[Newsmaker] S. Korea deports 2 N. Koreans accused of killing 16 fellow crew members

South Korea deported two North Koreans back to the communist nation after learning that they killed 16 fellow crew members on their fishing boat and fled to the South, the unification ministry said Thursday.The two in their 20s were sent back to the North at around 3:10 p.m. through the truce village of Panmunjom, five days after they were captured near the Northern Limit Line sea border in the East Sea on Saturday, according to the ministry.It marks the South's first deportation of North Korean

North KoreaNov. 7, 2019

Millennials dominate Blue House petition board

Millennials are the most active participants on Cheong Wa Dae’s online petition site.Figures released by Cheong Wa Dae on Wednesday showed 689,273 petitions were submitted to its webpage in the first two years of Moon Jae-in’s presidency. This translates to 851 petitions filed per day. Average daily visitor count was 245,586.According to the data, collected between Aug. 18, 2017 and Oct. 20, 2019, the younger generation had a petition engagement rate far exceeding that of their older

Social AffairsNov. 7, 2019

Samsung Display hosts OLED forum in Taiwan

Samsung Display hosted a forum on organic light-emitting diode technology for IT applications in Taiwan on Thursday as part of efforts to expand the market for OLED laptops. Around 350 officials from top-notch laptop makers, such as HP, Dell, Lenovo and Asus, attended the Samsung OLED Forum 2019 in Taipei, the company said. Taiwan is home to some of the world’s largest laptop manufacturers like Lenovo and Asus.  Samsung presented its midsized OLED display technology to clients and pro

TechnologyNov. 7, 2019

[Photo News] Bird flu quarantine operations

BIRD FLU QUARANTINE OPERATIONSOfficials conduct quarantine operations against the H5 avian influenza virus in the region surrounding Geumho River in Gyeongsan City, North Gyeongsang Province, on Thursday. (Yonhap)　

Social AffairsNov. 7, 2019

LG Chem opens Korea’s biggest petrochemical tech center in Osan

LG Chem announced Thursday it has opened a technical service and development center in Osan, Gyeonggi Province, marking the country’s largest petrochemical technology center. The chemical affiliate of LG Group invested 110 billion won ($94.8 million) in establishing the center, it said. The center will be used for developing technical solutions and offering other forms of support for the company’s contractors and clients.  The Pilot building of the center is equipped with produc

TechnologyNov. 7, 2019

Obscene animations featuring characters in school uniform constitute child porn: top court

The Supreme Court on Thursday overturned an appellate court’s decision that pornographic animations showing characters in school uniforms could not be considered child porn and ordered a retrial of the case.Following a similar decision made in a separate case in May, this is the second decision by the top court that recognizes explicit animations featuring characters that appear to be underage as child porn. A 45-year-old operator of a file-sharing website, identified only by his surname L

Social AffairsNov. 7, 2019

[Weekender] Kensington resort opens new European-themed branch in Seorak

Kensington Hotel & Resort, which opened its 23rd branch up in the mountains of Seoraksan last week, has mostly adopted a strategy of acquiring existing brands and remodeling them instead of building from scratch. This has both pros and cons, but it does result in diversity in terms of the look and features of each hotel and resort under its umbrella.Kensington Resort Seorak Valley, the newest edition to the brand, shoots for a relaxing getaway in nature. The officials say the buildings are m

TravelNov. 7, 2019

Shinhan Card announces 3-year partnership with Amazon

South Korea’s Shinhan Card said Thursday it has signed a three-year partnership agreement with US-based online retail giant Amazon, as it seeks to aggressively expand its list of global partners. According to the card issuer, an array of benefits will be provided for Shinhan Card users who use e-commerce and other services by Amazon. Both firms will first jointly launch a promotion on Nov. 15 for its customers seeking overseas direct purchases during the fast-approaching Black Friday sales

MarketNov. 7, 2019

Upbit operator Dunamu launches OTC trading app U-Stockplus

Dunamu, operator of global cryptocurrency exchange Upbit, said it has launched a comprehensive over-the-counter trading platform on Thursday that will allow users to both sell and purchase unlisted stocks.The platform dubbed U-Stockplus, released in the form of an app, is available for download on Google Play. It will be available as an iOS app in mid-November.  The fintech firm joined hands with local brokerage Samsung Securities and big data analytics company Deep Search to resolve the is

MarketNov. 7, 2019

S. Korean coach Park Hang-seo signs extension with Vietnamese football

South Korean coach Park Hang-seo has signed a lucrative extension with the Vietnamese men's national football team.Park signed his new contract at a press conference with the Vietnam Football Federation here on Thursday. He'll continue to coach both the men's senior and under-23 national teams. The new contract will have two guaranteed years with an option for a third year.Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Park has been making $240,000 per year on his current deal, which was to exp

