Cash-Strapped Hyundai May Need to Make Some Spin Moves

TOKYO -- Three years ago, when Korea was in the grips of the Asian financial crisis, the International Monetary Fund loomed so large for the country that one local sausage maker churned out wieners marketed under the name "IMF Dogs."

Since that time, the Korean economy -- the world's 11th-largest -- has roared back. It's recovered faster than its emerging market counterparts Indonesia and Thailand, which also were ravaged by the currency sturm und drang, and is expected to post an impressive 8% expansion this year.

While the IMF weenies may be off the shelves, Korea, however, hasn't weaned itself of junk food. The country's giant corporate conglomerates, known as chaebol, remain bloated and debt-ridden. Woes at Daewoo had been the focus, but now attention is turning to the Hyundai Group, one of Korea's four largest conglomerates. ...