Kim Hee-won, 38, a senior marketing manager for a leading credit card firm, is single and has lived alone since returning to Korea in 2009 upon completing her MBA degree in the United States. She tends to keep to a tight monthly budget in preparation for her future, but is willing to open her wallet to travel and hunt for gourmet food. Hong Sang-bin, 48, a public relations director of a local business group, is also living alone as a “goose father.” The term refers to a relatively rich Korean ma

Under the “creative economy” initiative set out by President Park Geun-hye’s administration, Korea has been promoting the integration of information and technology, scientific discoveries and culture for sustainable growth with a strong focus on creativity and innovation.But a global survey that evaluates innovation showed Korea falls behind Asian rivals such as Hong Kong, indicating that Korea must improve and work to become a more innovation-driven economy.In the 2013 global innovation index,

Despite the continued economic stimulus policies across the world since the 2008 financial crisis, the global economy is likely to face another crash next year, according to U.S.-based economic forecaster Harry Dent. He says the world faces three major short-term risks: falling commodity prices, a depression in southern Europe and the bursting of China’s real estate bubble.Regarding the outlook for the U.S. economy, Dent, who has for decades followed the booms and busts of the global economy, re

The operation of two thermal power plants in South Chungcheong Province was suspended on Monday, worsening power supply conditions and raising an alert on a possible forced power cut within this week.The unit 3 thermal power plant in Dangjin with a power generation capacity of 500,000 kilowatts was halted due to a technical problem related to the steam turbine. Operations may possibly resume at the plant as early as next week, said the power plant operator, state-run Korea East-West Power. The u

Daewoo Engineering and Construction, the nation’s third-largest builder, won its first construction contract in Indonesia in 12 years. The company will share a $82 million project to develop a business district in its capital city of Jakarta last week. Daewoo E&C said it won the mixed-use complex development deal named as “District8 Mixed Complex Project” from Agung Sedayu Group, a leading Indonesian developer, last Friday. Under the deal, the Korean company will build two office buildings of 41

The number of global patent disputes involving Korean companies has soared amid intensifying trade protectionism around the world, a report suggested on Wednesday. The number of international patent lawsuits between Korean companies and foreign firms skyrocketed to 210 in the first half of this year, a 130.8 percent rise from the same period last year, according to combined data from the Korean Intellectual Property Office and the Korea Intellectual Property Protection Association. The data was

Kim Dong-kwan, 31, the heir apparent of Hanwha Group, is expanding his leadership role in the solar energy business, the group’s future growth engine, as the group suffers a leadership vacuum. The group, which is the nation’s 10th-largest conglomerate by assets, has been run by the “emergency management committee” composed of experienced executives from across the group since last August when group owner and chairman Kim Seung-youn received a four-year jail term for embezzlement.Last week, Hanwh

Hyundai Heavy Industries bolstered its presence as a global power plant builder in Saudi Arabia as it clinched its fourth mega-power plant construction deal with state-run Saudi Electricity Company. According to the company, HHI CEO Lee Jae-seong and SEC chairman Saleh bin Hussein Al Awaji signed a $3.3 billion power plant construction deal for the Shuqaiq steam power project in Riyadh on Sunday. In the deal, Hyundai Heavy will build a thermal power plant with a 2,640-megawatt capacity near the

As the number of foreign nationals in Korea ― including Asian workers, tourists and multicultural families ― soars to some 1.5 million, the Korea Forest Service, the nation’s forest policy maker, is preparing to open the first foreigner-friendly national recreational forest in Yangju, Gyeonggi Province, next year as part of its forest-based welfare policy for citizens, a senior KFS official said.“The first-of-its-kind national recreational forest, to be named ‘ASEAN Recreational Forest,’ will of