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Google to support global success of Korean IT startups

IndustryJan 10, 2012

Google Inc. will help the global success of Korean IT developers as the California-based search giant agreed on Tuesday to participate in the Korean government’s program supporting Internet startup businesses here. Google and the Korea Communications Commission signed a memorandum of understanding on Tuesday to cooperate for the state telecom regulator's startup support program called “Global K-Startup Program.”The agreement came after President Lee Myung-bak and Google chairman Eric Schmidt me
Shares rise 1.46% on institutional buying

Jan 10, 2012

South Korean stocks rebounded 1.46 percent Tuesday as institutions scooped up shares following the U.S. markets’ rally, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar.Snapping a four-session losing streak, the benchmark KOSPI gained 26.73 points to 1,853.22. Trading volume was moderate at 383.2 shares worth 4.86 trillion won ($4.18 billion), with gainers outpacing losers 591 to 238. “After undergoing losses for the last four days, investors increased their bets, boosted by a Wall
N.K. troops swear loyalty to new leader Kim Jong-un

North KoreaJan 10, 2012

North Korean troops have pledged their allegiance to their new leader Kim Jong-un in the latest public display of military support to his dynastic power succession.Kim has risen to the post of the supreme commander of the country’s 1.1 million-strong military soon after the sudden death of his father, former leader Kim Jong-il, as he consolidates his power.Soldiers of the army, navy and air force solemnly swore to faithfully follow the leadership of Kim Jong-un in a rally on Monday at the Kumsus
Cheonggyecheon draws over a million wishes

Social affairsJan 10, 2012

Cheonggyecheon, the stream running through the heart of Seoul, has seen visitors toss more than a million coins into its wishing well in a little over six years, Seoul City said Tuesday.According to the Seoul Metropolitan Facilities Management Corporation, 1.07 million coins have been thrown into the wishing well totaling 68.73 million won ($59,450) from October 2005 to December of last year.On a layover from Texas to Beijing, 25-year-old Stephen Tinh visited the well at the mouth of the popular
Bamseom Island in Han River to be added to Ramsar list

Social affairsJan 10, 2012

Seoul’s Bamseom Island in the Han River, known as a rare urban habitat for migratory birds, is expected to be included on a protection list under the international treaty of the Ramsar Convention, in recognition of its ecological and environmental value, the Environment Ministry said Tuesday.The ministry said it will register the island with the secretariat of the Ramsar Convention within this month. The secretariat is expected to make a decision as early as April after reviewing the island’s bi
Children of N.K. power elite take key posts

North KoreaJan 10, 2012

Children of the current and former North Korean power elite have secured key posts in the communist state’s military and party as part of the power succession to young leader Kim Jong-un, a source close to Pyongyang said Tuesday.“The children of high-ranking party or military officials are mostly in their 40s to 50s. They have received a variety of perks by obtaining important posts and promotions because of their parents,” said the source, who requested anonymity.“The children prefer the diplom
City ups fight against sexual harassment

Social affairsJan 10, 2012

Seoul City is teaming up with women’s counseling groups in an effort to stop sexual harassment in the workplace, officials said Tuesday.The Seoul Metropolitan Government said it is joining hands with the Korea Women’s Hotline so that female government employees may feel safe in receiving counseling after an incident. The hotline will offer women from all branches of the city government a chance to report incidents anonymously, in order to prevent repercussions.The center will then investigate th
Presidential aide faces land deal summons

Social affairsJan 10, 2012

Prosecutors may question Lee’s son if suspicions over retirement house not settledA presidential office worker was summoned to Seoul Central Prosecutors’ office on Tuesday, to be questioned over allegations that Cheong Wa Dae paid for property President Lee Myung-bak purchased under his son’s name earlier last year.If their suspicions remain, investigators are expected to question Lee Si-hyong, the President’s son, as well. According to local broadcasting network MBC, Cheong Wa Dae is suspected
Probe targets fund source in GNP scandal

PoliticsJan 10, 2012

The Seoul prosecutors investigating alleged bribery in the Grand National Party’s leadership elections said they would now focus on tracking down the source of the funds used.Parliamentary Speaker and former chairman of the ruling Grand National Party Park Hee-tae is under suspicion of bribing fellow lawmakers to win the party leadership race in July 2008.On Jan. 4, Rep. Koh Seung-duk revealed that a candidate for the party’s chairmanship attempted to bribe him days before the July 3, 2008 vote.
Foreign Ministry to open senior posts to non-diplomats

Foreign affairsJan 10, 2012

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said it will open 14 senior posts at overseas diplomatic missions to non-diplomats, a move to boost the expertise and competitiveness of South Korean diplomacy. Four of the posts are economic diplomatic ministers in the U.S., China, Japan and Russia.The ministry said it issued an advance notice of the new legislature through the official government newsletter last week. The ministry will gather public opinions by Jan. 19 about the changes.It is the first
Nonghyup probed for interest rate scams

Social affairsJan 10, 2012

The prosecution has launched an investigation into the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation, or Nonghyup, for manipulation of net interest spread at some of its branches, raking in 2 billion won ($1.7 m) through the method.According to the Central Investigation Division at the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office on Tuesday, about 30 provincial branches of Nonghyup were accused of making 10 billion won ($8.54 m) in profit by raising the net interest spread without notifying customers. Net interes
Seoul to loan W40 bil. for inter-Korean businesses

Social affairsJan 9, 2012

South Korea’s Unification Ministry said it will provide an additional 40 billion won ($34 million) in loans for inter-Korean business operators which were hit by soured relations with North Korea.Last year, 169 companies doing business in the North received 33.6 billion won support from the government. The move came as Unification Minister Yu Woo-ik met with nine CEOs of companies doing business in North Korea, including Gwak Su-hwan, CEO of Taerim Industrial, other than those operating at the M
Minister cautions against exaggerating China‘s role in inter-Korean relations

North KoreaJan 9, 2012

South Korea’s top policymaker on North Korea cautioned Monday against exaggerating China’s role in inter-Korean affairs, saying the two Koreas are the “principal players” in their dealings with each other.Unification Minister Yu Woo-ik, who served as Seoul’s ambassador to Beijing before taking office in September, acknowledged that China has considerable influence over inter-Korean relations, but urged Koreans to take matters into their own hands.As North Korea’s last remaining major ally, China
Iran sentences American man to death in CIA case

World NewsJan 9, 2012

TEHRAN (AP) -- An Iranian court has convicted an American man of working for the CIA and sentenced him to death, state radio reported Monday, in a case adding to the accelerating tension between the United States and Iran.Iran charges that as a former U.S. Marine, Amir Mirzaei Hekmati received special training and served at U.S. military bases in Iraq and Afghanistan before heading to Iran for his alleged intelligence mission. The radio report did not say when the verdict was issued. Under Irani
MSCI opens Korea office; no hint of imminent status upgrade

Jan 9, 2012

Head of index compiler MSCI Inc. said Monday that the Korean stock market’s failure to achieve developed status stems from its “inefficiencies." “There are two important areas that need further development,” said Henry Fernandez, chairman and CEO of MSCI, at a news conference held in Seoul to mark the official launch of the company’s Seoul office. Fernandez said the first issue was the structural problems that hamper the market access for international investors who want to rebalance their equi