The Korea Herald

Middle East crisis hits Korean markets

Feb 22, 2011

Growing unrest in the Middle East and soaring crude oil prices are casting clouds over the Korean economy and placing the government and businesses on emergency footing.Construction and airline firms led a plunge in stocks in Seoul on Tuesday on concerns that protracted protests in Libya and the region could deal a major blow to Korean businesses there and Brent prices approached $107 in Asian tra
FSC, firms pledge support for savings banks

Feb 22, 2011

Deposit withdrawals from secondary banks sharply reduce as officials work to calm marketThe government and financial institutions were trying to calm savings banks’ jitters on Tuesday, pledging fresh support for troubled secondary banks hit by toxic property loans.Concerns over an industry crisis showed signs of subsiding as deposit withdrawals across the country nearly halved from the previous da
S. Korean imports of U.S. beef almost double in 2010

Feb 22, 2011

South Korea's imports of U.S. beef nearly doubled in 2010 from a year earlier due largely to dwindling concerns over its safety here, the government said Tuesday. The farm ministry said the country imported 125,681 tons of beef from the U.S. last year, up 97 percent from 63,817 tons tallied in 2009. The total effectively exceeded amounts imported by Seoul before the U.S. beef import ban went
Daewoo to build giant ships for Denmark

IndustryFeb 21, 2011

Daewoo to build giant ships for Denmark
No more savings banks suspensions: FSC

Feb 21, 2011

The nation’s chief financial regulator on Monday strived to calm jitters among savings banks’ clients amid the growing fears of a bank run.Financial Services Commission Chairman Kim Seok-dong called them to refrain from withdrawing their deposits, which would make more banks face business suspension.His remarks came after a great number of depositors pulled out their cash from the secondary financ
KB Financial names Choi to head card unit

Feb 21, 2011

KB Financial Group nominated Choi Gi-eui to head its new subsidiary KB Koomin Card on Monday.Choi currently heads the group planning the launch of KB Kookmin Card as a separate subsidiary. Choi Gi-euiIf approved at the inaugural shareholder’s meeting, Choi will become the first president of KB Financial Group’s credit card subsidiary, which is scheduled to be launched March 2.Choi, who holds a Ph.
Korea eyes $10.7 billion in software exports in 2011

IndustryFeb 21, 2011

Korea aims to export a record $10.7 billion worth of software in 2011 as local companies make inroads into the global information technology (IT) service sector, the government said Monday.The Ministry of Knowledge Economy said exports could jump 17.1 percent on-year as software companies become more competitive on the international market by offering reliable programs that meet overseas requireme
Samsung, LG lead global TV market

IndustryFeb 21, 2011

Samsung Electronics Co. and LG Electronics Inc. led the world’s flat-screen TV market last year, but they lagged behind Japanese companies in emerging 3-D TV markets, an industry report showed Monday. According to market researcher DisplaySearch, Samsung Electronics clinched 18.7 percent of the flat-screen TVs sold in the global market in 2010, followed by LG’s 13.1 percent and Sony Corp.’s 10.3 p
Korea secures 60,000-ton Japanese fishing quota

IndustryFeb 21, 2011

Korea has secured the right to catch 60,000 tons of fish in Japanese waters in 2011, unchanged from the year before, the government said Monday.The agreement, reached with Japan late last week, reflects complaints raised by local fishermen operating in Japan’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ), the Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said.Under the deal, 870 Korean boats will be all
Samsung develops faster mobile DRAM

IndustryFeb 21, 2011

Samsung Electronics Co., the world’s No. 2 semiconductor maker, said Monday that it has developed a new memory chip for mobile gadgets that can transfer data at a speed eight times faster than previous devices.The WIDE IO mobile dynamic random access memory (DRAM) chip can transfer data at a speed of 12.8 gigabyte per second, compared with 1.6 gigabyte per second of previous devices, the company s
BOK bolsters foreign currency team

Feb 21, 2011

The Bank of Korea plans to strengthen its foreign exchange department to more efficiently manage its ever-growing currency reserves and better cope with market volatility.The central bank announced plans to overhaul its organization for the first time in 13 years, focusing on slimming down departments and enhancing international affairs capability.The nation’s foreign currency reserves reached an
KT pledges better customer satisfaction

IndustryFeb 21, 2011

Company designates 2011 as the year for improved customer serviceTop executives of KT Corp., the country’s biggest fixed-line service operator, on Monday offered a rare gesture showing their commitment to customer satisfaction Its chairman Lee Suk-chae and two other top officials made foot stamps at the company’s Olleh Campus in southern Seoul. The company designated 2011 as the year for drastic i
Household credit grows fastest in 8 years: BOK

Feb 21, 2011

Korea’s household credit grew at the fastest pace in more than eight years in the fourth quarter as economic recovery and eased lending rules spurred demand for bank mortgage loans, the central bank said Monday.Household credit, the sum of loans and credit purchases, climbed 25.3 trillion won ($22.7 billion) to 795.4 trillion won in the three months ended Dec. 31 from the previous quarter, the Ban
IBK has highest labor productivity among banks

IndustryFeb 21, 2011

The state-run Industrial Bank of Korea led Korean lenders in terms of labor productivity last year, government data showed Monday.According to the Financial Supervision Service, the IBK recorded 181 million won ($163,107) in profit per employee. Shinhan scored the second with 154 million won.Employees at Hana Bank came third with 118 million won and the state-run Woori Bank came fourth with 80 mil
POSCO foundation names prize winners

IndustryFeb 21, 2011

POSCO TJ Park Foundation announced Monday that this year’s TJ Park Prize will be awarded to a Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology scientist, educator and two philanthropists.The foundation, named after POSCO founder Park Tae-joon, has awarded the annual prize for outstanding achievement in the fields of science, education and social services since 2006. KAIST professor Lee Sang-yubT