Five bidders have been taken through to the final round in the auction of Sambu Construction Industrial, a local building materials-maker with annual revenue of around 50 billion won ($43,400), the deal’s manager Samjung KPMG said Friday.   Sambu Construction Industrial’s headquarters in downtown Seoul. (Yonhap)They include ready-mix concrete-maker Tong Yang, Daewon Construction and Keystone PE, a Seoul-based buyout firm set up by former Woori Bank CEO Lee Duk-hoon. Sambu Construction Industrial

Tesla’s CEO hinted on Twitter on Friday that the U.S. luxury electric vehicle maker will enter the Korean market with the new Model 3, which is the firm’s first mass-market brand.  (Elon Musk's Twitter)In reference to the countries where preorders of the 2017 Model 3 will be available, Tesla CEO Elon Musk made it clear that Korea is one of the seven countries.There have been rumors over the entry of Tesla into the Korean market since last December when the EV maker reportedly signed a contract f

South Korean share prices opened lower on Friday as large cap shares started bearish on foreign selling. Seoul share prices are displayed on an electronic board at the Korea Exchange. (Yonhap)The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index slipped 5.37 points, or 0.27 percent, to 1,990.48 in the first 15 minutes of trading. As of 10:02 a.m., the index was trading 0.6 percent lower at 1983.81.Analysts said sentiment was down on foreign net selling, which stood at over 60 billion won ($52.4 millio

Kakao Corp., the operator of South Korea‘s top mobile messenger KakaoTalk, has been included in a government list of large business groups whose mutual investments and loan guarantees will face restrictions, the Fair Trade Commission said Friday.The FTC said Kakao’s total assets surpassed the 5-trillion-won level following its takeover of music streaming and download service provider Melon in January. (Kakao Corp.)Every year, the antitrust agency announces an updated list of large business group

A rising number of executives in South Korea earned more than 500 million won ($437,000) a year in 2015, a stock-evaluating website said Friday.A total of 748 corporate executives earned more than 500 million won ($437,000) in annual salaries and other income. The figure marks a 3.9 percent increase from 720 executives in the previous year, said Chaebul.com. The results were based on the paychecks of the standing board members at 2,643 nationwide companies. Severance pay and stock options were i

Hite Jinro Holdings said on Friday it will sell off 3 million of Hite Jinro shares to redeem the beverage seller’s debts and improve its overall financial health.  (Hite Jinro Holdings)Hite Jinro Holdings is the parent company of Hite Jinro. The firm said the sales -- worth 80.6 billion won and amounting to a 4.2 percent stake -- would be done though after-hour trading. Hite Jinro’s stocks were trading 6.06 percent lower at 27,150 won as of 1:30 p.m. (yoonmi@heraldcorp.com)

A thief in Korea was arrested after falling for the girl from whom he had stolen a purse.The 21-year-old university student, surnamed Sohn, had stolen the teenager’s purse, which had been left on a bench in front of a public toilet at the Busan subway station Nampo.  Busan Jungbu Police Station (Yonhap)Sohn had gone through the purse and found 100,000 won ($87) and the identity card of the 16-year-old high school student, whose surname is Kang. He was smitten by her picture. A quick online searc

보건복지부가 31일 발표한 10가지 담배 경고 그림 시안 중 방송에는 보도되지 않은 사진이 있다. 바로 금방이라도 떨어질 듯 바닥을 향한 담뱃재를 남성의 발기부전에 빗대어 표현한 사진이다. (보건복지부)경고그림 위원회는 이를 통해 담배로 인한 성 기능 저하를 경고하는 바임을 알렸다. 이 사진은 올해 12월 23일부터 담뱃갑에 부착될 것으로 최종 확정된 경고그림 시안 후보 10가지에 포함되어 있다. 시안은 각각 담배로 인한 폐암, 후두암, 구강암, 심장질환, 뇌졸중, 간접흡연 아동피해, 임신 중 흡연 태아피해, 남성 성기능 저하, 피부노화 및 조기사망을 경고하고 있다.(khnews@heraldcorp.com)

GM Korea Co., the local unit of U.S. carmaker General Motors Co., said Friday that its sales in March grew 3.4 percent from a year earlier, driven by strong demand from the domestic market.The carmaker said in a press release that it sold 56,144 units last month, compared with 54,305 units a year earlier.Its domestic sales rose 27.6 percent on-year to 16,868 units, with sales of its Spark city car spiking nearly 90 percent to a record high of 9,175 units.The company's overseas shipments, however

 The local unit of Audi, the luxury brand of German carmaker Volkswagen, said Friday that it is in the process of paying tax refunds to its customers, dismissing criticism over its alleged refusal to follow the government's changed tax policy, which recently led to some lawsuits demanding compensation. In its emailed statement, Audi Korea said that it has notified all of its dealerships here about the government's decision to extend a tax cut for new car purchases and that they are paying refund

A total of 748 corporate executives in South Korea earned more than 500 million won ($437,000) in annual salary and other incomes in 2015, marking a rise of 3.9 percent from 720 executives in the previous year, a stock-evaluating website said Friday.Market research company Chaebul.com said it surveyed the paychecks of the standing board members at 2,643 companies nationwide with their incomes, cited in the data, including severance pay and stock options.The nation's 10 largest conglomerates acco

The sales of LG Electronics Inc.'s latest flagship smartphone, the G5, reached 15,000 units on its first day of sales in South Korea, industry sources said Friday, signaling a possible recovery of the company's ailing mobile business.The LG G5, which just went on sales on Thursday, saw its first-day sales reach 15,000 units here, hovering far above its predecessor, which managed to sell only around 5,000 units.Another industry source said the figure could be higher considering that KT Corp., the