South Korea‘s largest computer anti-virus service provider, AhnLab Inc., said Thursday that it has begun to offer free anti-virus software in China as part of its efforts to expand overseas philanthropy. The China move is the company’s first overseas charity project since the anti-virus software maker announced plans to step up social contributions at home and abroad. The “V3 Lite” anti-virus program is available on the company‘s Chinese Website (www.ahn.com.cn) for free, the company said. The a

HONG KONG ― LG Display Co., the world’s second-largest display maker, said Thursday that workers at a factory it owns in China have ended a strike and will return to work soon. On Monday, some thousands of workers went on strike at LG Display’s factory in the eastern Chinese city of Nanjing, asking for an increase in their year-end compensation. The company’s Beijing office said the labor union had decided to end the work stoppage in return for the company’s offer to double the year-end bonus fo

Nearly three out of 10 builders were found to be disqualified for corporate registration in a government survey aimed at restructuring the overcrowded construction sector.Out of some 39,553 builders inspected in the three months through Dec. 16, 10,964 firms including paper companies failed to meet the requirements for registration, could not be located or refused the state survey, the Land Ministry said.The blacklisted companies will undergo hearings by local governments, and those found to hav

The National Tax Service said Thursday it has updated its English website (www.nts.go.kr/eng), putting out the latest version of its tax guide written in English for foreign residents in Korea. The number of foreign residents filing the year-end tax settlement is expected to reach 403,000 this year, up from 344,000 last year.Foreign residents, as with Korean nationals, are required to submit their tax forms on a yearly basis, and the NTS website provides all the necessary information in English

Hyundai Group said Thursday it decided to drop the lawsuit it filed against Hyundai Motor Group, bringing an end to the legal battle that was staged following the carmaker’s takeover of Hyundai Engineering and Construction.One of the dropped complaints was about Hyundai Group’s accusations that an executive of Hyundai Motor Group spread false facts about Hyundai Group during the bidding process.Hyundai Motor Group and Hyundai Group were the only two bidders for the country’s largest construction

Korean stocks finished nearly unchanged on Thursday, the last trading day of the year, as gains among tech and retail shares countered bank losses, analysts said.The local currency climbed against the U.S. currency.After declining as much as 1 percent in earlier trading, the KOSPI edged up 0.03 percent, or 0.62 points, to 1,825.74. Trading volume was moderate at 335 million shares worth 3.39 trillion won ($2.94 billion) with gainers leading losers 476 to 337. “The KOSPI fell in the early morning

The nation’s antitrust watchdog said on Thursday it slapped the three chaebol Woongjin, Hanwha and STX with fines totaling more than 6 billion won for concentrating orders to affiliate companies.A fine of 3.43 billion won ($2.97 million) was imposed on Woongjin, 1.48 billion won on Hanwha and 1.13 billion on STX for giving out orders to subsidiaries with low earnings, the Fair Trade Commission said. Woongjin’s five major affiliates Woongjin Think Big, Woongjin Coway, Woongjin Chemical, Kukdong E

The defense ministry said Thursday it is scheduled to finish cleaning up former U.S. military bases returned to South Korea by the end of this week.The ministry said 16 former U.S. installations have been cleaned up after more than two and a half years of work, covering 425.7 million square meters. One other base will join the list by July next year, it added.The U.S. forces here have returned 48 of 80 designated bases amid an ongoing relocation of their troops, and 17 of those 48 showed soil co

Prosecutors said Wednesday they have summoned ruling Grand National Party (GNP) lawmaker Choi Gu-sik as part of their ongoing probe over the controversial hacking of the country‘s election watchdog in October.The two-hour attack paralyzed the web sites of the National Election Commission and Park Won-soon, a leading Seoul mayoral candidate, during the Oct. 26 by-election for the mayoralty and other governmental posts. Park was elected mayor despite the attacks.Choi, a two-term GNP lawmaker, was

WASHINGTON (Yonhap News) -- In their first meeting since the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, the top South Korean and U.S. nuclear envoys agreed Wednesday to resume talks with the communist nation if the “right conditions” are created, according to a South Korean official.“First, (we) shared the opinion with the U.S. that it is important to stably manage security on the Korean Peninsula after the death of Chairman Kim Jong-il,” Lim Sung-nam, special representative for Korean Peninsula

The capital will offer recommended immunizations for free from next year, city officials said Thursday.According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government, the city will cover the 5,000 won ($4) co-payment for citizens receiving vaccinations in 2012. The government covers 10,000 won of the cost of immunization, but the capital decided to help cover the entire cost to help those struggling with the cost of childrearing here.The capital is also planning to set up agreements with local governments surro