Debt of households, self-employed estimated to exceed W2,000tr

Debt incurred by households and self-employed businesses in South Korea is estimated to surpass 2,000 trillion won ($1,713 billion) as of September last year, according to central bank data on Sunday. Outstanding household loans came to 1,481 trillion won at the end of last September, up 13.6 trillion won from three months earlier, the Bank of Korea data showed. Debt incurred by self-employed businesses reached 670 trillion won at the end of last September, up 16.3 trillion won from three months

EconomyJan. 5, 2020

Korean snacks enjoy growing popularity overseas

South Korean snacks are increasingly gaining huge popularity in the global market as more consumers are addicted to new flavors and opted to pick up more Korean products in line with the Korean Wave, industry officials said Sunday.Exports of local snack products were tallied at $43.14 million in 2018, up from $41.6 million tallied a year earlier, according to data compiled by the Korea Agricultural Trade Information. Last year's tally was not available at the moment, but the figure is surely to

IndustryJan. 5, 2020

UN panel regrets S. Korea having no timeframe for ratifying key ILO conventions

A United Nations committee on social rights has pointed out that South Korea has no specific timeframe in ratifying key international labor conventions, government officials said Sunday.The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights made the assessment in its response to the government's report on its efforts to implement the panel's April 2017 recommendations on labor issues, including the approval of core International Labor Organization conventions.The committee assessed South Kor

Social AffairsJan. 5, 2020

Beauty goods exports to Japan up nearly 30% despite trade row

South Korea's exports of beauty products to Japan advanced nearly 30 percent in the first 11 months of last year, data showed Sunday, despite the ongoing bilateral trade row stemming from their shared history.Asia's No. 4 economy shipped $370 million worth of beauty products to Japan in the January-November period of 2019, according to the report released by the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency, which cited the latest data available from IHS Markit.The country's overall exports to Japan,

IndustryJan. 5, 2020

Trump says US targeting 52 sites in Iran, as tension mounts

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- President Donald Trump warned Saturday that the US is targeting 52 sites in Iran and will hit them "very fast and very hard" if the Islamic republic attacks American personnel or assets.In a saber-rattling tweet that defended Friday's US drone strike assassination of a powerful Iranian general in Iraq, Trump said 52 represents the number of Americans held hostage at the US embassy in Tehran for more than a year starting in late 1979.Trump said some of these sites ar

World NewsJan. 5, 2020

Chinese boat seized for alleged illegal fishing

South Korea seized a Chinese fishing boat on charges of illegal fishing in its waters in the Yellow Sea, the Korea Coast Guard said Saturday.The 15-ton fishing boat invaded the Northern Limit Line by 4 kilometers near the South Korean border island of Yeonpyeong. The Coast Guard said it will carry out further investigations on seven Chinese fishermen on board.Another 22 Chinese fishing boats were also evicted from the area.Chinese fishing boats are often caught poaching in South Korean waters, a

Social AffairsJan. 4, 2020

Prosecutors raid Ulsan gov‘t office amid election-meddling scandal

Prosecutors raided the Ulsan government office on Saturday amid rising allegations that the city’s vice mayor colluded with the presidential office to help the president‘s close friend in the 2018 mayoral election.The raid of Ulsan Metropolitan City Hall, some 400 kilometers southeast of the capital city, came amid suspicions that Song Byung-gi, Ulsan’s vice mayor for economic affairs, conspired with several presidential aides to influence the city‘s mayoral poll last yea

Social AffairsJan. 4, 2020

[News Focus] Political parties gear up for April 15 elections

With around 100 days before the April 15 parliamentary elections, South Korean political parties are gearing up with ambitious goals, viewing the polls as a possible vote of confidence for the Moon Jae-in government.With the 100-day mark falling on Monday, rival parties are betting their political survival on the general elections as the outcome could hugely affect the 2022 presidential polls. The National Assembly is elected every four years.Taking office in May 2017, President Moon passed the

PoliticsJan. 4, 2020

Daewoo Shipbuilding targets over $6.8b in deals for 2020

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co., the world‘s second-largest shipbuilder by order backlog, is seeking to secure deals worth more than $6.88 billion this year, an official said Saturday.In 2019, Daewoo Shipbuilding won orders worth $6.88 billion to build 39 vessels, achieving 82 percent of its annual order target of $8.37 billion, according to the company official.On Friday, South Korea’s Hyundai Heavy Industries Group said its three shipbuilding units are seeking to s

IndustryJan. 4, 2020

NK official newspaper calls for self-reliance amid int’l sanctions

North Korea‘s official newspaper said Saturday that the communist state will not maintain an attachment to seeking the lifting of international sanctions currently imposed against Pyongyang and will instead overcome hurdles through a self-reliant approach.The Rodong Sinmun, the official newspaper of the North’s ruling party, reported that having an illusion of establishing peace with enemies will lead to self-destruction, and added the country will not have a lingering attachment to

