Samsung Electronics Co., the world's top smartphone maker, saw its fourth-quarter smartphone sales lag behind rival Apple Inc. due to robust demand for the U.S. firm's iPhone 5, data showed Monday.Samsung Electronics claimed 28.7 percent of the global smartphone market in the three-month period in terms of revenue, following Apple's 42.7 percent, according to the data by market researcher Strategy Analytics.The change in ranking was largely attributed to robust demand for Apple's iPhone 5, its f

South Korean stocks traded 0.08 percent lower late Monday morning as foreigners and retail investors opted to scale back holdings, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell1.66 points to 2,004.35 as of 11:20 a.m.Large caps were mixed. The country's top automaker Hyundai Motor slumped 1.64 percent and its smaller affiliate Kia Motors lost 1.5 percent.In contrast, market bellwether Samsung Electronics gained 0.33 percent.The local currency was changing hands at 1,0

A round of heated debates over the effects of the South Korea-U.S. free trade agreement (FTA) is expected in the U.S. capital this week, as the two sides mark the first anniversary of the implementation of the historic deal.After years of political controversies and tumultuous ratification procedures, the agreement, dubbed "KORUS FTA," went into effect on March 15 last year. It is arguably the U.S.'s most commercially significant free trade agreement in almost two decades.South Korea's oppositio

South Korean stocks got off to a weak start on Monday due mainly to falls in shares of key exporters, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell11.45 points, or 0.57 percent, to 1,994.56 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Major blue chips lost ground, with market bellwether Samsung Electronics slipping 0.6 percent and top automaker Hyundai Motor falling 2.11 percent.The local currency was trading at 1,097.3 won to the U.S. dollar as of 9:15 a.m., down 7 won from F

The Export-Import Bank of Korea could assist Incheon International Airport Corp to finance Myanmar’s new airport project as the state-run airport operator is currently looking into ways to fund the potential deal worth up to $600 million, said sources familiar with the situation.IIAC could seek Korea Eximbank, which has a non-binding agreement with IIAC to support the export of its airport operation know-how, to back its consortium through the policy bank’s Economic Development Cooperation Fund

South Koreans have spent an annual average of more than $4 billion on overseas study since 2006, far exceeding the amount of money foreigners spend on education programs here, central bank data showed Sunday.According to the data by the Bank of Korea, South Koreans’ spending on overseas education programs came to $4.36 billion last year, a slight decrease from $4.39 billion a year earlier.Remittances for overseas study had hovered around the $4 billion mark since 2006, except 2009 when the amoun

Several foreign companies are seeking to build casino facilities in South Korea’s economic free zones following eased regulations on investment, industry sources said Sunday.U.S.-based firm Caesars Entertainment Corporation and Lippo Group, an Indonesian company, applied for preliminary review by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in January for a joint casino in Yeongjongdo, home to Incheon International Airport, sources said.Universal Entertainment Corporation, a Japanese casino firm,

South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics Co. claimed the top spot in the Chinese smartphone market for the first time in 2012 by nearly tripling its sales in the world’s largest market, industry data showed Sunday.Samsung Electronics sold 30.06 million smartphones in China last year, up from 10.90 million units a year earlier, garnering a 17.7 percent market share, according to the data by market researcher Strategy Analytics.Last year’s market share represents a 5.3 percentage point increase

CJ Cheiljedang Corp., South Korea’s largest food company, said Sunday it is targeting to post 1 trillion won (US$920 million) in animal feed sales this year by establishing more overseas production facilities.To achieve the sales goal, CJ Cheiljedang said it will build six production plants in China, Vietnam and Indonesia, where demand for animal feed has been experiencing explosive growth.The completion of the envisioned facilities would raise the number of the company’s overseas feed factories

South Korean stocks are expected to be affected this week by how the North Korea risks heightened by the U.N.’s toughened sanctions on its nuclear test will be playing out among investors’ sentiment, analysts said Saturday.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) closed down 20.48 points or 1.01 percent to 2,006.01 on Friday from the previous week.Earlier this week, the market tided over the increased uncertainty after the automatic across-the-board budget cuts in the U.S. went in

GOHEUNG, Naro Space Center ― The KSLV-1, more affectionately known as the “Naro” rocket, may be only half Korean rocket science, but in terms of devotion, it’s 100 percent ours.At the same, the IT technology that perfected the rocket is also completely home-grown.On Saturday, the Korea Aerospace Research Institute, unveiled the launch control center to the press ― where all the IT-related data is gathered to make informed decisions on the Naro launch.Here, more than 180 types of different data a

Korea will likely see a slow economic recovery as various indices ranging from domestic consumption to exports registered lackluster figures, a state-run think tank said on Sunday.Exports, the country’s main growth engine, dropped about 9 percent in February from a year ago, but Korea was able to record a trade balance surplus of some $2 billion, the Korea Development Institute said in the report.The fall in exports is in part due to sluggish outbound shipments of ships and automobiles, as well

Watchdog forecasts boost to Asia and European regions in aftermath of Fukushima

The U.S. International Trade Commission is stuck between a rock and a hard place over the patent infringement cases filed by Samsung Electronics and Apple Inc. against each other.While it would most likely run into difficulty banning products of the Cupertino-based company on its home turf, it may also be afraid of “protectionism” claims if it chooses to block U.S. imports of Samsung, which is the world’s biggest smartphone and TV maker by shipments.The U.S. trade agency announced Thursday, loca