendship Society, a nonprofit organization dedicated to enhancing the Korea-U.S. relationship, held its annual dinner party in Seoul on Thursday to celebrate its 20th anniversary and appreciate the service of U.S. troops here.The Korea America Friendship Night was attended by some 800 people including U.S. Ambassador Kathleen Stephens, 8th U.S. Army Commander Lieut. Gen. John D. Jo
U.S. Senate confirms Petraeus as CIA chief

World NewsJul 1, 2011

WASHINGTON (AP) ― The Senate voted overwhelmingly Thursday to confirm Gen. David Petraeus to be the nation’s CIA director.The vote was 94-0.Arguably America’s most famous military commander in a generation, Petraeus has been in charge of U.S.-led international forces in Afghanistan since June 2010. The 37-year Army veteran is also credited with turning around the war in Iraq, from which U.S. troop
U.S. Fed’s stimulus ends with a fizzle

World BusinessJul 1, 2011

NEW YORK (AFP) ― The U.S. Federal Reserve wound up its $600-billion “QE2” program to boost the ailing economy with easy liquidity on Thursday, having generated more controversy than jobs and growth.Without fanfare the U.S. central bank’s New York branch paid banks $4.9 billion for U.S. Treasury bonds in the program’s last step Thursday morning, as economists and bankers continued to argue its effe
China’s manufacturing growth cools after monetary tightening

World NewsJul 1, 2011

A Chinese manufacturing index fell to the lowest level since February 2009, signaling that the world’s second-biggest economy is cooling as export demand weakens and the government reins in credit to control inflation. The Purchasing Managers’ Index was at 50.9 in June compared with 52 in May, the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing said in an emailed statement on Friday. A separate surve
Ex-IMF leader to get bail eased in NYC

World NewsJul 1, 2011

NEW YORK (AP) ― Former International Monetary Fund Leader Dominique Strauss-Kahn will have his pricey bail substantially reduced in his sexual assault case because of issues with his accuser’s credibility, a person familiar with the case said Thursday.The person, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss matters not yet made public in court, said prosecutors have raised issues about the credi
Greece clears final hurdle to get bailout funds

World BusinessJul 1, 2011

ATHENS (AP) ― Greece has faced down street violence and strikes for the sake of financial aid it was promised and needs to avoid bankruptcy. Now its fellow European countries will be expected to come up with a second rescue package to convince investors that the 17-nation euro will survive the debt crisis.A new austerity package that lawmakers cleared in Athens is required to get more rescue loans
[Gregory Rodriguez] The virtue of ‘I don’t know’ ignored in polls

ViewpointsJul 1, 2011

In a world overrun by half-truths and wall-to-wall opinion, the simple words “I don’t know” might very well become the most valuable phrase in any language.There’s plenty of grousing about the lopsided ratio of opinion to fact in our lives. But what irks me more is that these days it seems everyone is obligated to have a point of view on every issue.Last week’s news reports about the Miss USA page
[Editorial] A shift in policy

EditorialJul 1, 2011

The economic policy of President Lee Myung-bak’s administration sounded more convincing than before when it revised its 2011 economic outlook on Thursday. It lowered its growth target from 5 percent to 4.5 percent and raised its inflation outlook from 3 percent to 4 percent. Simply put, it abandoned its vaunted growth-first policy.Prior to revising its economic management plan for the second half
[Editorial] Ill-advised protest

EditorialJul 1, 2011

One senior prosecutor has tendered his resignation in protest against the process of revising the code of criminal procedure currently underway. Several others are offering to follow suit under pressure from disaffected ordinary prosecutors. Even the prosecutor-general is reportedly hinting at his impending resignation.Their action could be justified if the revision bill were to restrict the role
[Nathan Gardels] China: Shaping new global system

ViewpointsJul 1, 2011

BEIJING ― When the now 88-year-old Henry Kissinger sat down with Chairman Mao to discuss opening up China back in the 1970s, America was at the peak of its power. It surely never entered Kissinger’s mind at the time that less than half a century later, as the Communist Party of China confidently celebrates its 90th anniversary, he would be back in Beijing passing the baton of global leadership on
Proposal good for debate, not for policy

ViewpointsJul 1, 2011

Let’s just make one thing clear: Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou did not endorse the “One China, two governments” idea revisited by the Chinese scholar Chu Shulong in an Apple Daily interview.Before we go any further, let’s look at some of the talking points in the Tsinghua University professor’s proposal. Published by the Brookings Institution, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank, Chu’s article
Japan’s Cabinet changes do little for disaster recovery

ViewpointsJul 1, 2011

Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan has finally clarified his hitherto vague “conditions” for resigning his post.At a press conference on Monday, he said he is ready to step down after securing Diet passage of the second supplementary budget for fiscal 2011, as well as passage of two bills. One bill concerns special measures to promote renewable energy ― by obliging utilities to buy electricity gene