The Korea Herald

Australian construction firms accused of abusing workers

Jul 26, 2011

Some Australian construction companies based in Sydney have been accused of maltreatment of immigrant workers, labor unionists said.The Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) of Australia claimed they are taking advantage of foreign workers by hiring them through illegitimate procedures while paying wages below minimum level.CFMEU estimated that of 13,000 temporary foreign workers
Outlook grim for top Korean IT firms

Jul 25, 2011

Companies fail to lure customers due to lack of killer productsThe nation’s electronics bellwethers are unlikely to give markets the push they need, as they are expected to post lackluster earnings reports for April-June as demand lagged due to a lack of must-have products, industry sources said Monday.Samsung Electronics, the world’s largest memory-chip maker, recently said in an earnings guidanc
Doosan Heavy sees 158% rise in Q2 net

Jul 25, 2011

Doosan Heavy Industries and Construction Co.’s second quarter sales came in at 1.48 trillion won ($1.4 billion), rising 21.17 percent from a year ago, the company posted in a regulatory filing on Monday.Over the same period, the company’s operating profits fell 11.68 percent to 144.5 billion won while its net profits soared 158.04 percent to come in at 158.3 billion won.Compared to the first quart
Renault Samsung starts new SM7 production

Jul 25, 2011

Renault Samsung Motor Co., the South Korean unit of French automaker Renault SA, said Monday that it started mass production of its completely new SM7 luxury sedan.The carmaker said the flagship luxury car is being manufactured at its Busan plant 453 kilometers southeast of Seoul with the vehicles to reach consumers in mid August. Renault Samsung Motor Co. executives and workers applaud at a cerem
STX fined for cutting payments to contractor

Jul 25, 2011

STX Offshore and Shipbuilding Co. will face punitive measures for unfairly reducing subcontracting fees to a service provider, a state-run antitrust regulator said Monday. The nation’s leading shipbuilder, based in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, had signed a contract with a subcontractor, identified by its initial H, since 2008 for the work of putting vessels together to be moved.For six mon
LGE runs ‘Optimus 3-D train’

Jul 25, 2011

LG Electronics on Monday launched an “on-board” advertisement campaign for its LG Optimus 3-D smartphones by rigging a subway train with related ads and products.The Seoul-based company said the 3-D phones, along with LG Electronics’ 3-D monitors and televisions, would be on display on a train on Subway Line No. 2 until Aug. 21. Models show LG Optimus 3-D smartphones in an “on-board” advertising c
Samsung to raise W100b for R&D support

Jul 25, 2011

Electronics giant signs with SMEs to finance innovative technologiesSamsung Electronics has pledged 100 billion won ($95 million) to support smaller companies’ research and development efforts.On Monday, the electronics giant signed an agreement with the Ministry of Knowledge Economy and members of a group of small and medium-sized enterprises launching a program for providing financial support fo
Samsung smartphone sales may pass Apple

Jul 25, 2011

Samsung Electronics Co., maker of the Galaxy mobile phone, may have surpassed Nokia Oyj and Apple Inc. in smartphone sales for the first time on demand for devices that run on Android software, a research company said. Samsung is estimated to have sold between 18 million and 21 million smartphones globally in the April-June quarter, compared with 16.7 million for Nokia and 20.3 million iPhones, Ne
Japan ends analog TV broadcasts after 58 years

Jul 25, 2011

Japan ended a 58-year era of analog television broadcast Sunday, becoming the first Asian nation to complete the transition to digital transmission. Cathode-ray tube TVs, usually with a curved screen and a protruding box at the back, could no longer display programs without adding a special tuner after the switchover Sunday afternoon. Public broadcaster NHK news and Pocket Monsters cartoon series
Greeks struggle to shed old ways of thinking

Jul 25, 2011

A few entrepreneurs think positively in forbidding landscape of anger and entitlementATHENS (AP) ― A few Greek entrepreneurs perch in front of laptops in bare offices above a ground-floor supermarket, five minutes’ walk from the Athens square convulsed by riots last month over the country’s economic crisis.“Innovate,” a wall slogan exhorts. “Originate.” A bowl of fist-sized plastic balls sits on a
Supermarkets see slower growth on rising competition

Jul 24, 2011

Supermarkets saw the smallest sales increase among retailers during the first quarter of the year affected by rising consumer prices and the increase in the number of other forms of retailers.According to Statistics Korea, the combined first quarter sales of supermarkets in the country rose 3.4 percent to about 5.9 trillion won ($5.6 billion), while other types of retailers saw double-digit growth
TV makers wrestle with flimsy sales

Jul 24, 2011

Korea’s electronics giants Samsung and LG are grappling with faltering television businesses as slack demand in wealthy countries and nose-diving display prices combined to dent their second-quarter earnings.Samsung Electronics, the world’s top TV producer, estimated its operating profit at 3.7 trillion won ($3.5 billion) in the three months to June, down nearly 27 percent year-on-year. LG Display
Kakao Talk moving to launch Internet call services

Jul 24, 2011

Competition is heating up between mobile messenger operators in Korea as Kakao Talk, the formidable smartphone application, appears to be developing its internet phone call services. Industry watchers said Sunday the venture firm has been recruiting engineers who have experience in mobile voiceover Internet protocol, technology that enables voice and multimedia communications between users via bro
Prada Korea shuns good causes

Jul 24, 2011

Prada Korea transferred most of its net profits for 2009 to its parent firm, while providing nothing in the way of social contributions to Korea, placing the company among foreign firms accused of turning a blind eye to social causes.The Korean vendor of the Italian fashion brand is wholly owned by Prada Far East, based in the Netherlands. According to Prada Korea’s regulatory filings, more than 1
Prada Korea sends most of earnings to overseas parent

Jul 24, 2011

Prada Korea transferred most of its net profits for 2009 to its parent firm, while providing little in the way of social contributions to Korea, placing the company among foreign firms accused of turning a blind eye to social causes.The Korean vendor of the Italian fashion brand is wholly owned by Prada Far East, based in the Netherlands. According to Prada Korea’s regulatory filings, more than 15