Keangnam Cover-Up

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Investigators now know that Keangnam Enterprises attempted to cover up sensitive data after the prosecution’s first round of search and seizure. The prosecution has discovered evidence that CCTV footage and computer files were deleted.

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The special investigation team probing corruption allegations has found circumstantial evidence that Keangnam Enterprises hid or disposed of evidence. The investigators found that a large part of surveillance camera footage had been deleted or no recording had taken place at all. The prosecution has confirmed a KBS news report that suspected Keangnam Enterprises of turning off all surveillance cameras in the company for two days and hiding key data immediately after the search and seizure conducted on March 18th. There was also circumstantial evidence indicating that the management systematically had told the employees to say that they don't know anything.

[Soundbite] Keangnam Enterprises Employee(Voice Modified) : "They told me just to say that I didn't know anything. They told me not to get involved and cause trouble."

A member of the special investigation team said that there were many signs that digital data had been deleted, and the concealment and disposal of evidence would be dealt with impartially. The investigators have sent the seized materials to the National Digital Forensic Center of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office to restore the deleted parts.

2. South America Tour

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President Park Geun-hye is now in Peru on the second leg of her four-nation tour to South America which began in Colombia late last week. On Tuesday she will hold a summit meeting with her Peruvian counterpart to expand bilateral cooperation to high value-added industries.

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On day one of her stay in Peru, President Park Geun-hye visited the National Museum of Archaeology, Anthropology and History, where Inca relics are on display. President Park expressed her hope that Peru's efforts to preserve its cultural heritage will bear fruit with the help of the cultural heritage information system supported by the South Korean government. Park then met with leaders of approximately 100 K-pop clubs in Peru, whose combined membership exceeds 400,000 people, as part of her cultural diplomacy. The K-pop club members presented her with gifts. The president also attended a luncheon with some 100 ethnic Koreans living in Peru, including the former coach of the Peruvian national volleyball team Park Man-bok. President Park expressed her gratitude to them for helping the needy, and said that the development of bilateral ties between Korea and Peru will present more opportunities to the ethnic Korean community. On Tuesday the president will hold a summit meeting with Peruvian President Ollanta Humala and will attend a Korea-Peru business forum to discuss ways to diversify bilateral cooperation.

3. Korea's Two Giants

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Looking at the Korean economy, it’s become evident that the nation is relying heavily on two industry giants: Samsung and Hyundai Motor Group. The two conglomerates account for more than 80% of 2014 net profits among the country’s top 30 corporate groups.

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The poor sales of Samsung Electronics' Galaxy S5 have resulted in the eletronics giant's worst ever performance last year with only around 19.4 billion U.S. dollars in current net profit. Hit by the appreciating Korean won, the Hyundai Motor Group also saw its net profit for 2014 rest at only 12 billion dollars. But the combined net profit of these two groups accounted for almost 81% of the top 30 groups' net profits. The prolonged economic slump halved the current net profit of Korea's 30 largest groups over the past four years. The net profits of Samsung and Hyundai Motor Group fell only 12%, but the other 28 conglomerates saw their profits plunge 81%, indicating the dominance of the top two industry leaders.

[Soundbite] Park Ju-geun(CEO, CEO Score) : "The flagship products of the top two groups are sensitive to global economic conditions. So when the global slump is prolonged, the Korean economy may lose its growth engines."

Large conglomerates that mainly cater to local consumers have performed poorly in recent years. It is urgent that Korea should further encourage local spending and diversify export items.

4. Benchmarking Korea

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The youth of Vietnam have long turned to Korea for much of their favorite music and pop culture, but now other aspects of Korean economic prowess are being benchmarked in the emerging Southeast Asian nation, from Choco Pies to new satellite cities built from the ground up in familiar Korean style.

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This Vietnamese man is holding a worship ceremony for his deceased father in a residential area in Hanoi. One of the foods used in the ceremony is "Choco pie," a Korean snack.

[Soundbite] (Hanoi Resident) : "We only use the best products in ancestral worship rites. One of them is the Choco Pie, which looks and tastes good."

With 300 million Korean Choco Pies being sold annually in Vietnam, the product now holds 60 percent of the Vietnamese market. It is a popular gift on holidays and at weddings. A satellite city modeled after South Korean satellite cities is under construction in a prestigious district in downtown Hanoi. Its area measures two-thirds of Yeouido in Seoul, and its value amounts to around 1.8 billion U.S. dollars. The new city will be home to apartment blocks, a 55-story shopping mall with offices, and eight government agencies. Thanks to cheap, high-quality labor, LG Electronics and Samsung Electronics have been expanding their investments into Vietnam as a global manufacturing base to replace China. As of last year, Korea's accumulated investments in Vietnam surpassed 37 billion dollars, making Korea the largest foreign investor in the Southeast Asian country.

5. Koreans & Earth Day

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Prominent Koreans played a role at the 2015 Earth Day celebration in Washington D.C. over the weekend. U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim were on hand to support the call to assisting people around the world affected by climate change.

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The National mall in Washington D.C. was packed with roughly 300,000 people enjoying the performances of Usher and other famed pop artists. A large number of singers and celebrities attended the event, which was not simply a concert, but something more meaningful. In marking 2015 Earth Day, the event spread the message urging people to help the poor around the world and respond promptly to climate change. President of the World Bank Group, Jim Yong Kim, made an impassioned plea about assisting the needy people, and U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon underlined the dangers of climate change.

