New Japanese ambassador pledges to play 'bridge-building' role in addressing Seoul-Tokyo row

Japan's new ambassador to South Korea, Koji Tomita, pledged Tuesday to play a “bridge-building” role to help address a row between Seoul and Tokyo over trade and wartime history. Tomita made the remarks upon arriving here and noted that he is aware of the “very difficult situation” between the two countries, which have long been plagued by historical and territorial feuds. The veteran diplomat, noted for his expertise in diplomacy with the United States, replace

Foreign AffairsDec. 3, 2019

Trump says China deal could wait until after election

US President Donald Trump appeared to downplay the chances for a deal to end the US-China trade war before the end of the year.Speaking in London he is attending a NATO summit, Trump said Tuesday that the only limiting factor to reaching an agreement with China is whether he wants to make a deal. Asked about his previous goal of reaching an agreement by years‘ end, Trump told reporters, ’"I have no deadline, no.""In some ways I like the idea of waiting until after the

World NewsDec. 3, 2019

[Graphic News] Americans prefer mobile devices for news: survey

　Americans rely on their mobile devices for online news far more than desktop or laptop computers, building on a trend that began several years ago, a survey showed.　The Pew Research Center report found 57 percent of US adults often get news from a smartphone or tablet compared with 30 percent from a PC.　The share of Americans who often get news on a mobile device is more than double the 21 percent who did so in 2013, the first time Pew asked this question.　The percentage who often get news on a

World NewsDec. 3, 2019

[Monitor] House prices soar despite tough regulations

Despite the Moon Jae-in government’s eighth and latest set of measures to curb real estate prices in the fall, prices of houses and those for lease have shot up, according to data by the Korea Appraisal Board.The house price index and lease price index for last month surged to the highest level in 14 months since the Sept. 13 measures, which aims to block home-based loans in most popular housing areas and hinder those with at least two homes from buying more. The house price index refers t

EconomyDec. 3, 2019

US cyber commander in Seoul for ‘important, timely’ discussion

Paul Nakasone, US director of the National Security Agency, has arrived in South Korea to discuss the two countries’ alliance and cyber cooperation, government officials here confirmed Tuesday. On Tuesday morning, Nakasone, who is also the commander of the US Cyber Command, met with Chun Jung-soo, commander for Korea’s Cyber Operations Command, to discuss reinforcing cooperation in the area of cybersecurity, a military official said. Earlier in the day, US Ambassador to South Korea H

DefenseDec. 3, 2019

Exhibit sheds light on ancient confederacy of Gaya

The National Museum is holding an exhibition on Gaya, an ancient confederacy of small city-states in the central-southern region of the Korean Peninsula around AD 42-562. Titled “Gaya Spirit -- Iron and Tune,” the exhibit comprises archeological findings of the past three decades, shedding light on the entity, which has often been overlooked in history due to the more powerful three kingdoms -- Baekje, Silla and Goguryeo -- that thrived on the peninsula in Gaya’s last centuries

CultureDec. 3, 2019

[Kim Seong-kon] Korea needs the ‘Factionless’ and ‘Divergent’

“Divergent” is a 2014 dystopian science fiction film based on Veronica Roth’s novel of the same title. This futuristic movie is set in Chicago, where five factions divide society: Abnegation, Amity, Candor, Dauntless and Erudite. Those who do not belong to a faction are Factionless -- outsiders who do not have social status and privileges. In addition, there are the Divergent who exhibit attributes of multiple factions and thus can integrate into any faction. That is, a Diverge

ViewpointsDec. 3, 2019

[Robert J. Fouser] Thinking about language and respect in Italy

A two-week visit to Italy recently revealed much about the state of language in the early 21st century. Apart from sightseeing, I was interested in seeing how much Italian I could learn casually as I traveled.The biggest impression about language on the trip was the spread of English. On a visit to Italy nearly 30 years ago, I remember meeting many people who spoke no or little English, even in major tourist cities such as Florence or Venice. Traveling in Italy meant meeting the language barrier

ViewpointsDec. 3, 2019

Scientists restore indigenous dog breed

A cloned dog of a native breed close to extinction, the Sapsaree, gave birth to puppies last year, and one of them became pregnant recently. According to professor Kim Min-kyu of Chungnam National University -- whose team conducted the genetic experiment -- on Tuesday, the cloned Sapsaree gave birth to seven puppies through artificial insemination last December. Two of the seven pups were short-haired.The cloned dog had its genes reproduced from a male short-haired badugi (meaning “spotted

TechnologyDec. 3, 2019

Finance Ministry’s slow budget execution casts doubt on growth outlook

Skepticism is growing about the prospects of South Korea meeting its minimum target growth rate of 2 percent this year, as fiscal spending by the state budget headquarters is proceeding much more slowly than expected. According to data released by Rep. Park Myung-jae of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party, who sits on the parliamentary Strategy and Finance Committee, the Ministry of Economy and Finance had spent 12.83 trillion won ($10.8 billion) as of the end of October -- 59.9 percent of i

