The massive Yongsan development project came on the verge of bankruptcy as its developer is facing default under severe financial difficulties.The Dream Hub failed to the meet the deadline of payment of 5.9 billion won ($5.4 million) in interest on its asset-backed commercial paper as of 6:00 p.m.The developer would head toward bankruptcy if it could not repay its debt by Tuesday. KORAIL, the state-run rail operator and largest shareholder, had earlier pledged to inject 6.4 billion won in an eff

A free trade agreement with the U.S. has pushed down Korea’s tariff revenue on U.S. imports for the first time in seven years, despite an increase in trade with the world’s largest economy.The Ministry of Strategy and Finance said Tuesday that tariff revenue on U.S. imports sank to 9.8 trillion won ($8.9 billion) last year, down 10.7 percent from 10.9 trillion won a year ago.This is the first time Korea saw its customs revenue decline since 2005, the ministry noted, adding that its revenue fell

More and more market participants are betting that the Bank of Korea will lower the benchmark interest rate in March ― the first monthly rate-setting under the Park Geun-hye administration.According to a poll of 132 bond traders conducted by the Korea Financial Investment Association, 46 percent of respondents predicted a rate cut at the meeting of the BOK’s monetary policy committee, slated for Thursday.Some economists and analysts, however, claimed that a rate cut from the current 2.75 percent

Hankook Tire said Tuesday it topped the world’s largest corporate social responsibility competition, Vision Awards, run by the League of American Communications Professionals.The LACP is an international forum in the public relations industry, and its Vision Awards recognize the outstanding annual performances of the past 12 months. This year, more than 5,500 companies in 24 countries competed for the industry’s top honor. Hankook Tire, Korea’s largest tire maker, won the top prize across indust

Hite Jinro, Korea’s leading beer and soju producer, said Tuesday that its lager Max has won the top prize at one of the world’s three largest brewing contests in Britain.The Korean brewer was selected as a gold medalist in the 4.5―4.9 percent alcohol by volume lager sector, beating Singaporean lager Tiger and Japan’s Asahi Super Dry which took silver and bronze, respectively.The company was the only Korean winner of the International Brewing Awards 2013, hosted by the Brewing, Food & Beverage In

Local major insurance firms have decided to freeze premiums under regulatory instruction from the Financial Supervisory Service.Industry sources said Tuesday that life insurance firms, including Samsung Life, Kyobo Life and Hanwha Life, have dropped their stance to raise premiums on products sold to policyholders. These firms had abortively planned to raise the rates on insurance products in April, when the standard rate of interest is expected drop about 5 percent. Major nonlife insurance firms

Korean stocks ended 0.5 percent lower on Tuesday as foreigners extended their selling mode amid a weakening Japanese yen and North Korea’s multiple nuclear threats, analysts said. The local currency slipped against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 10.01 points to 1,993.34. Trading volume was moderate at 385.8 million shares worth 3.29 trillion won ($3 billion), with gainers outnumbering decliners 433 to 364.“Bad market sentiment, along with high volatility, is

Incheon International Airport said Tuesday it won the World’s Best Airport title again this year for the eighth consecutive time.The non-profit Airport Council International conducted a survey of 350,000 passengers over the past year and Incheon Airport earned the highest scores in service quality. The airport also topped two other categories ― best airport in Asia-Pacific and best among those with 25-40 million users annually.It is unprecedented for an airport to win the industry’s top honor ei

South Korean stocks traded 0.15 percent lower late Tuesday morning as foreigners extended their selling mode, analysts said.Reversing earlier gains, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) slipped 2.99 points to 2,000.36. Large caps were mixed. Market bellwether Samsung Electronics fell 0.4 percent and steel giant POSCO lost 0.88 percent, but Hyundai Motor rose 0.96 percent. Hyundai Elevator surged 14.81 percent on talks over a potential management feud.The local currency was cha

South Korean stocks got off to a strong start on Tuesday fueled by gains in automakers, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added2.09 points, or 0.1 percent, to 2,005.44 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Hyundai Motor, the country's top automaker, gained 0.96 percent, and its smaller affiliate Kia Motors rose 1.15 percent.In contrast, market bellwether Samsung Electronics slipped 0.27 percent.The local currency was trading at 1,095.7 won to the U.S.dollar as o