The Korea Herald

US downgrade 'sounds alarm bell': China state media

Aug 8, 2011

BEIJING (AFP) -- Standard & Poor's US debt downgrade was a wake-up call for the world, a commentary in a top Chinese state newspaper said Sunday, adding that Asian exporters faced special risks.Citing economist Sun Lijian, the People's Daily said Standard & Poor's Friday cut to the US' credit rating
Savings banks to suffer additional losses from sour PF loans

Aug 8, 2011

South Korean savings banks are expected to suffer additional losses of around 3 trillion won ($2.8 billion) from soured project financing (PF) loans, a report showed Monday.The local savings bank industry has to additionally set aside reserves totaling 2.98 trillion won in a bid to cover its bad PF
Foreign direct investment in Seoul more than doubles in first quarter

Aug 8, 2011

Foreign direct investment (FDI) in Seoul rose more than twofold in the first half of this year from the same period last year thanks to an improved business environment in the capital city, officials said Monday.The FDI in Seoul totaled $1.8 billion in the January-June period, up 116 percent from la
Seoul shares open lower

Aug 8, 2011

Korean shares opened down 1.4 percent Monday following last week's market turmoil and the downgrade to the United States' credit rating by Standard & Poor's.The weak start came even after the Group of Seven nations said they were committed to taking coordinated action to ensure liquidity and to supp
S. Korean shares open 1.4% lower

Aug 8, 2011

SEOUL (AFP) -- South Korean shares opened down 1.40 percent Monday following last week's market turmoil and the downgrade to the United States' credit rating by Standard & Poor's.The benchmark KOSPI index was down 27.18 points at 1,916.57 at the open, but it made up ground and had declined 0.5 perce
Seoul policymakers strive to preempt market volatility

Aug 7, 2011

Korean policymakers were striving Sunday to contain the impact from the historic cut in the U.S.’s sovereign credit rating and the European debt crisis amid growing concerns over the domestic markets’ vulnerability to external uncertainties.Senior officials from the Finance Ministry, the Bank
Foreign currency liquidity vital for nation: FSC chief

Aug 7, 2011

Financial Services Commission chairman Kim Seok-dong called for stronger measures to secure foreign exchange reserves to stave off debt woes abroad spilling over into local financial markets.“Inflation doesn’t undermine a nation immediately, but the foreign currency liquidity problem does topple a n
ESTsoft’s involvement with hacker attack sparks dispute

TechnologyAug 7, 2011

A massive hacking incident that hammered SK Communications, which runs popular social network site Cyworld and the third-ranked portal Nate.com, is now exposing additional security loopholes at other IT companies. Police said the ESTsoft server might have been used by a hacker who stole the personal
Suggested pricing to prompt hikes for food products

IndustryAug 7, 2011

Further price increases for some processed food products appear unavoidable with the revival of the manufacturer’s suggested retail price from this month, industry sources said Sunday.The Ministry of Knowledge Economy announced in June that food products such as instant noodles, snacks and ice cream
Gloomy outlook gripping investors, policymakers

Aug 7, 2011

Fears of a new financial crisis stoked by last week’s market turmoilFor South Korea, where memories of two major financial upheavals in the late 1990s and 2008 are fresh, the dramatic nosedive of the Seoul bourse on Friday raised investor fears of a third financial crisis.The pattern was eerily fami
Won poised to weaken amid risk aversion: analysts

Aug 7, 2011

The Korean won is poised to weaken further against the greenback this week over the risk of economic slowdown in the U.S., analysts said. The won dropped lower against the U.S. dollar in the past week after Washington avoided a partial debt default, averaging a 4.23 won loss each day from Aug. 2 onw
Seoul stocks hit hardest among big Asian markets

Aug 7, 2011

Korean banks see risks grow to eight-month highKorea has seen its stocks plummet the most among major Asian markets over the past four days after the U.S. and European fiscal woes hit the global markets.The KOSPI tumbled by 10.5 percent last week, posting the sole double-digit fall among the major i
Import cars to grab 10% of Korean market by 2012

TransportAug 7, 2011

Foreign carmakers are expected to capture 10 percent of Korea’s automobile market in about a year after they saw the market share surpass 1 percent for the first time in 2002.Buoyed by active sales of smaller sized sedans among newcomers such as Peugeot and Honda Motor in early 2000s, import vehicle
Toyota struggles with iQ as Kia’s Soul soars

TransportAug 7, 2011

Toyota Motor Corp.’s Scion brand, created in 2003 to attract young buyers with quirky cars and low prices, is trying to revive flagging sales with the tiny iQ. Scion is in need of a revival: Sales have fallen for four straight years, sliding 74 percent from a 2006 peak of 173,034. While deliveries o
Park named CEO of S-LCD

IndustryAug 7, 2011

Park Dong-gun, vice president of Samsung Electronics, has become the new chief executive of S-LCD Corporation, a joint venture between the Samsung Group’s flagship unit and Sony Corporation. Park Dong-gunThe company said Saturday that Park will replace the LCD arm’s former CEO Chang Won-