Knowledge Economy Minister Hong Suk-woo on Wednesday apologized for delayed reports of the temporary power loss at the Gori nuclear power plant in Busan on Feb. 9 and vowed to reprimand those responsible. Kim Jong-shin, chief executive of Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co., said he will take responsibility if necessary, adding that he only learned about the accident on Sunday and reported it to the ministry and nuclear security authorities on Monday.“I apologize for the belated reports on the power

HONG KONG (Yonhap News) ― NCsoft Corp., a leading online game developer in South Korea, will likely see its sales in China rise sharply this year largely thanks to its new partnership with a Chinese distributor, Goldman Sachs said Wednesday.NCsoft currently distributes its flagship massively multiplayer online role-playing games ― Lineage I, Lineage II and Aion ― in China through a contract with Shanda Interactive Entertainment Ltd., a Shanghai-based operator of online games. The company has ter

Korea’s economic slowdown and a general drop in demand has put a dent in roughly half of all consumer product manufacturers in the country, a poll showed Wednesday.The survey of 350 domestic demand oriented companies conducted by the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry showed 47.7 percent of the respondents saying they are feeling the pinch of sluggish economic growth.Asia’s fourth-largest economy is expected to grow 3.7 percent this year, down from 3.8 percent last year and 6.2 percent growt

South Korean stocks soared to a seven-month high on Wednesday as exporter shares posted firm gains on the back of optimism over the U.S. economy, analysts said. The local currency fell against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark KOSPI climbed 20.04 points, or 0.99 percent, to 2,045.08, the highest close since 2,066.26 on Aug. 3. Trading volume was heavy at 534.4 million shares worth 6.3 trillion won ($5.6 billion), with gainers outnumbering decliners 461 to 356.“Better-than-expected retail sales data

Company attacked for offering exclusive benefits to Costco in service feesAbout two million retailers nationwide are poised to boycott consumers’ payments via Samsung Card from next month.They demand the nation’s third-largest credit card issuer cut settlement service charges on retailers and cease offering exclusive benefits to Costco Wholesale Korea, a large discount chain.The association, composed of small- and mid-sized retailers, demanded the card issuer cut the service fee to 1.5 percent o

South Korea’s plan to install smart meters in half the country’s households by 2016 could cut electricity consumption equivalent to the cost of one nuclear power plant. “We want to make the utility industry intelligent and efficient,” said Choi Kyu-chong, director of the Smart Grid & Electricity Market Division of the Knowledge Economy Ministry. South Korea expects it will be able to save the cost of building a reactor by 2016 by helping households and utilities to manage electricity consumption

Participating firms will get incentive points in bidding for public projectsThe Korean government said it will kick off a new growth-sharing program between small and big enterprises in April amid the slower-than-expected adoption of shared growth practices in the country’s corporate sector. The Ministry of Knowledge Economy said on Wednesday it will introduce a “growth-sharing certification program” next month, offering incentives to big businesses that support their suppliers or other small fi

HONG KONG (Yonhap News) ― Korea’s LG Display Co. will likely start building its 8.5 generation liquid crystal display plant in China next month, in a bid to garner a larger market share there, a source said Wednesday. In December 2010, the world’s No. 2 maker of LCD panels obtained approval from the Chinese government to build an LCD factory in the southern city of Guangzhou.The South Korean company, however, has been delaying breaking ground on its Guangzhou factory due to prolonged sluggish de

The Agriculture Ministry is considering mandatory origin labeling at restaurants selling pollack and mackerel, responding to fears about radioactivity in Japanese waters. “The ministry began studying measures to enforce origin labeling to help customers filter out Japanese imports,” said a spokesman at the Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.“We have been promoting honest origin labeling at eateries, but more consumers have been complaining about having to eat seafood without

KT&G Corp., Korea’s largest tobacco and ginseng product manufacturer, said Wednesday that it will jump into the pharmaceutical business in a bid to diversify its business portfolio.The company said it launched KT&G Life Sciences Corp., formerly known as Mazence Inc., which KT&G acquired late last year to spearhead the business.KT&G said it will focus on developing treatments for cancer and osteoporosis and drugs for atopic diseases, as well as new medicines for diabetes and obesity that Mazence