Facebook has allied with Taiwan's HTC to build a customized smartphone powered by Google's Android mobile operating system, according to technology blog All Things Digital.The project, code named "Buffy," is aimed at making a handset tailored for the California-based social networking platform, acco

The Export-Import Bank of Korea (Eximbank) said Thursday it has raised around $200 million by floating Saudi riyal-denominated bonds for the first time in Asia.The bonds, worth 750 million Saudi riyal ($200 million), carry an interest rate 1.7 percentage points above the Saudi Arabia Interbank Offered Rate. The rate translates to 2.49 percentage points above the Libor, according to Eximbank.The bonds, which mature in five years, are the biggest riyal-denominated issuance since 1 billion won was

Increase in trade volume to boost air cargo revenue; removal of high tariffs on textiles to help raise market shareThe airline and shipping industries are among those expected to benefit the most from the free trade agreement between Korea and the United States due to an increase in two-way cargo shipments.The FTA will also be a boon to the Korean textile industry, mostly made up of small and medium-sized businesses, as the U.S. tariff on textiles, which goes up to 32 percent, will be removed. A

South Korea’s central bank said Thursday that its policymakers have approved measures to help boost its capacity to supply liquidity into the country’s financial system and promote financial stability.After holding a policy meeting, the monetary policy committee of the Bank of Korea has decided to supply intra-day funds to brokerage houses and to expand the scope of its open market operations, according to the central bank.The BOK said it will be able to provide temporary funds to securities fir

Limited impact expected on telecom sector, while protection for intellectual property strengthenedThe free trade agreement between Korea and the United States is expected to hit the nation’s small broadcasting and production companies particularly hard.Under the pact, direct investment by foreign nationals into local program providers will be limited to the current level of 49 percent of shares.But if they set up a local branch and invest indirectly, 100 percent ownership will be allowed at netw

Pork imports have more than doubled this year to almost one-third of the market, the largest-ever portion, a government report said Thursday. The nation imported 151.89 million metric tons of pork this year, up 117 percent from the amount imported until last November, the Ministry of Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said. Competition in the pork market is set to become fiercer as more pork imports are set to enjoy tax and tariff exemptions with the Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement ratifi

Smaller-than-expected fee cuts will affect less than 50 percent ofvendors: FTCThe nation’s major home-shopping channels and supermarket chains have agreed to reduce commission fees for small- and medium-sized vendors by three to seven percent, antitrust authorities said Thursday. The Fair Trade Commission, however, pointed out that the smaller-than-expected fee cuts would affect fewer than half the vendors, denouncing companies for their lack of willingness to share growth with smaller firms.Acc

A Microsoft Corp. senior executive met South Korea‘s telecommunications regulator on Thursday to discuss ways to expand ties with South Korea by collaborating on new businesses that may include building a data center, government officials said.Jean Philippe Courtois, president of Microsoft’s international business, met Choi See-joong, chairman of the Korea Communications Commission (KCC), in Seoul to talk about the U.S. company‘s investment opportunities in the country and measures to forge coll