Hyundai Motor, the world's fifth-largest automaker, on said Thursday its net earnings declined 2.9 percent from 2013 to 2.03 trillion won ($1.95 billion) on account of worsening industry conditions at both home and abroad. Sales and operating profit, however, rose 1.3 percent and 3.7 percent, respectively, to 21.6 trillion won and 1.93 trillion won in the same period, the company said in a regulatory filing.Hyundai officials said the new Genesis, launched late last year, helped bolster sales for

The National Tax Service has slapped UD United Dental with fines worth 9.4 billion won ($8.9 million) for tax evasion, according to industry sources on Tuesday.UD United Dental, which operates a chain of dental clinics, was found to have dodged taxes for three years between January of 2010 and June of 2012.The Korean Dental Association confirmed the irregularities, but the UD United Dental claims that they were due a discrepancy in local tax laws and corporate accounting standards.It also said t

(Yonhap)Korean companies are working to provide the necessary aid and emotional support as the nation still rocks from shock and grief over the tragic accident involving the Sewol ferry. Samsung Group, the nation’s largest corporation, reportedly sent out an official memo for employees to refrain from activities such as golfing and drinking on April 17, a day after the ferry started to sink. Samsung chairman Lee Kun-hee, who recently returned from an extended overseas business trip, expressed hi

LG Uplus, Korea’s third largest mobile carrier, and Huawei, a leading Chinese telecommunication equipment and solutions provider, said Wednesday that they will use WDM/OTN technology for common public radio interface (CPRI) backhaul on LG Uplus’ LTE-A network.They said this marks the world’s first breakthrough in the field of LTE-A backhaul technology.The CPRI-over-WDM/OTN solution enables pooled baseband processing for distributed base stations, saving fiber resources and improving network reli

 Kia Motors on Tuesday released photos of its new Carnival minivan ahead of its global debut at this week's New York International Auto Show.The new Carnival is the third-generation model of the carmaker's steady selling minivan that was first introduced in 1998. In the U.S., the car -- sold under the name Sedona -- posted an accumulated 1.55 million units of sales. Among the number, 978,000 sold overseas.The new Carnival will be available in seven- and eight-passenger configurations, and is equ

The Financial Services Commission on Tuesday unveiled plans to improve the corporate financing environment by easing the regulations on initial public offerings and devising ways for invigorating the moribund local capital market.The regulator said as the first step toward easier IPOs, it will remove hurdles to stock listings and relax the rules on filing and disclosing corporate financial information to the extent that it does not hurt the interests of investors."In order to create a virtuous c

Hyundai Motor on Tuesday announced the launching of a more powerful version of its i30 hatchback in Korea, the D spec. The D spec model replaces the conventional1.6-liter gasoline direct injection (GDi) with a stronger 2-liter Nu motor churning out 172 horsepower and 21 kilogram-force meter of torque. The GDi engine, according to Hyundai, has 23 percent more horsepower and 24 percent more twist than the regular version of the compact family car.The carmaker said the D spec has an updated steerin

South Korea's central bank could discuss raising the key interest rate in a pre-emptive manner if demand-pull inflationary pressure rises, its new chief said Thursday.Bank of Korea (BOK) Gov. Lee Ju-yeol presided over his first rate-setting meeting, in which the monetary policy committee unanimously held the benchmark seven-day repo rate, called the base rate, at 2.5 percent for the 11th straight month.Lee, a former senior deputy governor at the BOK, replaced his predecessor Kim Choong-soo on Ap

The country's authorities are closely monitoring the financial market, the finance ministry said Thursday.The ministry also said it is "undesirable" to see an excessive one-sided movement in currency exchange rates."It is not desirable for market volatility to intensify due to a short-term one-sided movement in any direction," the ministry said in a memo to reporters."Therefore, we are closely monitoring foreign capital flows and transactions situations in the financial markets at home and abroa

Local opened higher Thursday following an overnight gain in U.S. stocks, and the Korean currency continued to rally against the U.S. dollar, causing the Finance Ministry to step up monitoring on the exchange rate.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 5.44 points, or 0.27 percent, to 2,003.94 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Exporters started a tad lower on concerns over the strengthening local currency, while defensive shares gathered ground.Top market cap Samsung Electr

