The Korea Herald

Gasoline cars sales up despite high fuel prices

IndustryOct 12, 2011

SEOUL, Oct. 12 (Yonhap) -- Sales of gasoline-powered cars in South Korea rose this year from the previous year despite high local fuel prices, an industry report showed Wednesday.The Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association (KAMA) report showed that in the first eight months of the year 67.5 perce
S. Korea's jobless rate stands at 3 percent in Sept.

Oct 12, 2011

SEOUL, Oct. 12 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's jobless rate stayed unchanged in September from a month earlier but job growth was showing signs of slowing down after recent marked expansions, a report showed Wednesday.The jobless rate stood at 3 percent last month, unchanged from August, according to the
BlackBerry services hit in Latin America, India

TechnologyOct 12, 2011

LONDON (AP) -- BlackBerry's woes spread on Tuesday as the smartphone's maker reported service disruptions for a second straight day in Europe, the Middle East and Africa and fresh problems in Latin America and India.Research in Motion Ltd., which makes BlackBerry devices, acknowledged there were ong
Foreign capital inflow continues to rise

Oct 11, 2011

Direct foreign investment into Korea during the first nine months of the year increased from a year ago, but the rate of growth slowed, government data showed Tuesday.According to the Ministry of Knowledge Economy, the amount of foreign investment reported to the authorities during the first nine mo
SKT, SNU Hospital join hands for health care

IndustryOct 11, 2011

New joint venture expected to be launched this yearSK Telecom, the country’s largest mobile carrier, said Tuesday that the company and Seoul National University Hospital recently agreed to establish a joint venture involving health care.The new joint venture is expected to lead the future health car
Seoul shares up 1.62% on eurozone hopes

Oct 11, 2011

South Korean stocks finished 1.62 percent higher on Tuesday, led by oil refiners and shipyards, as European leaders' move to shore up the region's banking sector boosted investor confidence, analysts said. The local currency climbed against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price
Oilbank sets W100b for storage facility

Oct 11, 2011

Hyundai Oilbank Co., South Korea’s fourth-largest oil refiner, said Tuesday that it will spend 100 billion won ($86 million) on building a new storage facility for oil and petrochemical products.The facility in Ulsan, 414 kilometers southeast of Seoul, includes a 300,000-kiloliter tank, it said.Cons
BOK expected to freeze interest rate

Oct 11, 2011

The Bank of Korea is widely expected to keep the benchmark rate steady at its rate-setting meeting on Thursday, a survey by Korea Financial Investment Association showed on Tuesday.The KOFIA survey, conducted on local bond dealers, brokers and analysts between Sept. 27 and Oct. 3, revealed that 96.3
SK Planet aims to go global,...achieve W3.5tr sales in 2016

IndustryOct 11, 2011

New subsidiary of SK Telecom to go overseas with focus on Asian marketsSK Planet, a new platform subsidiary of the country’s top mobile carrier, said Tuesday it aimed to make the company worth 5 trillion won ($4.29 billion) within the next five years.In its first press conference, the firm’s chief e
Brokerages move toward investment banking

Oct 11, 2011

Daewoo, Woori and Samsung jump on the IB bandwagon; Hyundai, Korea weigh optionsSince the Korean financial regulator set the standard for designating homegrown investment banks, local brokerages are racing to increase their paid-in capital to qualify for the potentially lucrative business. The Finan
New KOTRA chief vows to help SMEs boost exports

IndustryOct 11, 2011

The new head of the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency pledged on Tuesday to open the door to exports for small- and medium-sized enterprises as he laid out his company’s roadmap for the next three years.Hong Suk-woo, an ex-chief of the Small & Medium Business Administration, took office at the
Card, capital firms face scrutiny

Oct 11, 2011

The Financial Supervisory Service plans to launch an on-the-spot probe soon into the credit card and capital services industries amid a series of financial accidents involving customer information leaks among loan issuance firms.The action comes after a great amount of personal information was leake
Hallyu stars boost food brand sales in Korea

IndustryOct 11, 2011

VIPS, a local steakhouse chain owned by CJ Foodville, has seen a 30 percent increase in its sales since singer/actor Rain became a commercial model for the company in July. “Many of the new customers are Rain’s fans from China and Japan who have watched the TV commercials through YouTube,” said a CJ
World Bank to open regional consultation center in Seoul

Oct 11, 2011

The World Bank will open a consultation center in Seoul as part of their efforts to provide advice on finance to developing countries in the East Asia and Pacific region, the Finance Ministry said Tuesday.The agreement was reached under a memorandum of understanding signed between Choi Jong-ku, a de
Financial firms set to pay hefty bonuses

Oct 11, 2011

South Korea’s financial regulator has urged local bank chiefs to stem excessive dividend payments and set aside enough money to brace for worsening shockwaves stemming from the ongoing global uncertainty, sources said Tuesday.The move comes on the heels of projections that local banks are expected t