The Korea Herald

Hyundai chairwoman coordinating N.K. visit with former first lady

Dec 21, 2011

The chairwoman of Hyundai Group, a family-run shipping and tourism conglomerate, is working with former first lady Lee Hee-ho to jointly pay their respects to North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, sources said Wednesday.The company, which has extensive business interests in the socialist country, said it has begun talks so the two women can form a civilian condolence group to go to the communist country.“There is a need to work out details on how many people will be included in the group and when the
Firms spooked more by Europe than N.K.

IndustryDec 21, 2011

Businesses more concerned about effects from eurozone debt crisisMajor listed companies in South Korea saw North Korea as less of a risk than the European debt crisis for their business next year, despite concerns of instability in Pyongyang following Kim Jong-il’s death.South Korea’s top 20 listed businesses in terms of aggregate market value said they were much more perturbed by the fiscal predicaments in Europe than they were by North Korea. They were, however, worried about currency exchange
Homeplus to start convenient store business

IndustryDec 21, 2011

Homeplus, the nation’s No. 2 supermarket chain owned by the U.K.’s Tesco, said Wednesday that it is ready to expand its business to convenient store franchises early next year. The retail giant said it has already received clearance from local antitrust authorities to go ahead with its plan to enter the industry here. “A growing number of babyboomers are expected to retire in the coming years. They could profit from the franchise business with less investment, leading to more jobs here,” a Homep
SK Telecom, Chery Automobile set up joint lab in China

IndustryDec 21, 2011

HONG KONG (Yonhap News) ― Chery Automobile Co., China’s seventh-largest automaker, said Wednesday it has jointly built a laboratory with South Korea’s leading mobile carrier SK Telecom Co., in a bid to boost their competitiveness in the vehicle networking technology. A trend has been growing recently in the automobile industry toward developing in-vehicle data transmission and communications between vehicles and the outside world.After three years of coordination, the two companies recently laun
Samsung becomes world’s 7th largest laptop maker

TechnologyDec 21, 2011

Samsung Electronics Co., the world’s top memory chipmaker, is also becoming a major supplier of laptop computers, more than quadrupling its global market share in just four years, market observers said.The company’s global market share rose from 1.4 percent in 2007 to 6.5 percent in the third quarter of this year, they said.The third-quarter figure is the world’s seventh largest, placing Samsung ahead of other major suppliers including Japan’s Sony Corp. and United States’ Apple Inc.Samsung’s do
Hyundai Motor’s Eon, Verna named best cars in India

TransportDec 21, 2011

Hyundai Motor Co.’s Eon and Verna small-size cars have been respectively named the “best cars of the year” in their segments in India, industry sources said Wednesday.The Eon, Hyundai’s hatchback city car, has been named the micro-mini car of the year by the Overdrive automotive review program aired on CNBC-TV18, according to the sources.The model made by South Korea’s largest carmaker features an 800cc engine, and was launched in the local market in October, with sales hitting 7,418 units last
Gold prices jump on North Korean woes

Dec 21, 2011

Gold prices in South Korea have climbed following the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il as worries over heightened geopolitical uncertainties and a strengthening greenback prompted investors to stack up the safe-haven asset, data showed Wednesday.The retail price of 1 don of pure gold in South Korea stood at 238,000 won ($205.99) as of Tuesday, rising the most in five days since 241,000 won on Dec. 14, according to the Korea Gold Exchange.The don (3.75 grams) is a Korean unit used to meas
Korea Life to set up joint venture in China

Dec 21, 2011

Korea Life Insurance Co., South Korea’s second-largest life insurer, said Wednesday it will launch a joint venture in China in a bid to tap into the world’s second-largest economy.Korea Life Insurance signed an agreement Tuesday with China’s state-run fund provider Zhejiang International Business Group Co. to set up a joint life insurer in Hangzhou, the provincial capital of Zhejiang, the Korean insurer said in a statement.The 50-50 joint venture will be capitalized at 500 million yuan ($78 mill
Apple EU design may lose reach in Samsung case over tablets, court says

TechnologyDec 21, 2011

A European Union design Apple Inc. (AAPL) used to win a sales ban on Samsung Electronics Co.’s Galaxy 10.1 tablets may be of limited value after new evidence was introduced in an appeal of the decision, a German court said. Samsung introduced as evidence a U.S. utility patent using a type of flat sc
Samsung becomes world's seventh largest laptop maker

TechnologyDec 20, 2011

SEOUL, Dec. 20 (Yonhap) -- Samsung Electronics Co., the world's top memory chipmaker, is also becoming a major supplier of laptop computers, more than quadrupling its global market share in just four years, market observers said Tuesday.The company's global market share rose from 1.4 percent in 2007
Korea to lower tariffs on 103 items to stabilize prices

Dec 20, 2011

South Korea will lower tariffs on a total of 103 products next year in a bid to help stabilize prices of goods frequently consumed by ordinary citizens, farmers and small enterprises, the Finance Ministry said Tuesday.The items, whose tariffs will be temporarily lowered or removed throughout next year under the tariff quota system, will include raw sugar, pork, garlic and butter, according to the Ministry of Strategy and Finance. There will be less products than the 112 imports that were eligibl
Korea’s IT gurus to gather in Las Vegas for electronics show

TechnologyDec 20, 2011

Hynix CEO Kwon to make appearance in the U.S. event early next monthHynix chief executive Kwon Oh-chul is expected to attend the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas next month to meet with top officials of its U.S. business partners, industry sources said.Hynix chief executive Kwon Oh-chulKwon, t
Korea’s IT gurus to gather at Las Vegas tech show

IndustryDec 20, 2011

Hynix CEO Kwon to make appearance in the U.S. event early next monthHynix chief executive Kwon Oh-chul is expected to attend the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas next month to meet with top officials of its U.S. business partners, industry sources said.Kwon, top executive of the world’s No. 2 memory chipmaker, is most likely to go to the U.S. as demand for its two key products -- NAND Flash memory and mobile application processors -- is increasing with the sharp rise in smart devices such
Markets stabilizing after Kim’s death

Dec 20, 2011

Seoul stocks, currency rebound on receding worries over N.K. uncertaintySeoul stocks and the local currency rebounded modestly Tuesday on receding worries that the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il will bring drastic and immediate change to the economic climate.The benchmark KOSPI advanced 0.91 percent to 1,793.06, reversing its sharpest loss in six weeks from Monday after North Korea announced that the communist leader had died on Dec. 17. The won gained 1.07 percent against the dollar
Korea’s corporate profitability slips in Q3

Dec 20, 2011

South Korea’s corporate profitability worsened in the third quarter from a year earlier as increased commodity prices drove up costs and other expenses, the central bank said Tuesday.The average ratio of operating profit to sales, a key barometer of profitability, came in at 5.3 percent in the July-September period, down from 7.4 percent in the previous year, the Bank of Korea said in a report based on a survey of 1,522 listed companies.The result marked the second straight quarterly decline. Af