• Foreign firms’ remittances cause red faces

    Branches of some multinationals send more than their net profits in dividend payments to their head offices. According to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) Monday, IBM Korea and Philip Morris Korea’s dividend ratios stood at 115.1 percent and 111.6 percent, respectively. This means IBM paid 133 billion won and Philip…

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  • PM’s China trip reveals President’s priorities

    Prime Minister Chung Hong-won’s visit to China is seen as an indication of closer Korea-China ties. But observers question whether this could come at cost to the Korea-U.S. alliance. Chung finished his five-day visit to China, Sunday, which included a meeting with his Chinese counterpart Li Keqiang. “President Park Geun-hye…

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  • State agency sues cigarette firms

    The National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) filed a 54 billion won damages lawsuit against three cigarette makers — KT&G, Philip Morris Korea and BAT Korea — Monday. This is the first suit to be brought by a state-run agency here. In the case filed with the Seoul Central District Court,…

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  • Spy master exonerated

    Two NIS officials indicted in evidence fabrication case A special prosecution team confirmed Monday that a number of spy agency officials fabricated evidence to frame Yu Woo-sung, a former Seoul government official who posed as a North Korean defector, for espionage. National Intelligence Service (NIS) Director Nam Jae-joon and two…

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  • Samsung boss receives biggest dividend payments

    Last month’s executive pay disclosure painted a rather incomplete picture of who earns how much in Korea’s business world because it exempts non-board member executives from disclosure. However, dividend payment data helps present a clearer picture. While the income of Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Kun-hee remains unknown, dividend payment data…

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  • Korean kids vs Jewish kids

    Inquisitive mind key to successful education; experts Korean and Jewish moms have a single-minded devotion to their children’s success and put an overwhelming emphasis on education as a means to achieve it. Korean students have been at the top of international tests measuring the performances of 15-year-olds in math, reading…

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  • Banks to promote films, dramas

    Korea’s major lenders are expanding their support for the content and entertainment industry, which has taken off with the popularity of hallyu worldwide. The state-run Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK) plans to lend a total of 750 billion won during the 2014­2016 period to nurture the culture and content industry,…

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  • Who are most charitable stars?

    Some celebrities become social inspirations beyond popularity Hollywood star Angelina Jolie, known as one of the most philanthropic celebrities, once said that she “opened her eyes” when she saw people from the war-ravaged region while filming “Lara Croft: Tomb Raider” in Cambodia in 2001. Since then, she has turned into…

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  • Korea offers makeovers Chinese cannot resist

    A cosmetic surgery hospital in southern Seoul mirrors a Chinese drama set in a luxury model home. Beside a statue of Venus, a woman lies with her face wrapped in bandages. A young woman in a patient gown talks with a man in black sunglasses. A group of Chinese tourists…

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  • Seoul, Tokyo to hold talks on wartime sex slavery

    South Korea and Japan will hold talks to discuss the thorny issue of Japan’s sexual enslavement of Korean women during World War II in Seoul next week, said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Sunday. According to the ministry, Lee Sang-deok, director-general for Northeast Asian affairs at the foreign ministry, and…

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