North KoreaJan. 4, 2020

Queen, Green Day, MIKA to have concerts in Korea this year

World-renowned bands and musicians will visit South Korea this year to hold concerts for longing enthusiasts here.British rock band Queen is the most anticipated foreign artist visiting Korea in 2020.The “Super Concert 25 QUEEN” will take place at Gocheok Sky Dome in western Seoul on Jan. 18-19 as part of the band‘s “The Rhapsody Tour” that kicked off in June last year. It will be the second performance in South Korea by the British band after one during the Super S

PerformanceJan. 4, 2020

S. Korea to abolish military guardhouse system

South Korea is expected to abolish the military guardhouse system this year as part of efforts to better protect the human rights of draftees, officials said Saturday.A revision of the Military Personnel Management Act calls for the abolishment of guardhouses and the establishment of additional educational programs instead to discipline soldiers, according to the defense ministry. The bill, now pending at the National Assembly, will come into effect six months after passage.Under the guardhouse

DefenseJan. 4, 2020

S. Korea, US agree on strengthening strategic cooperation: deputy FM

WASHINGTON -- South Korea and the United States agree on the need to strengthen strategic cooperation as they jointly deal with issues on the Korean Peninsula and in the region, a Seoul official said Friday.Deputy Foreign Minister Kim Gunn was in Washington to meet with his counterpart, US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs David Stilwell, after the former took office last month. He told reporters following the meeting that the two sides held in-depth discussions on

Foreign AffairsJan. 4, 2020

US will look at resuming military drills with S. Korea depending on NK move: Pentagon chief

WASHINGTON -- The United States will consider resuming military exercises with South Korea that have been suspended depending on North Korea‘s next move, the Pentagon chief has said.US Defense Secretary Mark Esper made the comment in an interview with MSNBC Thursday after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un threatened in a New Year’s message to soon showcase a “new strategic weapon.”Experts have said the strategic weapon could be an intercontinental ballistic missile intended

North KoreaJan. 4, 2020

State Department tells US citizens to leave Iraq ‘immediately’

 BAGHDAD(AFP) -- The State Department today told US citizens to leave Iraq “immediately,” after an American strike killed top Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani in Baghdad.“Due to heightened tensions in Iraq and the region, we urge US citizens to depart Iraq immediately,” the State Department tweeted. “Due to Iranian-backed militia attacks at the US Embassy compound, all consular operations are suspended. US citizens should not approach the Embassy.”T

World NewsJan. 3, 2020

S. Korea 'closely watching' safety of some 1,600 S. Koreans in Iraq

South Korea is keeping close tabs on the safety of some 1,600 South Koreans staying in Iraq, where political instability is rising after the death of the top Iranian defense commander, the foreign ministry here said Friday.The Iranian commander, Maj. Gen. Qassim Suleimani, was killed early Friday in a drone strike at Baghdad International Airport upon the authorization of United States President Donald Trump. The Iranian commander was leading the powerful Quds Force of the Islamic Revolutionary

Social AffairsJan. 3, 2020

Kakao Bank to push for IPO in second half of this year

Kakao Bank, South Korea's largest internet-only bank, is pushing for a listing on the country's stock market by the end of this year, a top executive said Friday.Lee Yong-woo, co-CEO at Kakao Bank, gave the time frame for an initial public offering (IPO) during a meeting with reporters at a Seoul hotel. It marked the first time that a top bank executive mentioned a specific time frame.Still, another Kakao Bank official said Lee's comments mean that the bank will make preparations in the second h

MarketJan. 3, 2020

Biopic to look back on late rock legend Shin Hae-chul

Rockstar Shin Hae-chul’s agency has teamed up with a local film company to make a biopic about the late singer. On Thursday, local film production and distribution company Acemaker Movie Works announced the production of a movie in remembrance of singer Shin’s short, dramatic life. For the production, the company will team up with N.E.X.T United, an agency led by Shin’s wife. The agency currently holds the copyrights to Shin’s songs and the work of his band N.E.X.T. 

FilmJan. 3, 2020

Solid-fuel ICBM may be N. Korea’s new strategic weapon: report

The “new strategic weapon” North Korean leader Kim Jong-un mentioned could be an advanced intercontinental ballistic missile, Voice of America reported, citing multiple North Korea experts. “I think we could see something like solid fuel ICBM launch from North Korea. That doesn’t actually mean that they developed it by themselves,” Markus Schiller, who is an expert in mechanical and aerospace engineering, told VOA on Wednesday. Schiller said the North would go the

North KoreaJan. 3, 2020

Airlines to expand number of flights ahead of Seollal

The country’s airlines are expanding their numbers of flights ahead of Seollal and throughout the holiday, industry sources said Friday. Seollal, the Lunar new year, is one of the biggest holidays in Korea. This year’s Seollal falls on Jan. 25, with the holiday running from 24th until 27th.  Korean Air said it would add a total of 26 more domestic flights connecting Gimpo to Jeju, Cheongju to Jeju and Gimpo to Busan, from 23rd to 27th.Asiana Airlines said it will add 12 mor

MobilityJan. 3, 2020