Surveys show Park backed by 20s and 30s, but Na prevails among 50s and upWith Wednesday’s Seoul mayoral vote widely perceived as a curtain-raiser to the presidential race next year, political observers are zeroing in on several key factors that could determine the outcome such as the voter turnout among the young and the weather.Latest surveys showed that opposition candidate Park Won-soon was mostly backed by voters in their 20s and 30s while support for ruling the Grand National Party’s Rep. N

Two local electronics giants said Tuesday they are taking part in the four-day trade show in Iraq until Thursday to display their cutting-edge technologies in the Middle East.Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics said they have set up booths at the Erbil International Fair, which is the largest trade show in Iraq, participated by about 850 global firms. Their lineup of smartphones, 3D televisions and home appliances will be displayed throughout the show, according to companies’ officials. With

Apple Inc. is turning to the software engineer who built iTunes to help lead its development of a television set, according to three people with knowledge of the project. Jeff Robbin, who helped create the iPod in addition to the iTunes media store, is now guiding Apple’s internal development of the new TV effort, said the people, who declined to be identified because his role isn’t public. Robbin’s involvement is a sign of Apple’s commitment to extending its leadership in smartphones and tablet

General Motors to remain second as Toyota loses crownVolkswagen AG will probably become the world’s biggest carmaker this year, vaulting past Toyota Motor Corp. and General Motors Co. on gains in emerging markets. The German company’s sales, third among carmakers in 2010, will probably rise 13 percent to 8.1 million vehicles this year, based on the average of three analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. GM sales will gain about 8 percent to 7.55 million, while Toyota will drop 9 percent to 7.27 million

HTC, Asia’s No. 2 smartphone maker, said on Tuesday that it selected telecommunication expert Lee Chul-hwan to head its Korean branch.The new president has served as a researcher at KT Corp., a consultant at Boston Consulting Group, head of the marketing strategy team at LG U+ and an executive at Johnson & Johnson Korea.He said he will do his best to provide better mobile services to domestic customers.Jack Tong, president of HTC North Asia, said this shakeup demonstrates HTC’s determination to

Violinist Yoon So-young has become the first South Korean to win the top prize of the International Henryk Wieniawski Violin Competition held from Oct. 8-23 in Poznan, Poland, the Kumho Asiana Cultural Foundation said.Yoon received 45,000 euros ($62,600) in prize money and was invited to perform at a variety of international music festivals, including with the Quebec Symphony Orchestra conducted by Maxim Vengerov.The competition, established in 1935, is held every five years in honor of composer

WASHINGTON (AP) ― The Obama administration has pulled its ambassador home from Syria, arguing that his support for anti-Assad activists put him in grave danger ― the most dramatic action so far by the United States as it struggles to counter a Mideast autocrat who is withstanding pressure that has toppled neighboring dictators.Syria responded quickly Monday, ordering home its envoy from Washington.American Ambassador Robert Ford was temporarily recalled on Saturday after the U.S. received “credi

British Prime Minister suffers from ‘rebellion’ within his ConservativesLONDON (AP) ― British lawmakers on Monday overwhelmingly rejected a motion to hold a national referendum on leaving the European Union, but Prime Minister David Cameron suffered a bruising as several Conservative Party lawmakers rebelled against his orders and supported the bid.The revolt within the ruling Conservative Party ranks underscored discontent with Cameron’s stewardship ― an unhappiness that has grown following his