Companies eager to utilize social media networking for marketing, brand awarenessMore and more Korean companies are using social networking sites as effective marketing tools. Some multinational companies and chambers of commerce in Korea are also following this trend to boost their visibility and profitability in one of the world’s most wired countries.The reasons to use social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter are numerous.Liam Lusk and Carl Kwan from Kwalus, a public relations mar

Card firms’ asset jump, more consumers spend on credit cardsAs Korea’s credit card companies rush to increase their assets, worries are mounting over whether another bubble might be in the offing.For Korean policymakers, the warning signs in the credit card industry bring back painful memories of 2002, when 4 million card holders defaulted and the entire economy was jeopardized as the bubble burst.Credit card companies are eager to get bigger. As of the end of December, the combined assets of cr

The Korea Customs Service celebrated the opening of the World Customs Organization’s regional intelligence liaison office for Asia and the Pacific in Seoul on Thursday.Some 100 Korean and international guests, including Zhu GaZhang, director of WCO Compliance and Facilitation Directorate, attended the ceremony at the Imperial Palace Hotel in southern Seoul.The regional office, located within the Customs Brokers Association Building in Nonhyeon-dong, southern Seoul, will support intelligence exch

LG Uplus has begun offering new data plans for the Long Term Evolution service from Thursday, almost doubling the data usage capacity offered by rival companies.The third-largest player in the local telecom market said it has already provided the faster network service at cheaper prices than SK Telecom and KT Corp. Amid a surge in data consumption among LTE smartphone users, the company said it has decided to increase the data capacity for same-priced monthly payment plans.  Users of the 34,000

POSCO TJ Park Foundation on Thursday named a nano-medicine expert as the winner of its annual TJ Park Prize for science. Cheon Jin-woo, professor of chemistry at Yonsei University, won the award for his research in the use of nanotechnology for medical purposes, according to the steelmaker.  Last year he developed a nano thermotherapy that can burn cancer cells without hurting other tissue, which is expected to enhance the treatment of brain cancer and prostate cancer.Kwak Jong-moon, principal o

A panel on shared growth of large and small businesses agreed Thursday to adopt a new system to give extra points to companies that share benefits with their suppliers starting next year.The panel, headed by former Prime Minister Chung Un-chan, grades large enterprises based on their support of smaller partner companies so that those with higher marks get more government incentives and have an advantage in winning public orders.The nation’s largest businesses had locked horns with Chung over his

French carmaker Citroen will reenter the Korean market in April with its DS3 models, according to its local distributor Hanbul Motors Corp. on Thursday.The launch will resume the import of the French brand under the PSA Peugeot Citroen Group after a decade-long hiatus.“Citroen will resume imports of its cars starting in April this year. Pricing won’t be revealed until right before the launch, but other details will be confirmed by late February,” PR manager Kim Ju-young said.  Citroen showcased