[Exclusive] Neon, Bixby to complement each other: Samsung exec

LAS VEGAS -- Samsung Electronics’ humanoid artificial intelligence chatbot Neon and its current platform Bixby will complement each other, said Chung Eui-suk, head of the mobile division’s software R&D on Tuesday in Las Vegas. Chung told The Korea Herald that unlike Bixby which is embedded as a software in devices, Neon makes virtual humans that act like real people.“The Neon platform will be complementary with Bixby, but goes beyond what Bixby does,” said the ex

TechnologyJan. 8, 2020

BTS to release new album, ‘Map of the Soul: 7,’ Feb. 21

Just 10 months after setting multiple records with “Boy With Luv,” BTS announced the upcoming release of a new album in February.On Tuesday, the seven-piece K-pop juggernaut told its global fan community Weverse that it would drop a new album, “Map of the Soul: 7,” Feb. 21. The album is the sequel to the act’s Billboard 200 chart-topper EP “Map of the Soul: Persona,” released in April last year. “With ‘Map of the Soul: Persona,’ BTS san

K-popJan. 8, 2020

S. Korea strives to revive petrochemical sector

South Korea said Wednesday it will spare no efforts to revitalize the country's petrochemical industry facing a prolonged slump amid growing protectionism and competition.The country's exports of petrochemical products surrendered 14.8 percent in 2019 from a year earlier to $42.5 billion, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.Outbound shipments of petroleum goods also sank 12.3 percent over the cited period to $40 billion. The two segments each represented the fourth and fifth-

IndustryJan. 8, 2020

Tax revenue tallied at W276.6tr through Nov. last year

South Korea's state tax income reached 276.6 trillion won ($234.8 billion) in the first 11 months of last year, 3.3 trillion won less than the previous year, the finance ministry said Wednesday.Tax revenue was tallied at 16.2 trillion won in November last year, 300 billion won less compared with a year earlier. Income tax revenue amounted to 10.9 trillion won in November last year, 1 trillion won more than a year earlier, due to a rise in wages. Dues collected by companies were unchanged at 1.5

EconomyJan. 8, 2020

[Exclusive] Samsung vice chairman says memory market is recovering

LAS VEGAS -- The memory chip market is starting to show signs of improving, leaving Samsung Electronics to deliberate carefully on the timing of the launch of its second memory chip plant in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, according to Kim Ki-nam, vice chairman of the tech giant’s semiconductor business on Tuesday. “There are signs that make us believe the market is recovering,” the vice chairman told The Korea Herald in Las Vegas at Consumer Electronics Show 2020. “Howeve

TechnologyJan. 8, 2020

Oil prices spike over 4.5% after Iran attacks

TOKYO (AFP) - Oil prices spiked Wednesday morning, rising over 4.5 percent at one point after Iran fired a barrage of ballistic missiles against two airbases in Iraq used by US and coalition forces. The benchmark WTI jumped as much as 4.53 percent to $65.54 a barrel before settling down slightly after Iran unleashed its first response to the US assassination of military commander Qasem Soleimani. (AFP)

World NewsJan. 8, 2020

US insists troops staying in Iraq, won't bomb Iran cultural sites

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- President Donald Trump sought Tuesday to end confusion over the future of American troops in Iraq, saying they should stay, despite fury there over the US killing of a top Iranian general in Baghdad."At some point we want to get out, but this isn't the right point," Trump told reporters at the White House.Regardless of US efforts to clarify the troops' future following an Iraqi parliament call for their exit, regional tension and uncertainty increased.In the Iranian

World NewsJan. 8, 2020

Pompeo: US hopeful about having conversation on achieving N. Korea's denuclearization

WASHINGTON -- The United States remains hopeful it can have a conversation with North Korea about its promise to dismantle its nuclear weapons program, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Tuesday.Pompeo's remarks come amid tensions with North Korea following leader Kim Jong-un's threat to showcase a "new strategic weapon" in protest of stalled nuclear talks with the US.Kim issued the message on New Year's Day after the US refused to offer concessions by the leader's self-imposed dea

North KoreaJan. 8, 2020

Iran strikes back at US with missile attack at air base

TEHRAN (AP) -- Iran struck back at the United States for the killing of a top Iranian general early Wednesday, firing a series of surface-to-surface missiles at an Iraqi air base housing US troops and warning the United States and its allies in the region not to retaliate.US officials confirmed airstrikes at the air base. There was no immediate word on injuries.Iranian state TV said the attack was in revenge for the killing of Revolutionary Guard Gen. Qassem Soleimani, whose funeral Tuesday in h

World NewsJan. 8, 2020

Samsung beats Q4 earnings estimate, 2019 performance worst in 3 yrs on chip prices

Samsung Electronics Co. expected better fourth-quarter earnings Wednesday but suffered its worst performance in three years in 2019 due to a protracted slump in chip prices.The world's No. 1 memory chipmaker estimated its fourth-quarter operating income at 7.1 trillion won ($6.1 billion), down 34.26 percent from a year earlier, but the reading was well above the median market estimate of 6.5 trillion won, largely on the back of a slight recovery in chip prices and better-than-expected market res

