The Korea Herald

Camry battles spruced-up rivals in midsize market

Apr 2, 2013

Toyota Camry, Honda Accord face challenges from midsize rivals
Barclays plans to expand in Egypt as French banks retreat

Apr 2, 2013

Barclays Plc plans to add branches in Egypt this year as Britain’s second-biggest bank by assets seeks to expand in the North African country after rivals from France sold local units. Barclays Bank Egypt SAE will boost its branch network by 10 percent in 2013 and is preparing to offer Islamic banking services, Omar Baig, consumer banking director at the Cairo- based lender, said in an interview. Barclays may consider acquiring another lender in the Arab country “should the opportunity present i
Indian minister says BRICS bank to complement, not compete with ADB

Apr 2, 2013

TOKYO (AFP) ― The mooted BRICS bank of emerging powers is intended to complement, rather than compete with Western-dominated institutions on the world stage, the Indian Finance Minister said on Monday.Finance Minister P. Chidambaram also said India supports Japan’s nomination of a senior finance ministry official for the top job at the Asian Development Bank, as Tokyo looks to keep hold of a role it has held for almost 50 years.The BRICS bank is seen as a way of challenging the rules set by exis
BOJ chief vows ‘bold’ monetary easing

Apr 2, 2013

TOKYO (AFP) ― The Bank of Japan’s new chief said policymakers would live up to market expectations for “bold” monetary easing, ahead of his first policy meeting since taking up the post last month.The two-day meeting, which starts Wednesday, comes as BOJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda has repeatedly talked up his plans to stoke the economy and reverse years of deflation that has crimped private spending and corporate investment.“It is not easy to break out of 15 years of deflation,” he told a parliame
‘Beat-keeping sea lion’ Ronan picks up YouTube hits

Apr 2, 2013

A video of a sea lion bobbing her head to music is garnering a lot of attention on YouTube.In the two-minute video posted on Sunday, Ronan the sea lion appeared on camera and started to bounce her head to the song “Boogie Wonderland” and “Everybody.” “When we first trained Ronan, we used simple repeating sound, something like a metronome. When she learned without further training, she was able to find and keep the beat in complex stimuli including music,” Peter Cook, a researcher at the Universi
Apple issues apology following attacks in China

Apr 2, 2013

Apple issued an apology to Chinese consumers Monday after government media attacked its repair policies for two weeks in a campaign that reeked of economic nationalism.A statement Apple posted in Chinese on its website Monday said the complaints had prompted “deep reflection and persuaded the company of the need to revamp its repair policies, boost communication with Chinese consumers and strengthen oversight of authorized resellers.State broadcaster CCTV and the ruling party's flagship newspape
Tech firms bumping up perks to recruit, retain

Apr 1, 2013

CUPERTINO, California (AP) ― Apple’s ring-shaped, gleaming “Spaceship Headquarters” will include a world class auditorium and an orchard for engineers to wander. Google’s new Bay View campus will feature walkways angled to force accidental encounters. Facebook, while putting final touches on a Disney-inspired campus including a Main Street with a BBQ shack, sushi house and bike shop, is already planning an even larger, more exciting new campus.More than ever before, Silicon Valley firms want the
Dell said to consider Blackstone LBO only with CEO guarantee

Apr 1, 2013

Dell Inc. founder Michael Dell will only consider backing a buyout by Blackstone Group LP if the private-equity firm guarantees he can remain as chief executive officer, according to a person familiar with the discussions. In several recent meetings in Austin, Texas, with Chinh Chu and David Johnson ― the Blackstone executives overseeing the firm’s bid ― Michael Dell said he would be more likely to support their proposal if he retained an influential role, a second person familiar with the talks
Time is ripe for smartwatches

Apr 1, 2013

WASHINGTON (AFP) ― Amid much speculation on the future of the “smartwatch,” the consensus is growing: the time is right.In recent weeks, reports have surfaced about plans for smartwatches from tech giants Apple, Samsung and Google, with launches possible later this year.“I think we have reached a tipping point,” said Avi Greengart, analyst on consumer devices at the research firm Current Analysis.Greengart said 2013 may be the year for the smartwatch because “the components have gotten small eno
China manufacturing index hits nearly one-year high

Apr 1, 2013

BEIJING (AFP) ― Manufacturing activity in China expanded at its fastest pace in almost a year last month, official data showed Monday, indicating conditions in the world’s number two economy continued to improve.The official purchasing managers’ index hit 50.9 in March, the highest since April 2012 when the figure stood at 53.3, according to the National Bureau of Statistics and the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing.PMI is a widely watched barometer of the health of China’s economy, w
‘Japan business sentiment improving’

Apr 1, 2013

TOKYO (AP) ― Japanese manufacturers are more upbeat about business conditions than they were late last year, but less so than expected, a central bank survey found. The Bank of Japan’s “tankan” index for the March quarter rose to minus 8 from minus 12 for large manufacturers, a smaller improvement than analysts had anticipated before Monday’s release. A reading below zero means pessimists outnumber optimists, and the tankan forecast for large manufacturers for the June survey was minus 1. Large
Big savers in Cyprus may lose 60%

Mar 31, 2013

NICOSIA (AP) ― Big depositors at Cyprus’ largest bank may be forced to accept losses of up to 60 percent, far more than initially estimated under the European rescue package to save the country from bankruptcy, officials said Saturday. Deposits of more than 100,000 euros ($128,000) at the Bank of Cyprus will lose 37.5 percent in money that will be converted into bank shares, according to a central bank statement. In a second raid on these accounts, depositors also could lose up to 22.5 percent m
Cyprus will not quit the euro, vows president

Mar 30, 2013

President Nicos Anastasiades vowed on Friday to keep Cyprus in the euro but had harsh words for international lenders behind the huge bailout that saved the island from bankruptcy.The central bank later lifted curbs on domestic credit card payments and said it would make daily efforts to relax the wider controls that it imposed to avert a bank run, the first of their kind in the eurozone.The finance ministry announced on Friday night that restrictive measures were being extended by five days, wi
Cyprus capital controls could be lifted in a month

Mar 29, 2013

NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) ― There were long lines of anxious people but no sign of trouble as banks in Cyprus opened Thursday for the first time in nearly two weeks, following an international bailout that sought to prevent the country from financial ruin.The government has imposed a daily limit on how much people can withdraw to stop a run on its banks ― the first such action in the 14-year history of the euro currency. Cypriots took the measure in their stride, aware that with their economy teeteri
France to tax firms 75% on $1.3m salaries

Mar 29, 2013

PARIS (AP) ― French President Francois Hollande may have finally found a way to tax the really rich: by making their companies pay. In a televised interview Thursday night, he said he wants companies that pay their employees more than 1 million euros ($1.3 million) to pay 75 percent payroll taxes on those salaries. The proposed tax, which still needs to be approved by parliament, replaces one of Hollande’s signature campaign proposals: to tax individuals who earns more than 1 million euros at 75