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[Herald Interview] Woman’s touch puts Sempio on the map

IndustryMay 1, 2011

In just a month, Sempio Foods has raised its target for the sales of “A Hundred Years” to 60 billion won ($55.9 million) by 50 percent after watching the bottles of citron vinegar fly off the shelves. Behind the smash hit is Suh Dong-soon. The 46-year-old director of marketing is the first female executive at the condiment maker in its 65 years in business. Sempio director of marketing Suh Dong-s
Hana Daetoo, Wise Asset rapped

Apr 29, 2011

Financial regulators on Thursday issued sanctions against a Korean asset management firm and a brokerage house for incurring huge losses after allegedly making reckless investments in stocks last November.The Financial Supervisory Service held a committee meeting where they fine-tuned the level of penalties they would levy against Wise Asset and Hana Daetoo Securities for their alleged negligence
Current account surplus hits three-month high in March

Apr 28, 2011

South Korea’s current account surplus rose to the highest level in three months in March as exports of ships and other key products remained robust, the central bank said Thursday.The current account surplus reached $1.43 billion in March, up from a revised $1.13 billion the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea. The current account is the broadest measure of cross-border trade.The March
Foreign insurers struggle to join mainstream

Apr 28, 2011

Despite their long presence in Korea, global giant life insurers still don’t come close to their major local rivals in terms of size, according to industry sources Friday.Nine foreign life insurers operating in the country hold 68.9 trillion won ($63.7 billion) in assets, or 16.9 percent of the industry’s total. The figure does not even meet half of that held by industry leader Samsung Life Insura
Business sentiment up for May

Apr 27, 2011

South Korea’s business sentiment for May rose from a month ago on expectations about solid economic growth at home and abroad, a poll showed Wednesday.The monthly Business Survey Index (BSI) for the upcoming month came in at 104.3, compared with 98.4 a month earlier, according to the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI), the country’s leading business lobby.A reading below 100 means pessimists ou
Prices of DRAM chips remain below $1: report

IndustryApr 27, 2011

Prices of dynamic random access memory (DRAM) devices rose marginally in the second half of this month but stayed below the $1 level, an industry report showed Wednesday, casting doubts on the prospect for their quick recovery.The contract price of the benchmark DDR3 1-gigabit 128Mx8 1066-megahertz device rose 1.03 percent from the first half of this month to $0.98 in the second half, according to
Foreign life insurers take up 17% of Korean market

Apr 27, 2011

Foreign life insurance companies operating in South Korea claimed 16.9 percent of the local market in terms of assets last year, industry data showed Wednesday.The combined assets of the nine foreign life insurers reached 68.9 trillion won ($63.8 billion) as of the end of 2010, according to the data. However, the figure is dwarfed by the 408.4 trillion won in total assets held by the three leading
Q1 auto exports to Eastern Europe surge

IndustryApr 27, 2011

South Korea’s automobile exports to Eastern Europe rose sharply in the first three months of this year thanks to an economic recovery in the region, a local automobile association said Wednesday. During the January-March period, South Korean car makers’ auto exports to Eastern Europe, including Russia, reached 72,393 units, compared with 37,670 units a year earlier, according to the Korea Automobi
May manufacturing sentiment at 8-month high

Apr 27, 2011

South Korean manufacturers’ business confidence for May rose to the highest level in eight months due to optimism about the economic recovery, the central bank said Wednesday.The index of manufacturers’ outlook on business conditions reached 100 for May, up from 95 for April, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). The index measures manufacturers’ outlook on business conditions for the coming month
KAIST develops robotic offshore docking system

IndustryApr 27, 2011

South Korean engineers successfully tested the world’s first operational automatic docking system between two large ships off the country’s southeastern coast, a state-run science and technology university said Tuesday.The test carried out in Busan, 453 kilometers southeast of Seoul, is an integral part of the larger “mobile harbor” project that aims to make it possible to speed up the loading and
Seoul-Beijing direct flights to open in July

Apr 26, 2011

South Korea and China have agreed to provide flight services between Seoul and Beijing in a move to reduce overall travel time, the transportation ministry said Tuesday.The two nations recently signed a memorandum of understanding to allow their airlines to offer direct flights between Gimpo International Airport, west of Seoul, and Beijing International Airport starting in July, the ministry said
Outbound travelers fall to 16-month low

Apr 26, 2011

The number of South Korean travelers going overseas fell to a 16-month low in March, apparently due to the recent earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan, the top destination for outbound tourists, data showed Tuesday.According to the data released by the Justice Ministry and the Korea Tourism Organization, the number of South Koreans going overseas came to 868,694 last month, down 8.6 percent from
International air travel grows 6% in Q1

Apr 26, 2011

The number of passengers using international air flights grew about 6 percent during the first quarter as people were bolstered to travel by the ongoing economic recovery, the transportation ministry said Tuesday.Passengers using international flights in and out of South Korea’s airports came to 10.13 million during the January-March period, up 5.8 percent from the same quarter a year earlier, the
Consumer sentiment rebounds in April

Apr 26, 2011

South Korea’s consumer co nfidence rebounded for the first time in five months in April on the back of optimism about the economic recovery, the central bank said Tuesday.The consumer sentiment index (CSI) ― a gauge of consumers’ overall economic outlook, living conditions and future spending ― stood at 100 for April, up from 98 in March, the Bank of Korea (BOK) said in a monthly report.The April
S. Korea’s biggest food expo opens

IndustryApr 26, 2011

South Korea’s largest-ever international food exposition kicked off Tuesday for a four-day run, bringing together more than 1,100 companies from 45 countries.The 2011 Seoul Food Expo will run until Friday at the Korea International Exhibition Center in Goyang, northwest of Seoul, according to its organizer, the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA).The 29th Seoul Food Expo comes as Seoul