The Korea Herald

GM awards LG Chem

Mar 13, 2011

LG Chem said Sunday that it has been named “corporation of the year” at the 19th annual Supplier of the Year celebration, held at the GM World headquarters in Detroit, Michigan.Company officials said the win was attributable to its lithium-ion battery supplied for GM’s electric vehicle, Volt.To receive the most prestigious award among 82 global suppliers to GM who were also in presence at the awar
S. Koreans' overseas travel spending hits 30-month high in Jan.

Mar 13, 2011

South Koreans' spending on overseas travel rose by the most in 30 months in January as the local economy recovered and the local currency ascended to the U.S. dollar, central bank data showed Sunday. South Koreans' expenditure on overseas travel reached US$2 billion in January, up 29.2 percent from a year earlier and marking the highest level since the $2.24 billion recorded in July 2008, acc
Korea to launch grain trading firm in April

Mar 11, 2011

By Shin Hyon-heeKorea’s government and companies will open a grain trading company in Chicago next month, speeding up efforts to ensure stable supply and cope with price swings, a source close to the matter told The Korea Herald.The state-run Korea Agro-Fisheries Trade Corp. (aT) said in January it and large local firms will launch the joint corporation this year to establish a national grain proc
BOK hikes rate to curb inflation

Mar 10, 2011

Central bank governor sees high inflationary pressureKorea’s central bank raised its key interest rate for the second time in three months Thursday as it steps up efforts to control inflation.The Bank of Korea lifted its benchmark base rate to 3 percent from 2.75 percent at a monthly meeting. The rate influences a variety of borrowing costs, including those on overnight loans between financial ins
Samsung chief Lee slams profit-sharing scheme

Mar 10, 2011

Lee Kun-hee, chairman of Samsung Electronics Co., on Thursday lashed out at a recent proposal by former Prime Minister Chung Un-chan for large businesses to share their excessive profits with smaller companies.The rare attack from usually reticent Lee, 69, came as he was on his way to a monthly meeting of the executive board of the Federation of Korean Industries, the largest business lobby in Kor
Ex-Minister Kang picked to head KDB Group

Mar 10, 2011

Kang Man-soo, senior presidential economic adviser and former finance minister, was recommended Thursday as the next chairman of state-run KDB Financial Group Inc.The Financial Services Commission requested President Lee Myung-bak appoint Kang to lead the group, which controls Korea Development Bank. He would double as chief of the lender.Kang, 66, will replace Min Euoo-sung, who led the state fi
Korea vulnerable to oil price hikes: Goldman

Mar 10, 2011

Higher oil prices will have a greater impact on Korea than other Asian economies, Goldman Sachs said, indicating its economic growth is more exposed to oil price risks.Goldman Sachs said Korea’s economic growth, along with that of Taiwan, Thailand and Singapore, will be reduced by 30 basis points in proportion to a 10 percentage point rise in global crude oil prices.Countries in Asia, with the exc
Kim to remain as Hana chairman

Mar 10, 2011

Hana Financial Group Inc. has nominated its current chairman to continue leading the country’s fourth-largest financial holding company for another year.The group’s board of directors made the decision on Wednesday in a bid to successfully finalize its takeover of Korea Exchange Bank, which started under the leadership of Chairman Kim Seung-yu, according to Hana Financial. Kim Seung-yuThe finaliza
U.S. lawmakers threaten to stall Korea trade pact

Mar 10, 2011

WASHINGTON (AFP) ― U.S. lawmakers on Wednesday threatened to hold up a trade pact with Korea unless President Barack Obama’s administration moves ahead on separate deals with Colombia and Panama.Obama, who faces skepticism on free trade from part of his Democratic Party’s base, has publicly called for approval of deals with all three nations this year but wants time to fine-tune the packages with
Producer inflation hits 2-year high

Mar 10, 2011

Korea’s producer prices rose at the fastest pace in more than two years in February due to a hike in international oil and commodity prices, the central bank said Thursday.The producer price index (PPI), a barometer of future consumer inflation, climbed 6.6 percent in February from a year earlier, up from 6.2 percent the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea.It marked the fastest expansio
Banks’ capital adequacy slips on Hana dividend

Mar 9, 2011

Korean lenders’ average capital adequacy ratio fell in the fourth quarter after Hana Bank helped finance its parent company’s purchase of Korea Exchange Bank. The ratio, a measure of capital reserves against assets at risk under the Basel II standard, slipped to 14.6 percent at the end of December from 14.62 percent three months earlier, the Financial Supervisory Service said in a statement. The a
Finance minister sees inflation as economic drag

Mar 9, 2011

Growing inflationary pressure is adding uncertainties to South Korea's economic recovery, the nation's top economic policymaker said Wednesday, calling for the government to crank up efforts to keep prices under control. "Inflation partly stems from supply-side shocks, such as higheroil prices and supply shortages of agricultural products caused byunseasonal cold spells and the foot-and-mouth di
Default rate of household loans rises in 2010

Mar 8, 2011

The delinquency rate of Korean financial companies‘ household loans gained in 2010 from a year earlier, a report showed Tuesday, adding concerns over worsening loan repayment ability.The default rate stood at 1.09 percent of their total lending as of the end of 2010, up 0.06 percentage point from end-2009, the Financial Supervisory Service said in the report to the National Assembly.Out of the tot
Further softening seen in domestic demand: ministry

Mar 8, 2011

Korea’s Finance Ministry said on Tuesday in a closely watched monthly report that economic uncertainty has increased globally and that domestic demand in Asia’s fourth-largest economy showed signs of softening. “Recovery in the world economy is improving but uncertainty has increased due to such factors as the political unrest in the Middle East, possible monetary policy tightening in emerging eco
S. Korea's savings rate well below OECD average: report

Mar 7, 2011

South Korea's household savings rate stayed far below the average for major economies in the world, a report showed Monday, apparently indicating that the latest economic crisis resulted in a decline in income reserved for banksavings.According to the report by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), South Korea's household savings rate -- the ratio of savings to total di