IN BRIEF (Page 16)

Noodle firm gains

Nong Shim Co, South Korea's biggest maker of instant noodles, rose to an eight-month high in Seoul trading after UBS AG raised its price estimate, saying consumers burdened by inflation will buy more of the company's products.

Nong Shim climbed 5.3 percent to 210,000 won at the 3 pm close, its highest since Oct 5. The benchmark Kospi stock index lost 0.6 percent.