The Korea Herald

Lee starts talks with Europe leaders

Foreign affairsMay 8, 2011

President arrives in Berlin on a three-nation tourBERLIN ― President Lee Myung-bak on Sunday arrived in Berlin on the first leg of his week-long European tour aimed at promoting bilateral trade and investment as well as cooperation for low carbon, green growth. Lee’s trip to Germany, Denmark and France comes just days after the National Assembly ratified Korea’s free trade pact with the European U
Education ministers from South Korea, U.S. plan rare talks

Social affairsMay 8, 2011

Korean and U.S. ministers of education and science will hold talks to discuss ways to boost personnel and research exchanges, the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology said Sunday. The talks will be the first of their kind in 30 years.Education and Science Minister Lee Ju-ho will visit Washington Tuesday for the talks with U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan from May 11-13. The two min
Ex-civil servants dominate top posts of public corporations

Social affairsMay 8, 2011

Retired provincial public service employees and politicians dominate management posts of local public firms, even though many have no corporate management experience, reports said.Chief executives or board chairmen in 95 of the 127 provincial public firms are former local civil servants or politicians, Yonhap news agency reported Sunday, citing the Ministry of Public Administration and Security.Ou
Japanese, Chinese popular at high schools

Social affairsMay 8, 2011

More and more high schools are selecting Chinese and Japanese as their second foreign languages, elbowing out French and German, the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education said Sunday. Experts say practicality was the main drive, which may hurt the diversity of language education in the society. According to the education office, 196 out of 222 high schools in Seoul established Japanese classes an
Good jobs, bad jobs, but not enough of either

World BusinessMay 8, 2011
U.S. has new leverage, but how will Pakistan respond?

World NewsMay 8, 2011
‘Jeonse’ system loses favor with landlords

May 8, 2011

Apartment buildings under construction in Seoul. (Bloomberg)Ahn Ji-eun, 34, lives in a two-bedroom flat in Hwagok-dong in western Seoul with her husband and twin daughters. She moved into the 70-square-meter unit (about 22-pyeong) a year ago as a tenant on a one-year contract and now she is desperate to renew it.“We are told to top up our key money by 30 percent or move out. I’ve been looking for
Mega Mini is fun in traffic, seriously cool

TransportMay 8, 2011

The 2011 Mini Cooper S Countryman is a big Mini. Big, of course, is relative in this case, but this new four-door’s size rankles purists, who point to the name of the brand itself. You can’t have a super-size Mini.Yes, BMW says, you can.The Mini family, owned by BMW, now includes the various Cooper models, the larger Clubman and the all-new Countryman, which has been described as Mini’s SUV. The b
POSCO seeks opportunity in South America

IndustryMay 8, 2011

POSCO, the world’s fourth-largest steelmaker, is stepping up efforts to expand into South America’s infrastructure and natural resource development projects.On Saturday, POSCO chief executive Chung Joon-yang, who was on a four-day tour of Chile, Ecuador and Honduras, signed a memorandum of understanding with Li3Energy to provide technological and financial collaboration. POSCO chief executive Chun
Yeosu begins 365-day countdown to Expo

IndustryMay 8, 2011

A series of colorful events concerning the International Exposition Yeosu Korea 2012 will begin in Yeosu, South Jeolla Province on Tuesday.The three-month long event will be held at the southern port city from May 12, 2012 until Aug. 12.According to the provincial and city governments, and the event’s organizing committee, a celebratory event will be held at a sports stadium in the southern city o
Ministry begins new project for energy experts

IndustryMay 8, 2011

The Ministry of Knowledge Economy said Sunday that it will inject 13.6 billion won ($12.5 million) into securing human resources pool for energy-related fields.Under the program, the ministry said it will support higher education institutions to train energy professionals, and help their research efforts.Overall, the ministry estimates that the projects will produce 3,600 energy professionals on a
Chrysler to release New Compass

TransportMay 8, 2011

Chrysler Korea will launch special editions of the New Compass in celebration of its 70-year-old Jeep. All Jeep models will be rolled out as new editions to celebrate 70 years of the brand, including the 2011 Jeep Compass 70th Anniversary Edition, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Jeep Liberty, Jeep Patriot and Jeep Wrangler. They will come in three exterior colors ― bronze Star, bright silver and black. “The
Volvo Korea offers free check-ups

TransportMay 8, 2011

Volvo Cars Korea is offering free check-ups on air conditioners and engine oil as part of its spring promotion. Available until June 11, the service will run at 12 Volvo Cars Korea service centers across the country where Volvo drivers can receive free filters on engine oil replacement on top of the free check-up.“We’re offering the service so that drivers can ready themselves for more family outi
GM reveals lightweight Chevrolet Aveo sedan

TransportMay 8, 2011

GM Korea Co. on Tuesday revealed a Chevrolet Aveo sedan, expanding its product lines for sporty compact models.The four-door saloon version kept the same front-end design with twin headlamps and 53-centimeter alloy wheels. The compact sedan offers segment-best trunk capacity that is reportedly is biggest in size among subcompact models out in the market. The vehicle has a price range of 11.09 mill
Ssangyong takes H New Classic reservations

TransportMay 8, 2011

Ssangyong Motors began taking reservations Wednesday for the Chairman H New Classic first unveiled at the Seoul Motor Show 2011.The third generation sedan is available for reservations at 140 Ssangyong Motors branches across the country, with 3 percent discount on car insurances for those finalizes their booking by the end of July.A 1 million won ($924) discount is available for returning customer