Lotte Shopping and E-Mart, two of Korea’s major retail giants, on Monday denied making a bid for smaller hypermarket chain Kim’s Club. “We hereby officially deny media reports that our company is among the bidders shortlisted for the takeover of Kim’s Club,” E-Mart said in a regulatory filing. In a separate filing on the day, Lotte Shopping also denied any bid. (Yonhap)Rumors have been brewing as to which of the country’s retailers is among the three bidders shortlisted for the acquisition of th

The state-run Korea Electric Power Corp. said Monday it will hand out a record high of some 2 trillion won ($1.66 billion) in cash dividends to its shareholders for the year 2015, in its largest allotment to date.　“We plan to pay 1.99 trillion won for dividends out of a net profit of 13.41 trillion won posted in 2015,” the nation’s largest utility firm said in a regulatory filing. KEPCO`s new headquarters in Naju, South Jeolla Province (Yonhap)　“The decision is scheduled for discussion at the bo

South Korea’s inbound shipments in the pharmaceutical sector, which had been increasing annually until 2014, declined by around 5 percent last year due in part to a rise in the use of domestic generic drugs, according to recent data by the Korea Pharmaceutical Traders Association.　　Imports of raw materials used in pharmaceutical production and of finished pharmaceutical products together declined by 5.37 percent on-year to $4.8 billion in 2015, according to the KPTA.　By category, imports of star

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has observed the test-fire of a new anti-tank guided weapon, the North‘s state media reported Saturday, amid a growing tension with the outside world over its nuclear and missile programs.　Kim claimed the portable anti-tank laser-guided rocket has the longest firing-range in the world and its rate of hits is “as accurate as a sniper’s rifle firing” as well as its armor penetrating capability and destructive power are marvelous.　“He noted with great satisfaction th

A nuclear reactor in South Korea‘s southwestern nuclear complex temporarily stopped operation Saturday due to a technical glitch, an official said, but it does not pose any radiation risks.　The 950,000-kilowatt “Hanbit 1” reactor stopped operating at around 5:16 a.m. due to a problem in a device that condenses a steam into water, according to Min Sung-mok, an official of the Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power, the operator of South Korea’s nuclear power plants.　The device, which is required to mainta

BEIRUT (AP) — A cease-fire brokered by the United States and Russia went into effect across Syria on Saturday, marking the biggest international push to reduce violence in the country‘s devastating conflict, but the Islamic State group and al-Qaida’s branch in Syria, the Nusra Front, were excluded.The cease-fire aims to bring representatives of the Syrian government and the opposition back to the negotiating table in Geneva for talks on a political transition. The U.N.‘s envoy, Staffan de Mistur

SEOUL (AFP) - North Korea on Saturday boasted of a newly developed anti-tank weapon that its leader said was so powerful it could turn the most heavily armoured enemy tanks into “boiled pumpkin”.　Pyongyang‘s state media said leader Kim Jong-Un had watched tests of the portable, laser-guided rocket and declared it had the “longest firing range in the world”, and was “as accurate as a sniper’s rifle”.　“He noted with great satisfaction that even the special armoured tanks and cars of the enemies wh

A U.S. appeals court on Friday handed Samsung a win over Apple in a long-running patent fight, overriding a jury verdict ordering it to pay $119.6 million to the iPhone maker.The court ruled that two Apple patents at issue were not valid, according to a copy of the decision posted online.Samsung Electronics' booth at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain (Yonhap)“We are delighted with the resounding victory from the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, which found that two of App

SK Holdings, the parent company of South Korea’s third-largest conglomerate SK Group, said Friday it has acquired a 100 percent stake in SK Biotek, a contract manufacturer of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) used to produce chemical drugs.　At the same time, SK Biotek will issue new shares worth 40 billion won ($32.38 million) to expand its production facilities. The decisions were made during a company board meeting on Thursday.　SK’s holding company, at the apex of the group’s governance

Porsche Korea unveiled the newly upgraded 911 Carrera and 911 Carrera S in Seoul on Thursday, with plans to launch other models based on the iconic Porsche 911 sports car in South Korea this year. 　The two models are the first among Porsche’s redesigned 911 lineup to debut in Korea, according to Porsche Korea. New variations of the 911 will be released locally in the coming months, company officials said. Porsche unveils the new 911 Carrera and 911 Carrera S in a launch ceremony at Dongdaemun De