[Soundbite] Jim Yong Kim(President, World Bank Group)

[Soundbite] Ban Ki-moon(U.N. Secretary-General)

With K-pop idol group VIXX and singer Roy Kim also taking part in the event with their performances, ethnic Koreans demonstrated their extensive involvement in this year's Earth Day celebration held in the American capital.

6. Shady Agencies

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Choosing a trustworthy travel agency is essential when planning an overseas trip. Several Korean travel agencies in France have been caught operating without a business license.

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Several Korean travel agencies operating in France have been found to have no business license. A local French newspaper has reported that six agencies were busted in the famous tourist area of Mont Saint-Michel during a large-scale crackdown on March 31. The newspaper added that they included multiple Korean agencies. The agencies were found to have no permits for transporting tourists. They were also using illegal drivers who had no work visas. The agencies were caught while holding tours in Mont Saint-Michel, which takes over three hours to reach by car from Paris. Sources say the agencies also sold tour packages on the Internet for cheaper prices than tours offered by licensed agencies. Tourists who used the services of illegal agencies may have suffered inconveniences due to police interrogations. However, receiving compensation in case of an accident is not easy, as unlicensed agencies are usually uninsured.

7. Military Film Festival

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As a way to help promote its drive to improve military culture, the South Korean military has opened a festival for ultra short films. The various aspects and difficulties of barracks life were depicted in 29-second-long films. Let's take a look.

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Wearing their uniforms in a sloppy way, a group of reserve forces troops attempt s to jaywalk.

[Soundbite] "Look, there are soldiers!"

Hearing the child's attention, they straighten up their uniforms and cross the street after the traffic light turns green.

[Soundbite] "Mother, I love you."

[Soundbite] "My son, you must have endured so much. Enjoy yourself."

A mother prepares a feast for her long-awaited son who returns home from the military on his first vacation.

[Soundbite] "Mom! You again? I am going out."

However, she begins complaining about his frequent breaks as he rises in the ranks. Any South Korean man who has served in the military could identify with the scenes. A total of 660 super-short, 29-second movies about Korean soldiers were presented to the military film festival.

[Soundbite] Lt. Col. Kim Tae-ho(Defense Min. PR official) : "We held the film festival to promote our drive to reform military culture and boost communications between soldiers and the people."

The Ministry of National Defense expects the film festival to help boost public understanding of the military, as many South Korean men can identify with the experiences depicted in the films.

8. Hobby Market

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Some people carry their childhood hobbies well into adulthood. With a rise in the number these so-called kidults, the market targeting them has rapidly grown to over 920 million U.S. dollars.

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A small room is decorated with a wide variety of toys. They include a village assembled with blocks and a Star Wars spaceship. They are treasured toys belonging to 36-year-old Yoon Han-byul, who has been collecting them for ten years.

[Soundbite] Yoon Han-byul('Kidult' Toy Collector) : "They remind me of my childhood memories. I recall being happy as a child, which offers a sense of healing as I assemble my toys."

Adults who have not let go of their childhood memories have also motivated production of a live-action film based on the children's story, "Cinderella." On the back of the film's huge popularity among female kidult consumers in their 20s and 30s, sales of cosmetics inspired by its main characters have been explosive.

[Soundbite] Cho Hye-sun(Cosmetics Company PR Official) : "About 50% of the stock for Cinderella-themed cosmetics were sold in three days, and sold out in three weeks."

In South Korea, the kidult market is estimated at approximately 920 million U.S. dollars, based on factors such as toy imports. The market is growing by nearly 92.4 million dollars each year. Kidult culture is spreading even further, with the toy industry now targeting adults in response to the dropping birthrate.

9. Second-Tier Products

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A growing number of consumers these days prefer to buy second-tier products, which include returned and defected goods that cannot be sold at a normal price. It's an easy way to save a lot of hard-earned cash. Here’s more.

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This store in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province sells home electronics and furniture. Prices here are more than 50 percent lower than everywhere else. Most of the products sold here were either returned or have minor defects. This sofa is available for 57 percent less than its normal price because of small scratches on its armrests. There are also washing machines that had been returned due to minor scratches. A refrigerator that normally costs around 1100 dollars is selling here for half the price.

[Soundbite] Ji Hyun-na(Customer) : "The items here are almost brand-new. They don't have many defects and their quality is good, as well as the price."

The store personnel repair defective and broken items on their own. With the help of professional technicians, even returned goods look brand-new.

[Soundbite] Choi Jun-won(Store Specializing in Grade B Products) : "Our customers can return or exchange their purchases, so there's no need to worry."

Consumers these days don't mind buying even second-tier fruits.

[Soundbite] Kim Mi-sook(Customer) : "They may have scratches or look unattractive, but they taste okay. They taste good even when ground, so I often buy these cheap fruits."

To find out the difference in taste between grade A and grade B apples, we asked citizens to try them out. The difference turned out to be very minor.

[Soundbite] "I used to buy only pretty apples at supermarkets because they looked more delicious, but now I know that less attractive ones can taste even better."

Some online shopping sites specialize exclusively in second-tier products. They sell almost all of their expired products at a 90 percent discount.

[Soundbite] Shin Dong-bin(Ph.D., Korea Food Research Inst.) : "The consumption period usually lasts longer than the expiration dates. When stored and consumed properly, food products with short shelf lives pose no health risks at all."

As more consumers tighten their belts, cheap second-tier products are gaining in popularity as an easy way to save your hard-earned money and keep spirits up when the economy's down.