The Korea Herald

Korea to provide paperless customs service

May 17, 2011

The Korea Customs Service will add an electronic tracking system on goods to tighten supervision on transshipment while enhancing custom procedures for an economy increasingly opening up to free trade agreements, the state agency said Tuesday.In a proposal outlining the agency’s medium-term goals, the KCS said it will adopt the new inspection system that applies minimal customs procedure for hones
NCsoft’s profit falls in Q1 on falling popularity of AION

TechnologyMay 17, 2011

NCsoft Corp., the country’s second-biggest online game publisher, said Tuesday it posted 155.4 billion won ($142.23 million) in sales and 46.1 billion won in operating profit in the first quarter, both figures down from the same period last year.In its quarterly earnings report, the Seoul-based firm said that its sales and operating profit slipped 7 percent and 40 percent year-on-year, respectivel
College graduates now make up lion’s share of workforce

May 17, 2011

College graduates took up a bigger portion of the country’s workforce than high school graduates for the first time, Statistics Korea said Tuesday.Jobs taken by graduates from universities and vocational colleges totaled 9.54 million as of March, exceeding those taken by high school graduates, 9.5 million.The trend continued through April, with college graduates topping the figure by 25,000 at 9.5
Bad loans may spur liquidity problem for securities firms

May 17, 2011

Local securities firms are bracing for the possibility of a liquidity crisis brought on by financial woes in the sluggish construction sector.The firms are closely monitoring the progress of a group of savings banks already suffering from overdue “project financing loans” issued to builders.The risk growing in the stock brokerage sector is due to asset-backed commercial papers, a type of securitie
The Macallan looks to revive chemistry with art

IndustryMay 17, 2011

The Macallan premium single malt whisky from Speyside, Scotland, is returning to Korea with a new special edition, aiming to generate chemistry between whisky and the legendary photographer Albert Watson.For the biennial “Master of Photography” project, the Scottish distillery selects an artist to portray the craft of whisky-making through photography. Photographer Albert WatsonFollowing the firs
What’s your favorite app?

IndustryMay 17, 2011

Applications related to media, games, lifestyles most profitableChoi Hyun-young, a wedding planner by profession, says life has become so much easier since downloading Awesome Note on her smartphone. The application ― which is basically an online organizer and note-taker ― helps Choi keep her hectic schedule intact with customized folders for work and her personal life, under which she keeps and m
EU clears Portugal bailout

IndustryMay 17, 2011

Ministers sign off on $110b in rescue loans, continue to wrestle over GreeceBRUSSELS (AP) ― European governments insisted on handing out bailouts to fight the debt crisis on Monday, when they signed off on 78 billion euros ($110 billion) in loans to Portugal and debated giving Greece a second rescue package to avoid a disastrous default.Most of the terms for Portugal’s package had emerged over the
Brokerages favor directors from watchdog

May 16, 2011

Major securities companies are eager to recruit outside directors, mainly from government agencies with investigative power.Their recruitment practices have been regarded as a conventional strategy aimed at lobbying the agencies to minimize fallout from possible internal irregularities.According to sources in the stock brokerage industry, agencies whose former high-ranking officials are moving to
Forbes ranks Lotte Shopping as world’s 6th largest retailer

IndustryMay 16, 2011

Lotte Shopping, Korea’s leading retail group, said Monday that it has been ranked the sixth-largest retailer worldwide by Forbes Magazine, joining the ranks of global top sellers.The Korean company runs chains of Lotte Department Store, Lotte Mart and Lotte Super. Tied with Chile’s Falabella, it ranked higher than U.S. giants such as Sears and Nordstrom and Japan’s Isetan Mitsukoshi.Forbes has bee
Regulator unveils support measures for new mobile service operators

IndustryMay 16, 2011

The Korea Communications Commission unveiled support measures Monday for mobile virtual network operators so that they can release telecom services that are 20 percent cheaper than what is now available.The state telecom regulator said SK Telecom, the country’s top mobile carrier, will provide the MVNOs with mobile phones until June 2012.It also said SKT will also help the MVNOs, which plan to lau
SMEs create more jobs than big firms

IndustryMay 16, 2011

The number of people working at small- and medium-sized enterprises increased by 3.47 million between 1999 and 2009, industry data showed Sunday.Under local regulations, SMEs are defined as companies with less than 1,000 employees and total assets less than 500 billion won ($458 million), and companies that meet the requirements but are affiliated to large companies are excluded from the category.
Samsung phones stay on top of U.S. market

IndustryMay 16, 2011

Global mobile phone market gets significant boost by burgeoning demand for smartphonesSamsung Electronics, the world’s second-largest phone maker, has held the biggest U.S. market share for 11 straight quarters anchoring its position as a top seller in the region, according to market research data.Strategy Analytics on Monday said Samsung’s market share stood at 27.4 percent after selling 12.6 mil
Six out of 10 happy to work longer for less: KCCI survey

IndustryMay 16, 2011

Six out of 10 salaried workers are willing to apply for the salary peak system to stay employed longer, the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry said on Monday. The salary peak system provides older workers with an opportunity to work past their retirement age, but for a smaller salary once their “peak” has passed. A survey taken by the chamber showed that out of 353 salaried workers, almost 60
More poor pushed to rely on private lenders

May 16, 2011

The number of people who have turned to private lenders or loan sharks in the secondary financial sector has jumped 18 percent over the past six months, reflecting worsening borrowing conditions for the poor amid industry-wide credit crunch. More than 2.27 million people took loans out from private lenders as of April, up about 300,000 from October, the Financial Services Commission said. Given th
KB, Shinhan CEOs seek boost from IR activities

May 16, 2011

Financial chiefs hope to overcome saturated domestic marketChief executives of major financial companies are increasingly focusing on overseas public relations to overcome the challenges of the saturated local market.Among the more active players are KB Financial Group chairman Euh Yoon-dae and Shinhan Financial Group chairman Han Dong-woo. Han Dong-wooEuh left for the U.S. last Saturday to hold i