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Lee Hyo-sik

Korea Times Finance Reporter

Lee Hyo-sik is Finance Desk editor at The Korea Times. He manages finance-related stories on macroeconomics, banks, stocks, bonds, crypto etc. He is passionate about covering what's happening in Korea's financial industry and explaining it to both Korean and non-Korean readers. You can reach him at leehs@koreatimes.co.kr. Your insights and feedbacks are always appreciated.

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South Korea

Prosecutors expand Taekwang probe

Group suspected of having bribed financial regulators, tax officials By Lee Hyo-sik The prosecution is expanding its probe into Taekwang Group to secure evidence that it created tens of billions of won in a slush fund by raiding the nation’s top tax office. The Seoul Western District Prosecutors’ Office sent a group of investigators Monday afternoon to the Seoul Regional Tax Office to confiscate computer hard disks and other tax-related documents concerning Korea’s 40th largest conglomerate. Prosecutors are looking into allegations that the tax office was lobbied by the scandal-ridden business group in early 2008 when it imposed nearly 100 billion won in inheritance taxes on Taekwang after discovering large sums of unclaimed funds at its subsidiaries. At the time, tax officials launched a tax audit into Taekwang Industrial, Goryo Savings Bank and group Chairman Lee Ho-jin on suspicions of having a slush fund. They levied taxes on Taekwang but did not refer the case to the prosecution for criminal investigation, saying the group and Lee did not evade paying taxes o

Oct 19, 2010By Lee Hyo-sik
South Korea

Woman nabbed for killing two adopted daughters for insurance money

By Lee Hyo-sik A 31-year old woman has been arrested for killing two infant girls after adopting them to receive life insurance payments, the police said Monday. According to the Gyeongbuk Provincial Police Agency, the woman, only identified by her surname Choi, adopted an infant girl in April 2008 and bought three separate life insurance policies on her, paying 200,000 won in monthly premiums. On Jan. 14 this year, Choi suffocated the 28-months-old baby girl, who had been hospitalized for intestinal inflammation at a university hospital in South Gyeongsang Province, using clothes on the hospital bed. The baby lapsed into coma and died on March 7. Choi collected a total of 26 million won insurance money for the baby’s death. According to the police, Choi did not sterilize the infant’s milk bottle and had her drink unclean water to have her hospitalized. She was also found to have adopted a month-old baby girl in May 2005 and received 15 million won life insurance money 14 months later after the infant died in a university hospital in Daegu. The baby was also ho

Oct 18, 2010By Lee Hyo-sik
Travel & Food

Qatar targets Korean business travelers

By Lee Hyo-sik Qatar, an emerging economic powerhouse in the Middle East, is seeking to attract more Korean tourists, particularly business travelers, by promoting a range of unique tourism assets not seen elsewhere in the world. In an interview with The Korea Times, Ahmed Abdullah M. Al Nuaimi, chairman of the Qatar Tourism Authority, said more Koreans should come to the Middle Eastern country to taste the exquisite cuisine, and engage in desert safaris and other fun leisure activities. He came to Korea along with the heads of hotels and tourism agencies on Oct. 9, as part of Tourism Qatar’s Asian road show. Al Nuaimi hosted his country’s largest-ever promotional function held here Monday night, designed to publicize Qatar’s tourism industry. “We decided to visit Korea because the two countries have established strong business ties. Korea is importing oil and gas from us. Many Korean firms are building plants and engaging in other infrastructure development projects. Korean cars, electronics goods and other products are very popular in Qatar,” Al Nuaimi said. The Mid

Oct 14, 2010By Lee Hyo-sik
South Korea

Hwang Jang-yop laid to rest

Architect of ‘juche’ ideology buried at National Cemetery By Lee Hyo-sik Hundreds of mourners paid their respects to the late North Korean defector Hwang Jang-yop, the architect of “juche” or self-reliance ideology, at the Asan Medical Center in Seoul, Thursday, before his body was put to rest at the National Cemetery in Daejeon. Former President Kim Young-sam, an honorary chairman of the committee organizing Hwang’s funeral, Unification Minister Hyun In-taek, bereaved family members, North Korean defectors and ordinary citizens attended the memorial ceremony for the former mentor of the current North Korean leader Kim Jong-il. Hwang died of a heart attack at age 87 at his house in southern Seoul on Oct. 10. He defected to the South in 1997 after serving in a series of high-level posts in the North, including speaker of the Supreme People’s Assembly and a secretary of the ruling Workers’ Party. Since his defection, Hwang had been a vocal critic of Kim and the North Korean regime, facing continuous threats of retaliation from Pyongyang. The memorial service began at

Oct 14, 2010By Lee Hyo-sik
South Korea

Gov’t to create 70,000 jobs for young adults

By Lee Hyo-sik The government plans to create about 70,000 public-sector jobs for young adults over the next two years to help recent university and high-school graduates find work amid the protracted tight job market. It will provide tax breaks and other incentives to businesses hiring young workers. In a report to President Lee Myung-bak, Minister of Employment and Labor Bahk Jae-wan said Thursday that a range of measures to cut the number of jobless youths by more than 70,000 by 2012 will be implemented. “Young adults are the future of Korea. Over the next three to four years during which the number of university graduates exceeds that of retirees, the government, private businesses and everyone else should make an all-out effort to help young people get good jobs,” Bahk said. The minister said the government will create jobs in various public sectors, and encourage companies and universities to contribute to boosting the youth employment rate. “At the root of the high youth unemployment is a manpower mismatch, meaning that Korea has more university educated gr

