The Korea Herald

Won rises 2.6% against dollar in 2010

Jan 17, 2011

The Korean currency gained 2.6 percent against the U.S. dollar last year amid robust exports and continued capital inflows, the central bank said Monday.The won’s gain was the smallest last year among major Asian currencies excluding the Hong Kong dollar, which lost 0.2 percent against the greenback, according to the Bank of Korea. Hong Kong has pegged its currency to the greenback.Among major Asi
Korean firms aim for further gains at Detroit Motor Show

IndustryJan 17, 2011

DETROIT (AFP) ― Korean automakers Hyundai and Kia made a strong showing at this year’s Detroit auto show, turning heads with new models and vowing to build on last year’s gains.Both Kia and Hyundai ― which share manufacturing and engineering facilities but sell their vehicles separately in the U.S.― are looking for more growth this year after setting sales records in 2010, with Hyundai having fini
Russian company builds Web empire at home and abroad

IndustryJan 17, 2011

MOSCOW (AFP) ― It is a company with a stake in Facebook, the leading position in one of the world’s fastest-growing Internet markets and a listing on the London Stock Exchange.But this is not a firm from Silicon Valley or a high-tech Asian economy. It is from Russia, in recent years not a place known for cutting-edge corporate innovation.While President Dmitry Medvedev ploughs on with his state-sp
G20 committee to go under Finance Ministry

Jan 17, 2011

The government is placing the Presidential Committee for the G20 Summit into the Finance ministry as a task force during February to coordinate follow-ups of agendas with France, the G20 chair for this year.“The G20 preparation body was created to organize the G20 Seoul summit last year and we are readying to move them to the Finance Ministry,” the government said.The committee will be comprised o
State R&D chief to speak at CeBIT

IndustryJan 17, 2011

Hwang Chang-gyu, head of Ministry of Knowledge Economy’s Strategic R&D Planning office, has been chosen as one of the three speakers for a conference to be held during German IT exhibition CeBIT from March 1 to 5, the organizers of the event said Monday. Hwang Chang-gyuThe former Samsung Electronics chief, who was appointed to the government post early last year, is the first Korean to give a spee
Hyundai Mobis eyes spot in top 10 car parts makers

IndustryJan 17, 2011

Hyundai Mobis Co. plans to invest 1.15 trillion won ($1.02 billion) this year aiming to become one of the world’s 10 largest auto parts makers, the company said on Monday.The company affiliated with Hyundai Motor Group will earmark 360 billion won for research and development for high-tech systems this year.It will diversify its R&D personnel to include more engineers specializing in information t
FSC criticized for savings banks push

Jan 17, 2011

Financial groups may see reputation undermined by acquiring distressed institutionsThe Financial Services Commission has come under criticism for apparently pressuring major financial groups to take over distressed savings banks.Bankers expressed skepticism over the financial watchdog’s move after it unveiled plans last week to put ailing savings banks up for auction and suspend operations at some
Telecoms bet on cloud computing

IndustryJan 17, 2011

Local carriers look to take share of global market expected to reach $44.2b in 2013Korea’s telecom carriers are jumping on the cloud computing market to meet growing demand for software, platform and data storage in service. SK Telecom Co., Korea’s top wireless carrier, said Monday it will open a cloud service center that will allow small and mid-sized firms to use high-capacity computing resource
Global forum seeks to promote clean energy

IndustryJan 17, 2011

World Future Energy Summit opens in Abu DhabiABU DHABI ― Ministers and industry experts from around the world gathered in the capital of the United Arab Emirates to discuss ways to promote the use of clean energy for sustainable growth. The 4th annual World Future Energy Summit kicked off Monday hosted by Abu Dhabi-based power company Masdar, wholly owned by the state-run Mubadala Development Comp
Korean Air to start A380 flights in June

IndustryJan 17, 2011

Korean Air said Monday it would take delivery of five Airbus A380 superjumbos this year, with the first flight scheduled for June.The Korean flag carrier said the A380 service between Incheon International Airport and Tokyo’s Narita would start on the morning of June 1, with the plane departing for Hong Kong once it returns from Narita.It said in a statement the service would be expanded to Bangko
Hyundai ups ante with new Grandeur

TransportJan 17, 2011

By Choi He-suk The latest version of Hyundai Motor Co.’s perennial bestseller Grandeur was unveiled on Thursday, completing the revamping of domestic firms’ upper-midsized sedans.In line with the company’s recent policy of listing imported vehicles as the main competition, Hyundai is eying a number of the world’s best-known models in the segment, including the Mercedes Benz E Class, BMW 5 Series a
Automobile recalls in S. Korea soar in 2010

TransportJan 17, 2011

Automobile recalls in South Korea spiked in 2010 because of tighter safety-related regulatory control and monitoring, a government report showed Monday. According to the report by the Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs, 270,000 vehicles of 87 locally made and imported models were recalled last year, up 110,000 units from a year earlier. The total number of vehicle models recalled
Hyundai Motor scales down target share of domestic auto market

IndustryJan 16, 2011

Hyundai Motor Co. aims to boost its domestic market share to 47 percent this year with its upgraded vehicles lineup, the company said Sunday. The country’s top automaker took 45.2 percent of the Korean market in 2010, falling short of its 52 percent target for the year and the 50.7 percent it secured in 2009. In contrast to a strong overseas performance, Hyundai’s domestic sales in 2010 fell 6.1 p
LG bets on leadership to stay ahead

IndustryJan 16, 2011

LG Group plans to foster strong leadership among younger employees to fulfill the growing need to secure new human resources and a new organization to stay ahead of the markets, the company said Sunday. “People and their organization must first change if they are to persistently face challenges to lead the markets,” LG Group chairman Koo Bon-moo was quoted as saying. Koo said LG will select 500 em
Oilbank launches new refining facility

IndustryJan 16, 2011

Hyundai Oilbank Co. has recently completed the construction of its second heavy oil upgrading plant as local refineries are racing to get an edge in the high value-added market.The country’s smallest refiner said on Sunday the new facility located in Daesan, South Chungcheong Province, will enter full operation in mid-May after a four-month test run. The company has invested 2.6 trillion won ($2.3