IndustryJan. 8, 2020

US remains committed to achieving NK denuclearization: deputy parliamentary speaker

WASHINGTON -- The United States remains committed to achieving North Korea's denuclearization and will never accept the regime as a nuclear weapons state, US officials were quoted as telling South Korean lawmakers Tuesday.The position was stated by US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs David Stilwell and Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Korea and Japan Marc Knapper during a meeting with a delegation of the conservative main opposition Liberty Korea Party, acco

North KoreaJan. 8, 2020

Trump reaffirms commitment to N. Korea's denuclearization

WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump reaffirmed his commitment to achieving North Korea's denuclearization in a letter to South Korea's new ambassador to Washington, the South Korean Embassy here said Tuesday.Trump wrote a note Monday in response to Amb. Lee Soo-hyuck's letter accompanying his credentials, the embassy said in a press release. Lee presented his credentials to the US president the same day. "President Trump said Amb. Lee's appointment demonstrates the resilience of the Sou

North KoreaJan. 8, 2020

BTS to drop new album on Feb. 21

K-pop boy band BTS will return to the local music scene next month with a new album, the group's management agency said Wednesday.The group will put out "Map of the Soul: 7" on Feb. 21, the first release since it rolled out "Map of the Soul: Persona" in April last year, Big Hit Entertainment said. The group topped the Billboard 200 main albums chart for the previous "Map of the Soul: Persona" last year, with its album sales reaching a record 3.7 million copies in So

PerformanceJan. 8, 2020

Shinsegae Department Store’s Gangnam branch records over W2tr in annual sales

Shinsegae Department Store said Tuesday its Gangnam branch recorded annual sales of 2 trillion won ($1.71 billion) in 2019, becoming the first single store to do so in the retail industry in South Korea.According to Shinsegae, its Gangnam branch in Seoul saw annual turnover exceed 1 trillion won in 2010, hitting the milestone just 10 years after it opened.  With the 2019 record, the department store joins the “2-trillion club” to stand shoulder to shoulder with global department

ConsumerJan. 8, 2020

Ministry says no decision yet on whether to send S. Korean troops to Hormuz Strait

South Korea has made no decision yet on whether to send its troops to help safeguard the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz, Seoul's foreign ministry said Tuesday, amid rising tensions in the Middle East from the US killing of a top Iranian general last week.    Friday's fatal drone strike on Qassem Soleimani, the head of Iran's elite Quds Force, has raised expectations that Washington will step up calls for its allies to contribute to maritime security operations in the wa

DefenseJan. 7, 2020

S. Korea co-chairs NATO-run fund for Afghanistan security forces

South Korea has become a co-chair of the board of a NATO-run international fund to help bolster Afghan security forces, Seoul's foreign ministry said Tuesday.South Korea started its one-year term on Monday on the board of the Afghan National Army Trust Fund, according to the ministry. The board monitors and reviews the fund's cost effectiveness, financial integrity and accountability. A co-chair convenes an annual plenary session of the board in the second quarter, together with the se

Foreign AffairsJan. 7, 2020

'Parasite' scores 4 nominations for British Academy awards

Bong Joon-ho's black comedy "Parasite" has been nominated in four categories for the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) awards, organizers said Tuesday.    In the nominations for the 2020 BAFTA Film Awards, slated for February, the South Korean film was listed in the categories of best film, best director, best original screenplay and best film not in the English language.     For best film, the family satire will compete with "1

FilmJan. 7, 2020

SF9 returns as gentlemen with ‘Good Guy’

The bandmates of SF9 suited up for new single “Good Guy,” all set to kick off a new era of the group’s career.The nine-piece group held a media debut showcase for its first full-length album “First Collection” in Seoul on Tuesday, where it showcased the album’s lead track “Good Guy” and shared New Year’s ambitions. Clad in clean-cut matching suits, the band explained that the outfits were to portray an image of “good guys.” &ldquo

K-popJan. 7, 2020

[Graphic News] Global air crash deaths fall more than half in 2019

　The number of deaths in major air crashes around the globe fell by more than half from the previous year in 2019, according to a report by an aviation consulting firm.　The To70 consultancy said that 257 people died in eight fatal accidents in 2019. That compares to 534 deaths in 13 fatal accidents in 2018. 　The 2019 death toll rose in late December after a Bek Air Fokker 100 crashed Dec. 27 on takeoff in Kazakhstan, killing 12 people. The worst crash of 2019 involved an Ethiopian Airlines Boein

World NewsJan. 7, 2020

Lime Asset’s fund fiasco weighs on local banks

More than one-third of local fund operator Lime Asset Management’s now-frozen private equity fund was sold via Korean commercial banks last year, the financial watchdog said Tuesday, further igniting trust issues involving lenders already facing criticism for misselling risky financial products.　As of late July, domestic banks, including Woori Bank, Shinhan Bank and KEB Hana Bank, had sold a combined 2 trillion won ($1.72 billion) of the fund on behalf of Lime Asset, according to an ongoin

MarketJan. 7, 2020