When someone suspected of a crime or irregularity commits suicide, it usually has multiple effects -- the investigation comes to a screeching halt, and people are left wondering if the allegations were really true, or if possibly the victim sought to claim his innocence through death. The Financial Supervisory Service and Woori Bank are now grappling with these and other questions after a high-ranking bank official was found to have committed suicide amid an illicit loan investigation.On Monday

South Korean books and authors is expected to play a significant role in the London book that fair kicked off on Tuesday.South Korea is the Market Focus country, which is the most important guest state, for The London Book Fair 2014 that kicked off at Earls Court, London. The fair will run for three days. The event is considered the second-largest book publishing trade fair in Europe next to the Frankfurt Book Fair. More than 25,000 publishers, booksellers, literary agents, librarians and media

Foreign investors of South Korean stocks extended their selling spree for the fifth consecutive month in March as concerns over the slowing Chinese economy and protracted Ukraine conflict kept them from betting on risky assets, the financial watchdog said Sunday.Overseas investors offloaded a net 1.25 trillion won ($1.19 billion) worth of local stocks in March, compared with a net selling of 1.23 trillion won a month earlier, according to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS).The FSS noted tha

The Financial Supervisory Service has ordered credit card firms to raise money to adopt integrated circuit (IC) cards to prevent a repeat of personal information breaches, according to market sources on Sunday.Up to eight credit card firms in the country will be obligated to raise a combined fund worth 100 billion won ($94.8 million) to bolster oversight of personal data management, the sources said.Most of the funds will be used in adopting card readers that can accept IC cards, which are consi

Prosecutors resummoned the former head of the financially troubled shipping and shipbuilding conglomerate STX Group on Sunday for questioning over his alleged embezzlement and business malpractice.Kang Duk-soo, who headed the group between 2003 and February 2014, is accused of funneling the funds of STX Heavy Industries, a troubled shipbuilder unit, to illegally support other ailing affiliates and misappropriating company money to bribe politicians.The 64-year-old former chairman appeared at the

Shares on the local bourse are expected to rally this week on account of steady buying from foreign investors, who are likely to stay positive thanks to solid economic data from home and abroad, according to analysts.They now expect the Korean market to settle above the touted 2,000-point level, noting that the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index surpassed the 2,000-point level at one point Wednesday for the first time in three months.The KOSPI finished the week at 1,988.09 this week, up

South Korean stocks opened almost flat Thursday as investors were divided over whether the European Central Bank will take monetary easing steps, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 0.37 points, or 0.02 percent, to 1,997.62 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Carmakers traded mixed, with No. 1 Hyundai Motor falling 0.4 percent and its auto parts affiliate Hyundai Mobis edging down 0.62 percent. Kia Motors climbed 0.66 percent.Tech firms also traded bearish,

Ssangyong Motor, run by Indian sport utility vehicle maker Mahindra & Mahindra, said Tuesday that its sales soared 23 percent on-year in March on the back of rising demand for its popular Korando family of off-road vehicles.The carmaker's total sales hit 13,232 units in March, comparedwith 10,761 vehicles sold a year earlier. Domestic sales reached 5,850 units, a 18.8 percent increase from the same one-month period in 2013. Exports, including knockdown kits, were tallied at 7,382 vehicles, a 26.

In another blow to the local financial sector that is still reeling from a series of scandals including data breaches, the president of Hana Bank was disciplined for illegally providing loans, financial sources said on Tuesday. Kim Jong-jun allegedly invested 14.5 billion won ($13.7 million) in a savings bank in 2011 using fabricated documents and skipping an approval process by the board of directors. Kim was at the time head of Hana Capital. Hana Capital failed to recollect 6 billion won of th

Asiana and Boeing appear to be in conflict over the cause of the fatal crash of an Asiana passenger jet at San Francisco International Airport in July 2013.On Tuesday, Asiana said that pilot error and defects in the aircraft’s auto throttle system were the combined cause of the crash. “The probable cause can be found in the very slow air speed that made the B777-200ER stall,” the company said in a statement that came hours after USA Today reported that Asiana acknowledged for the first time that