The Korea Herald

S. Korea tops OECD members for wireless Internet penetration

TechnologyJul 5, 2011

(Yonhap News)SEOUL (Yonhap) -- South Korea ranked first among advanced countries last year in terms of wireless high-speed Internet penetration, according to data by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) on Tuesday.South Korea was the leading country for wireless broadband subscriptions last year among the 34 OECD countries, with 89.8 per 100 people. The number of subscr
FSC to examine 85 savings banks in sector cleanup

Jul 4, 2011

Regulator to force nonviable institutions out of marketStarting Tuesday, the government will conduct another round of regulatory examinations on the overall savings banking industry tarnished by involvement of some banks in a corruption scandal.The Financial Services Commission said Monday that it would make inquiries into 85 out of 98 savings banks for two months to normalize the debt-saddled sec
SK Telecom’s union leader attempts suicide

IndustryJul 4, 2011

The head of SK Telecom’s union on Monday attempted suicide in what appeared to be a protest of the company’s decision to spin off its platform business.The union leader, identified only by his surname Kim, was found in the office of SK Telecom’s headquarters in downtown Seoul at around 4:00 p.m. after attempting to hang himself. Kim was rushed to a nearby hospital to receive treatment. His conditi
Korea’s full-size car sales surge in H1

IndustryJul 4, 2011

Korea’s full-size car sales surged in the first half of this year thanks to the popularity of the fifth-generation Grandeur sedan made by top automaker Hyundai Motor Co., industry data showed Monday.Domestic sales of full or large luxury sedans jumped 39.6 percent on-year to 112,927 units in the January-June period. The increase far outstrips overall car sales in the country that grew 4.1 percent
Korea aims to up EU market share to 3%

IndustryJul 4, 2011

Korea aims to increase its market share in the European Union to 3 percent within three years by taking advantage of a bilateral free trade pact that took effect last week, Korea’s trade minister said Monday.In a radio interview, Trade Minister Kim Jong-hoon said increasing market share from 2.6 percent at present is possible since the free trade agreement gives local businesses an edge over rival
Output of Korean rice wine bounces back

IndustryJul 4, 2011

Output of makgeolli is picking up in Korea as more people are opting to drink the traditional rice wine following a report that it contains anti-cancer compounds, government data showed Monday. Production of makgeolli rose 12.8 percent on-year to 35,114 kiloliters in April, with the number jumping 16.8 percent to 39,543 kiloliters in May, according to the data by Statistics Korea. Domestic shipmen
Most retailers to cut prices of EU imports on FTA

Jul 4, 2011

More than 60 percent of Korean retailers plan to lower prices of imports from the European Union following the implementation of a bilateral free trade deal, a poll showed Monday.According to the survey of 619 retailers, wholesalers and manufacturers by the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, 61.3 percent of the retailers said that they will reduce prices of EU imports to reflect the decrease
Controversy brews over dividends for Lone Star

Jul 4, 2011

The move by Korea Exchange Bank to offer a record interim dividend to its biggest shareholder Lone Star Funds is sparking concerns about long-term growth for Korea’s No. 5 lender, market watchers said.KEB’s board decided on Friday to pay out a quarterly dividend worth of 1,510 won ($1.42) per share, causing U.S. private equity fund Lone Star to rake in dividends worth 496.9 billion won.Lone Star h
Trade volume with FTA partners doubles

Jul 4, 2011

Korea’s trade volume with free trade pact signatories almost doubled last year but the trade balance showed mixed reactions by regions, a report showed Monday. According to the Korea Customs Service, the nation achieved $136.8 billion last year in the total trade volume with Chile, ASEAN, Singapore and the European Free Trade Association ― a 1.73-fold increase from $79 billion from the year before
Cisco plans Songdo investment of $47m

IndustryJul 4, 2011

New Songdo International City Development, the International Business District developer established as a collaborative project between POSCO E&C and the U.S. developer Gale International, on Monday signed a $47 million investment deal with Cisco Systems Inc.Under the deal, Cisco will move its Smart + Connected Communities Global Center into the Northeast Asia Trade Tower in Songdo, Incheon and es
Korean firms cut emissions via partnerships

IndustryJul 4, 2011

Ministry: 166 firms reduced 56,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions during last 2 yearsKorea’s efforts to shrink its carbon footprint are progressing through partnerships between big and smaller companies.The Ministry of Knowledge Economy said Monday that 166 local businesses have reduced more than 56,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions over the last two years in a green collaboration program, a
Seoul shares gain 0.92 pct on eased Greek woes

Jul 4, 2011

Korean stocks ended 0.92 percent higher on Monday as investor sentiment was underpinned by eased woes over Greece’s debt crisis and better-than-expected U.S. data, analysts said. The local currency hit a near three-year high against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark KOSPI advanced 19.56 points to 2,145.30. Trading volume was moderate at 288.5 million shares worth 6.68 trillion won ($6.3 billion) with
KT plans Chinese app market entry

IndustryJul 4, 2011

KT Corp., the nation’s No. 1 fixed-line service operator, on Monday said it will open its mobile application market in China Mobile’s application store as part of its application-sharing project with China and Japan. Olleh market will be launched as a “shop-in-shop” on July 9, the Seoul-based company said.China Mobile’s application store “Mobile Market” has since last year shown greater than 40-fo
Mirae Asset eyes Canada’s BetaPro

Jul 4, 2011

Mirae Asset Global Investment, the largest mutual fund manager in the country, said it is in talks to take over Canada’s BetaPro Management Inc., an exchanged traded funds manager, the local brokerage said Monday.The mutual fund arm of the financial group said price or timing of the acquisition is yet to be finalized. The deal is widely expected to be valued at well over $100 million.“We’re consid
Samsung to audit financial units in wake of scandal

IndustryJul 4, 2011

Samsung Group will audit its financial units this month, including key affiliates such as its insurance arms following a scandal at another subsidiary, industry sources said on Monday.The move would mark the first audit on the financial units since 2003. The group’s auditing team will first review the business operations of Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance later this month, before a separate audit