Bekei Korea launches Klavuu cosmetics brand　Bekei Korea, a cosmetics company specializing in developing pearl-based items, has launched South Korea’s first pearl cosmetics brand Klavuu.　Klavuu has introduced a new skin care lineup, including toners, serums, eye creams and facial creams, as well as a cleansing product lineup based on conchiolin, a protein found in pearls known to improve skin quality.　All of Klavuu’s products are infused with natural minerals and proteins found in high-quality, n

The Indian Chamber of Commerce in Korea has named Yoon Sock-joong, a former presidential secretary and public affairs minister at the Korean Embassy in the U.S., as its new secretary general.　Yoon, 57, will take over the chamber’s secretary general post formerly held by Chang Kook-hyun, the founding secretary general of the ICCK, starting from Feb. 1. Chang will continue to serve ICCK as senior advisor. Yoon Sock-joong (ICCK)　Yoon served as the embassy minister in the U.S. from 2005-2008 after w

A U.S.-based start-up claiming it can enable South Korean consumers to directly purchase gasoline and diesel fuel from overseas vendors has terminated its beta service one day after its official launch.　Jirm had opened its beta website -- www.jirm.com -- in Korea on Monday, referring to itself as the world’s first company to help consumers order fuel directly from Saudi Arabia at lower-than-market prices.Following legal issues raised by state authorities and industry officials, the firm shut dow

GS Caltex, South Korea’s second-largest oil refiner, is lending a hand in bringing the arts closer to the local community in Yeosu, South Jeolla Province, through its cultural center Yeulmaru.　In partnership with Yeosu City, the company established the arts facility in May 2012 aiming to provide local citizens with opportunities to enjoy diverse arts performances and exhibitions previously unavailable to those outside of Seoul. Yeulmaru (GS Caltex)　Yeulmaru, which translates to “a serene space f

Fresh concerns are rising over the expansion of illegal kickbacks offered by pharmaceutical companies to doctors in South Korea, as prosecutors have begun investigating the local arm of Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis on suspicions of bribery.　The Seoul Western District Prosecutor’s Office raided Novartis Korea on Monday, confiscating the company’s documents and checkbooks on allegations that it had handed out money and other kickbacks, known in the industry as “rebates,” to local doctors.　R

Although global oil prices have plunged to record-lows, many drivers in South Korea say they have not benefited from the corresponding falls in their daily fuel costs.An insignificant decline in local gasoline prices in an era of persistently low crude prices has led to growing public calls for the government to alter its taxation system.　The current scale and method of levying taxes on oil products prevents local retail fuel prices from falling in line with major drops in crude prices.(Yonhap)　

South Korea’s SK Group is pushing forward strategic mergers and acquisitions to bolster its pharmaceutical business, considered one of the key industries to lead the conglomerate’s future growth.　SK Holdings is close to finalizing its selection of at least two global contract manufacturers of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) used in pharmaceutical production, presumably midsized firms from Europe and North America, for acquisitions, according to news reports and industry sources on Sunday

South Korea’s leading automaker Hyundai Motor is set to debut the pure electric version of the Ioniq next month at the International Electric Vehicle Expo 2016 in Jejudo Island, following the launch of the Ioniq hybrid in January.The green car expo is scheduled to take place at the International Convention Center Jeju from March 18-24.　　Hyundai has also begun receiving preorders of its new electric vehicle in Jeju, as part of a government-led program to subsidize some 4,000 electric vehicles tha

Despite her busy schedule, Kim Na-eun, a 30-year-old office worker in Seoul, visits a skin care clinic every now and then, whenever she feels the need to rejuvenate, or allot some “proper attention” to her skin.　These days, though, her visits have stopped -- not because she has stopped investing in skin care, but since she now relies on a set of high-end self-aesthetic devices instead to look after her skin.　Ranging from a rechargeable sonic skin cleansing brush to a microcurrent-generating faci

South Korea’s Navy is continuing its efforts to detect the first stage of the rocket launched by the North on Sunday by mobilizing a remotely operated vehicle, officials said Wednesday.　On Sunday, Pyongyang launched a long-range rocket, sending what it claims to be a satellite into orbit, but South Korea and the U.S. denounced it as a long-range missile test that squarely challenges relevant United Nations resolutions. 　Upon the launch on the west coast, the rocket flew southward, dropping its f