No ties or hand-driers as South Korea readies for hot spell

Meeyoung Cho in Reuters: South Korean businessmen, typically clad in uniform dark blue suits, are being urged to dump their jackets and ties as the summer looms in a bid to save electricity amid tight supplies as offices turn up the air conditioning. Those living in Asia's fourth largest economy are also being told by its government that they should carry handkerchiefs to dry their hands, rather than using hot air blowers that consume electricity.

"We need all the people to join to curb excessive cooling demand which accounts for 21 percent of summer peak demand," the country's economy ministry said in a statement. President Lee Myung-bak, a former business executive who appears to live in a dark blue suit, white shirt and tie, is expected to lead the way, as he did last winter when he urged Koreans to save on heating by wearing thermal underwear.

South Korea, which experienced nationwide power cuts last September, will impose fines on public buildings that open doors while running air conditioning. Wednesday's statement also ordered 478 big buildings such as department stores and hotels to keep their temperatures at 26 degrees Celsius or above....

Hangang Bridge and Hangang Railway Bridge running from Dongjak-gu over Nodeul Island on Han River, shot by Dolmang, Wikimedia Commons via Flickr, under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license