Oct 14, 2010By Lee Hyo-sik
South Korea

Minister laments lack of hotels to accommodate foreign tourists

By Lee Hyo-sik BUYEO ― South Korea cannot accommodate too many foreign tourists even if it emerges as one of the top global travel destinations, due to a shortage of hotels and other key tourism infrastructure, the nation’s top tourism official said Wednesday. On the sidelines of the T20 Ministers’ Meeting in Buyeo, South Chungcheong Province, from Oct. 11 to 13, Yu In-chon, minister of culture, sports and tourism, told reporters Wednesday that a growing number of inbound tourists are facing difficulties in finding decent lodging facilities at affordable prices. ``Korea has become a popular destination, particularly for Chinese and other Asian travelers. But the problem is that we cannot handle too many foreign visitors if their numbers exceed 10 million, due to a lack of hotels and other accommodation facilities,’’ Yu said. He said the country has only about 220 hotels across the country, compared to 20,000 in China. The minister said Korea should construct more affordable accommodation and casinos, as well as develop the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) and the southern coas

Oct 13, 2010By Lee Hyo-sik
South Korea

Hwang Jang-yops safe house likely to be sold

By Lee Hyo-sik A high-security safe house where the late Hwang Jang-yop, the highest-ranking North Korean to defect to South Korea, spent the last years of his life, is likely to be put up for sale due to extensive public exposure. Since Hwang’s death Sunday, the location and the purpose of the house have been disclosed to the public as news media outlets extensively covered intelligence officials, police officers and coroners going in and out of the residence. As a result, key figures whose lives are threatened for various reasons would no longer be safe there. The residence is located in an affluent neighborhood in southern Seoul. A government official familiar with the matter said Tuesday that the photos of surveillance cameras and other security installations in and around the residence have been compromised, adding it cannot be used as a safe house for important figures at high security risk anymore. “The government will discuss what to do with the house after Hwang’s funeral. Selling it will likely be one of the options.” There had been a rumor that the former secre

Oct 12, 2010By Lee Hyo-sik
South Korea

Young smartphone users exposed to porn

By Lee Hyo-sik Adult websites and applications are too easily accessible to adolescent smartphone users, with the Korean government unable to censor materials uploaded from foreign soil, a lawmaker said Monday. Rep. Han Sun-kyo of the governing Grand National Party (GNP) said that smartphone users, including minors, can access many applications containing sex-related material and games. “Internet users cannot search sites containing adult materials by typing in sex-related words. But if you do that in the App Store and Google-backed Android market, you get up to 900 X-rated applications,” he said during the National Assembly’s audit of the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Sports. In particular, those who are over 17 can download adult content from the App Store, Han said. “Even if they are minors, they can have access to adult content as long as they type in passwords and click the approve button.” Among the most downloaded applications, one involving sex acts ranked 40th, he said, stressing there are even applications allowing smartphone users to view adult video c

Oct 11, 2010By Lee Hyo-sik
South Korea

Malaysia to attract Korean golfers

By Lee Hyo-sik Malaysia, a popular tourist destination in Southeast Asia, is seeking to attract Korean golfers by launching a comprehensive tour package at affordable prices in cooperation with Asiana Airlines and Amiga Tour, a mid-sized travel agency here. Dato Sri Dr. Ng Yen Yen, Malaysian minister of tourism, said Monday that Malaysia has more than 200 international-standard golf courses across the country, adding Korean golfers should come and explore what the Southeast Asian nation can offer. She came to Korea Monday to attend the second T20 Ministers’ Meeting in Buyeo, South Chungcheong Province, taking place from Oct. 11 to 13 and to engage in other promotional events designed to draw more Koreans to her country. “Our golf courses are located in the mountains, along the sea shores, on tropical islands and in rainforests, offering many choices and challenges to golfers. Golf resorts and clubhouses are equipped with the best facilities and amenities, including accommodation and convention facilities. Some of our courses were designed by top golf personalities such

Oct 11, 2010By Lee Hyo-sik
Travel & Food

Korea to emerge as global tourism hub

By Lee Hyo-sik Korea has been staging a full-fledged campaign to attract as many foreign tourists as possible to earn hard currency, create jobs and improve its international profile. In 2009, Korea launched the“2010-2012 Visit Korea Year” campaign in a bid to attract 10 million foreign tourists annually by 2012, increase the nation’s tourism revenue to $10 billion and make it to the list of the top 20 countries in surveys of tourism competitiveness. The number of foreign visitors exceeded the seven-million mark for the first time in history last year at 7.81 million, on the back of a weak Korean won. Inbound foreign tourists are expected to exceed the government target of 8.5 million in 2010, with more Chinese and other Asian visitors on rising income levels as a result of strong economic rebounds back home, traveling to Asia’s fourth largest economy. Additionally, the popularity of Korean pop culture, or “Hallyu,” among Asian youths has helped to draw more visitors to Korea. Since the campaign launch last year, the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO), the Visit Korea

Oct 11, 2010By Lee Hyo-sik
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