The Korea Herald

Korean traditional alcoholic beverages go global

IndustryDec 27, 2012

More and more foreign buyers are focusing on Korean traditional alcoholic beverages as Makgeolli, a rice-based alcohol product, has been gaining growing popularity in the overseas market.Amid the movement to revitalize the traditional alcoholic beverage market, more than 240 brands nationwide participated in the Korean Traditional Beverage Fair last October.The annual contest is aimed at elevating the quality of Korean alcoholic beverages by promoting taste competitions of representative brands
Mark Zuckerberg‘s sister angered after family Facebook photo goes public

TechnologyDec 27, 2012

The confusion around Facebook‘s oft-criticized privacy settings hit close to home for founder Mark Zuckerberg, when his sister noticed that a photo she had meant to be private went public. On Christmas Day, Randi Zuckerberg posted a Facebook photo of her family -- including Mark -- reacting in mock surprise to the company’s new Poke app. When Callie Schweitzer, Vox Media‘s director of marketing, saw the photo at the top of her feed, she assumed it was public and promptly tweeted it to her follo
Kwang Dong raises price of Korea’s top mineral water brand

IndustryDec 27, 2012

Kwang Dong Pharmaceutical Co. raised the price of Jeju Samdasoo, right after the company took over the sales rights for Korea’s leading mineral water brand from its previous owner Nongshim.Retail industry sources said on Thursday that Kwang Dong, the new nationwide distributor of Jeju Samdasoo, verbally announced it hiked the prices of 500-millileter and 2-liter products by 10 won and 15 won, respectively.The move is expected to prompt other mineral water makers to follow suit. Kwang Dong argued
DRAM inventory rebounds on sluggish PC sales

TechnologyDec 27, 2012

The inventory of dynamic random access memory (DRAM) chips has recently bounced back amid a continued slump in the global PC market, spawning concerns on chip price recovery, data showed Thursday.The DRAM inventory of global suppliers stood at 12.2 weeks in the third quarter of the year, compared with 10.4 weeks in the previous quarter, according to the data by IHS iSuppli.The increase, the first in four quarters, comes amid feeble demand for PCs that use DRAM chips as a key component.Despite
S. Korean manufacturers' biz sentiment for Jan. rebounds

IndustryDec 27, 2012

South Korean manufacturers' business confidence for January rebounded from a 44-month low tallied in the previous month as some economic data showed improved performances, the central bank said Thursday.The index of manufacturers' outlook on business conditions came in at 70 for January, up from 67 tallied for December, according to a monthly survey by the Bank of Korea (BOK). The index measures manufacturers' expectations for the coming month.A reading below the benchmark 100 means pessimists o
[Newsmaker] Korail accused of overstating KTX safety

IndustryDec 26, 2012

Local passengers raised their eyebrows when the state-run railway operator Korail claimed the safety and on-time operation of its trains as global No. 1 in a report submitted for evaluation in June. At the time, Korail was suffering from public condemnation after a series of frequent breakdowns and delayed schedules of the nation’s KTX bullet trains.Korail explained that it had cited official data from the International Union of Railways, or UIC, and then the agency was designated as one of the
Cold spell pushes power demand to new peak

Dec 26, 2012

Electricity demand surged to a record high of 76.6 million kilowatts on Wednesday morning due to the frigid temperatures, officials said.During the morning peak between 10 a.m. and 11 a.m., it was 75.9 million kilowatts on average. Soaring demand amid the cold spell took electricity reserves to below 4 million kilowatts at 10:44 a.m., leading the power control agency to issue an “attention” warning.It was the sixth time the attention light has lit up in December. The attention warning goes off w
President-elect urged to engage more of Asia

Dec 26, 2012

Following is the sixth in a series of articles on President-elect Park Geun-hye’s key policies. ― Ed. Korea is compelled to broaden its horizon as far as its business relations with overseas partners goes to more actively woo its Asian neighbors, experts said this week, as President-elect Park Geun-hye is poised to take over the government control tower. In particular, the nation should be ready to form stronger economic partnerships within the Asian region, whose members are likely to favor Kor
SK Innovation supplies energy to poor neighbors

Dec 26, 2012

SK Innovation, the holding company which manages the energy-related business of SK Group, has run a charity program to deliver coal briquettes for the needy every winter since 2005. This year, executives and employees of SK Innovation joined the race on a voluntary basis to deliver 110,000 coal briquettes to about 370 low-income families living in Seoul, Incheon and Ulsan where the company’s head office or production lines are located. Coal briquettes, a cheaper energy source than oil or gas, is
DSME wins $1.56 billion submarine order

IndustryDec 26, 2012

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering won a $1.56 billion order to build two 3,000-ton KSS-III submarines from the nation’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration.The submarines will be built based on DSME’s own technology and be delivered to the Korean Navy by the end of 2022, the company said in a statement. DSME started building submarines in 1987 through technology transferred from Germany and has strengthened its market leadership, with a total production of 17 submarines. Three of t
Fila Korea to start golf apparel biz in China

Dec 26, 2012

HONG KONG (Yonhap News) ― Fila Korea Ltd., a South Korean sportswear maker, will start its golf apparel business in China next year in a bid to tap into China’s growing population of golfers, company officials said Wednesday.Fila Korea, which together with Mirae Asset Private Equity Fund acquired global golf equipment maker Acushnet Company last year, will introduce a golf clothing line for Chinese consumers in the second half of 2013, they said. Acushnet, established in 1910, is the world’s lea
Consumer sentiment stays below par for 5th month

Dec 26, 2012

South Korean consumers’ confidence stayed below par for the fifth straight month in December as the economy loses steam on weak domestic demand, the central bank said Wednesday.The consumer sentiment index ― a gauge of consumers’ overall economic outlook, living conditions and future spending ― came in at 99 for December, unchanged from the previous month, according to a monthly survey by the Bank of Korea.A reading below the benchmark 100 means pessimists outnumber optimists. The survey, based
Shinhan recognized for consumer protection efforts

Dec 26, 2012

Shinhan Bank has been shoring up customer service to live up to its banking philosophy of “compassionate finance” and brand slogan “companionship for a better tomorrow.”In May, Shinhan launched a customized program to provide customers with products and services tailored to their specific needs.Having centered its business on customers’ thoughts and actions from the very beginning, the bank continues to pursue change and innovation to meet the diverse needs of customers. In March, Shinhan became
Shares end almost flat on U.S. concerns

Dec 26, 2012

South Korean stocks inched up 0.02 percent on Wednesday as concerns about the U.S. fiscal cliff issue weighed on foreign and institutional buying, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 0.43 points to 1,982.25. Trading volume was moderate at 419.6 million shares worth 3.48 trillion won ($3.24 billion), with gainers outnumbering decliners 457 to 365.“Foreigners and institutions picked up shares on ex-dividend demand,”
Tobacco exports surge 3.7-fold in decade

IndustryDec 26, 2012

Korea’s tobacco exports have increased by 370 percent over the past 10 years while imports remained steady, resulting in a tobacco trade surplus since 2004.In 2002, the country’s tobacco imports amounted to more than double its exports. Last year, exports rose to 1.7 times the imports, data from the Korea Customs Service showed.“Much of the domestic demand for imported manufactured tobacco appears to have been replaced by demand for Korean-made products as their quality improved,” said a KCS off