The Korea Herald

US economy may not recover as fast as expected: BOK chief

Sept 20, 2011

SEOUL, Sept. 20 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's top central banker said Tuesday that the U.S. economy may not recover as fast as expected because its real economic sectors have yet to rebound.Bank of Korea (BOK) Gov. Kim Choong-soo said in a monthly meeting with experts that currently, the real economy an
Sales at discount chains, department stores grow in Aug.

IndustrySept 20, 2011

SEOUL, Sept. 20 (Yonhap) -- Sales at South Korea's major discount chains and department stores rose from a year earlier in August on growing demand for food and daily household products ahead of a major holiday, a government report showed Tuesday.By lunar calendar, Sept. 12 was Chuseok, the Korean e
S&P downgrades Italy's credit rating a notch

Sept 20, 2011

NEW YORK (AP) — Standard & Poor's Ratings Services has downgraded Italy's credit rating by one notch, saying it sees weakening economic growth prospects for the nation and higher-than-expected levels of government debt.S&P said Monday it cut Italy's long- and short-term sovereign credit rating
STX Group drops out of bids for Hynix Semiconductor

IndustrySept 19, 2011

STX Group dropped out of the bid for Hynix Semiconductor on Monday.The group, which was bidding for the world’s second-largest chipmaker against SK Telecom, said that the plans were scrapped due to global economic instability and for fears that the large investment required to strengthen Hynix’s ope
Banks avoid massive withdrawals

Sept 19, 2011

Regulators uncover illegal lending by some savings banksDespite initial concerns that customers would withdraw their deposits en masse, the banking sector’s overall business operation looked normal, government and bank officials said on Monday.They said there were no particular signs of a bank run i
Debt-ridden KEPCO dishes out pay raises

IndustrySept 19, 2011

The state-run Korea Electric Power Corp. is facing fresh criticism as reports found on Monday that the utility and its subsidiaries doled out hefty salary increases for employees last year despite their multi-trillion won debt.According to a report submitted by the Ministry of Knowledge Economy for
Firms warned over unfair business with subcontractors

IndustrySept 19, 2011

The Fair Trade Commission on Monday issued warnings against Lotte Engineering and Construction and LS Cable and System for unfair business practices with subcontractors. In January 2009, Lotte delayed writing a contract for six months even after its subcontracting company started construction work.
FTC to probe retailers on luxury brand commissions

IndustrySept 19, 2011

The Fair Trade Commission plans to investigate commission fees at the nation’s top three department stores next month, an official said Monday. The investigation is allegedly aimed at Lotte, Shinsegae and Hyundai department stores that have given favors to foreign luxury brands with lower fees, the
Korea’s total financial debt snowballing

Sept 19, 2011

Korea’s three major economic pillars ― the public sector, households and corporations ― have incurred 3,300 trillion won ($2.96 trillion) in financial debt as of June, threatening to undermine efforts to fuel Asia’s fourth-largest economy. The record amount of financial loans shouldered by key playe
Government under pressure to lower 2011 growth forecast

Sept 19, 2011

South Korea’s government is coming under pressure to adjust its 2011 growth forecast in the face of mounting downside risks caused by the sluggish global economy, sources said.The prediction comes as the finance ministry cut this year’s growth estimate from 5.0 percent to 4.5 percent in June and fol
Hana SK Card information leaked

Sept 19, 2011

Hana SK Card said the personal information of about 200 of its customers has been compromised by a telemarketer, the latest in a series of data leaks at financial institutions.The Financial Supervisory Service, however, said the leak would be of a far larger scale than reported by the credit card co
Banks cut down on household loans

Sept 19, 2011

Lenders turn to extending loans to large corporations with higher credit ratingsHousehold loans extended by Korean banks tumbled about 400 billion won ($359 million) over about two weeks this month, banking data showed on Monday.The drop in local lenders’ loans to households came as the major banks
Retailers rev up smart marketing

IndustrySept 19, 2011

While most commuters waiting for trains chat with colleagues, read books or skim advertisements on subway platform doors, smartphone users on the bustling platforms of Seolleung Station in southern Seoul now have a new way to kill time: shopping. A simple click brings up the images of life-size stor
‘Street Fighter IV’ to debut on LG’s HD smartphone

IndustrySept 19, 2011

LG Electronics on Monday said it has inked a deal with Japanese game developer CAPCOM to release the popular video game “Street Fighter IV,” on its HD Android smartphones that is expected to be launched before the year is out. It will mark the first time for the game series to debut on an Android-po
Korean firms grapple with Myanmar currency

IndustrySept 19, 2011

Korean companies in Myanmar are wrestling with the Southeast Asian country’s strengthening currency as it increasingly chokes the viability of their exports, a report said Monday.Burma’s currency, the kyat, is rapidly climbing against the dollar and its counterparts in Asia, up about 30 percent from