EconomyDec. 3, 2019

Dictator’s assassination, volcanic eruptions at Paektusan coming to big screens soon

While South Korea’s box office is dominated by Disney’s “Frozen 2” at the moment, the competition is expected to get fierce later this month and early next month, when a number of local tent-pole films hit the theater.The producers of “The Man Standing Next” confirmed Tuesday that the film -- inspired by the true story of the assassination of a former Korean president -- will open next month.Starring Lee Byung-hun, Lee Sung-min and Kwak Do-won, the film is bas

FilmDec. 3, 2019

[Herald interview] Women’s colleges relevant in world where men enjoy privileges

What is the relevance of a women’s college today? “The world is still a place where males have tremendous privileges. Smith is an intervention,” said Kathleen McCartney, president of Smith College, a private women’s liberal arts college in Massachusetts, in an interview with The Korea Herald in Seoul on Nov. 22.“What I hear from alumnae is that they found their voice at Smith,” said McCartney, who was in Seoul as part of an Asian tour, meeting with alumnae and

PeopleDec. 3, 2019

North Korea warns US year-end deadline is approaching

North Korea’s Foreign Ministry once again pressed the US for a decision on their denuclearization talks on Tuesday, ahead of the year-end deadline given by the regime. In a statement issued by Ri Thae-song, North Korea’s vice minister of foreign affairs in charge of US affairs, Pyongyang criticized the US for using their denuclearization negotiations to influence domestic politics.“The US is keen on earning time needed for it, talking about the ‘sustained and substantial

North KoreaDec. 3, 2019

GS Group chairman retires, passes baton to younger brother

GS Group said Tuesday that Huh Tae-soo, vice chairman of its TV shopping channel subsidiary, will lead the energy-to-retail giant and also be chairman of its board. The leadership succession at South Korea’s eighth-largest conglomerate will be carried out after a shareholders meeting next year.  Huh, who is now with GS Home Shopping, replaces his elder brother Chairman Huh Chang-soo who tendered his resignation, citing the need for a leadership transfer amid the fast-changing business

IndustryDec. 3, 2019

Heads of Posco, SK say CSR new business opportunity

The heads of South Korea’s two major conglomerates, Posco and SK Group, attended a rare joint event Tuesday to promote corporate social responsibility, indicating a possible partnership to generate social value for sustainable growth.The purpose of the event, held at Posco’s head office in Seoul, was to share the steelmaker’s vision of becoming a responsible business entity and to present the CSR projects carried out by affiliates over the past 1 1/2 years. Posco Chairman Choi

IndustryDec. 3, 2019

LG vs. Samsung TV spat spreads worldwide

LG Electronics seems to be taking the spat with Samsung Electronics over picture quality of 8K TVs to the global level by mobilizing its overseas offices, according to industry sources Tuesday. The company’s US branch recently uploaded a video commercial on its YouTube channel that once again explains why organic light-emitting diode TV technology is superior to its crosstown rival’s quantum dot light-emitting diode TVs. The same version was aired in South Korea in September. The adv

TechnologyDec. 3, 2019

Ministry urges dialogue as Japan reneges on pledge to honor forced labor victims

South Korea’s Foreign Ministry called for dialogue with Japan on Tuesday after the latter reneged on its pledge to acknowledge Korean victims of forced labor at its UNESCO World Heritage sites. On Monday, the UN cultural agency’s World Heritage Center posted on its website Japan’s second report on the implementation of follow-up measures regarding the inscription of the sites of Japan’s Meiji Industrial Revolution. In the report, Japan failed to state progress on the acti

Foreign AffairsDec. 3, 2019

S. Korea, Cambodia sign double taxation avoidance pact

South Korea and Cambodia have signed a double taxation avoidance pact, in a move to boost bilateral economic cooperation, Seoul's finance ministry said Tuesday.  The pact was signed last week in Busan, South Korea at bilateral talks between South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and her Cambodian counterpart, Prak Sokhonn, the Ministry of Economy and Finance said in a statement.   The pact is expected to help ease tax burdens for South Korean firms doing businesses in Cambod

EconomyDec. 3, 2019

Foreigners scoop up Kakao on improving earnings, biz diversification

Foreign investors' love for Kakao Corp. seems to be showing no signs of a letup, even during their weekslong sell-off spree of local stocks, on expectations that the operator of the country's most popular messenger KakaoTalk may get a further boost from its lucrative platform, content and fintech-related businesses, main bourse data showed Tuesday.From July 1 to Dec. 2, foreigners net purchased Kakao stocks worth 747 billion won ($629 million), second most behind Samsung Electro-Mechanics Co.'s

IndustryDec. 3, 2019