17 South Korean firms make Fortune 500 list

Samsung Electronics Co. and 16 other South Korean companies were included in the 2014 Fortune 500 list, three more than last year, the online edition of the U.S. business magazine Fortune said Tuesday.
Samsung Electronics, the world's leading maker of mobile phones and computer memory chips, rose one notch from the previous year to 13 on the list.
Three local companies -- Hanwha Corp., Samsung C&T Corp. and Lotte Shopping Co. -- newly joined the list this year.
SK Holdings, the holding company of SK Group, which has the country's top mobile carrier SK Telecom Co. under its wing, fell seven spots from a year earlier to 64, while Hyundai Motor Co., South Korea's biggest automaker, rose four notches to 100.
The list includes other South Korean companies such as leading steelmaker POSCO, LG Electronics, Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., the world's largest shipbuilder, and state-run power company Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO).
Royal Dutch Shell, Europe's largest oil company, which topped the list last year, yielded its position to Wal-Mart Stores Inc. this year.