SOUTH KOREA

South Korea's Samsung Electronics plans to invest about 500 billion won ($389 million) in the biotech medicine business, a local internet news provider said on Wednesday, quoting a top policymaker.

A Vietnamese security researcher said they discovered the IP address of the master server which was used in attacking the United States and Korean government agency.

Hyundai Motor Co (005380.KS), South Korea's top carmaker, on Tuesday said it has raised its 2009 target for sales in China for a second time because of stimulus measures by the Chinese government to boost demand and as the company plans to launch new models.

SB LiMotive, an electric vehicle battery joint venture between South Korea's Samsung SDI and Germany's Robert Bosch, is acquiring U.S. battery maker Cobasys, Samsung SDI said on Tuesday.

Blockbuster Inc on Tuesday announced an agreement that allows consumers to instantly view movies and video from its OnDemand service on Samsung's televisions and electronics devices.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has pancreatic cancer and the illness is life-threatening, South Korean broadcaster YTN said on Monday based on information gathered by Chinese and South Korean intelligence sources.

The European Union plans to finalise a $100 billion trade pact with South Korea by the end of the year, the prime minister of EU president Sweden said on Monday.

Philips Electronics, Europe's biggest consumer electronics maker, said some of its key markets are primed for an upturn in sales, though any growth this year would likely be driven by government spending programs.

North Korean leader Kim Jong II, 67, has life-threatening pancreatic cancer, according to Seoul's YTN television, the British newspaper Guardian reported on Monday.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has life-threatening pancreatic cancer, South Korean broadcaster YTN said on Monday, citing information gathered from Chinese and South Korean intelligence sources.

Dutch conglomerate Philips Electronics signaled brighter business prospects for the second half of 2009, helped by cost cuts, as it surprised the market with a return to profit in the second quarter.

Asian shares fell 2.6 percent on Monday, with Japan's Nikkei down for a ninth straight day, as concerns about company earnings outlooks weighed, while oil languished near a six-week low as faith in a rapid economic recovery faded.

Japan's Nikkei fell for a ninth straight day on Monday as concerns about company earnings outlooks weighed on Asian stocks, while oil languished near a six-week low as faith in a rapid economic recovery faded.

The following is the full prepared statement of President Obama's speech in Accra, Ghana on July 11, 2009 as presented by the White House, according to the Associated Press.

Cyber attacks slowing U.S. and South Korean websites could enter a new phase on Friday by attacking personal computers and wiping out hard disks, a South Korean government agency and web security firm said.

A fresh wave of cyber attacks that slowed U.S. and South Korean websites this week hit more targets on Thursday, a Web security firm said, while the South's spy agency has said the hacking may be linked to North Korea.

A fresh wave of cyber attacks that slowed U.S. and South Korean websites this week hit more targets on Thursday, a Web security firm said, while the South's spy agency has said the hacking may be linked to North Korea.

A fresh wave of cyber attacks that slowed U.S. and South Korean websites this week hit more targets on Thursday, a web security firm said.

Cybersecurity analysts raised doubts on Wednesday that the North Korean state launched recent attacks on U.S. government and South Korean websites, saying industrial spies or pranksters could be the villains.

A fresh wave of cyber attacks that slowed U.S. and South Korean websites this week could come later on Thursday, a web security firm said, while the South's spy agency has said the hacking may be linked to North Korea.

Some South Korean and U.S. Internet sites were down or slowed to a crawl for a third day on Thursday after attacks by a hacker that Seoul's National Intelligence Service said may be linked to a cyber warfare unit in the North.