SoccerNov. 7, 2019

BTS becomes 1st K-pop act to spend 1 year on Billboard 200

International K-pop sensation BTS has become the first act from South Korea to spend a year on the Billboard 200, setting a record in a career already full of many.The group's "Love Yourself: Answer" reentered Billboard's main albums chart at No. 165 on Monday.According to Billboard, the album has now spent 52, non-consecutive weeks on the chart, making it the first K-pop album to be on the Billboard 200 for a full year.Citing Nielsen Music, Billboard said the album has also sold 1.1 m

PerformanceNov. 7, 2019

Man sets fire to relatives in Jincheon, killing one, hurting 11

A suspected arson attack during a traditional ancestral rite held Thursday in Jincheon, North Chungcheong Province, has left one person dead and 11 others injured.According to the local police, some 20 family members were performing a memorial rite in the mountains when the fire broke out. At around 10:40 a.m., a 80-year-old man from the group sprayed inflammable liquid onto several of his relatives as they were bowing low on ground and set them ablaze.One person was killed in the attack, while

Social AffairsNov. 7, 2019

Korean pharmas eye overseas expansion through CPhI

FRANKFURT, Germany -- Korean pharmaceuticals’ participation in CPhI Worldwide continues to increase as the companies turn eyes to overseas trade in the face of domestic market limits. At the Korea Pavilion for CPhI Worldwide 2019, created in joint effort by the Korea Pharmaceutical Traders Association and Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency, 35 firms opened booths to exhibit their products and hold business meetings with global clients.The CPhI Worldwide 2019 was held from Tuesday thro

IndustryNov. 7, 2019

Incheon airport signs MOU for route expansion in US

South Korea's main airport operator said Thursday it has signed an initial agreement with the Portland airport as it strives to attract new routes from North American carriers.In an event held at a hotel in Incheon on Wednesday, Incheon International Airport Corp. signed a memorandum of understanding with Portland International Airport in the US state of Oregon to conduct joint marketing activities to lure new airline customers and their routes in the United States and Canada, IIAC said in a sta

IndustryNov. 7, 2019

UN First Committee adopts resolution submitted by Seoul

The First Committee of the United Nations General Assembly adopted on Wednesday a resolution submitted by South Korea to encourage youth participation in disarmament and nonproliferation efforts.It is the first resolution Seoul has proposed as the single “main sponsor” to the First Committee, which deals with disarmament and international security matters, since it joined the UN in 1991. Eighty-four countries including South Korea co-sponsored the resolution on “youth, disarmam

Foreign AffairsNov. 7, 2019

Let it go? Disney thaws 'Frozen' for blockbuster sequel

LOS ANGELES (AFP) -- Six years ago, "Frozen" shattered box office records, melted the hearts of youngsters and spawned a franchise so popular Disney was never likely to let it go.And so Queen Elsa and Princess Anna return this month in "Frozen II" -- a sequel its creators promise will be "even bigger and more epic," with its world premiere taking place in Los Angeles Thursday night.Inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's "The Snow Queen," the original follow

FilmNov. 7, 2019

KT, Hyundai Heavy join hands for 5G-based smart factory

Major telecom operator KT Corp. and leading shipbuilding conglomerate Hyundai Heavy Industries Group said Thursday they will step up collaboration to develop advanced smart factory solutions based on the 5G network to improve efficiency and safety. In May, the two companies signed a memorandum of understanding to join forces for a 5G-based smart factory. They have been working on projects to combine KT's 5G network, artificial intelligence and big data technologies with Hyundai Heavy Industries'

IndustryNov. 7, 2019

Twitter offering 'topics,' from sports teams to K-pop

SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) -- Twitter said Wednesday it is rolling out a feature that lets users follow topics the way they do people, starting with sports and K-pop, as part of its efforts to bring in and keep more users on the service.The new "Topics" option was expected to be available to Twitter users on mobile devices powered by Android or Apple software or through web browsers by November 13."We are starting with topics that have the most volume on Twitter for now -- sports, K-pop

World NewsNov. 7, 2019

Public hearings in Trump impeachment probe start next week

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- The first open impeachment hearings into US President Donald Trump will begin next week, the congressman leading the probe said Wednesday, as the investigation heads into a highly anticipated public phase.William Taylor, Washington's top diplomat to Ukraine, and deputy assistant secretary of state George Kent are scheduled to testify next Wednesday.People will be able to see "the degree to which the president enlisted whole departments of government in the illicit aim of

World NewsNov. 7, 2019

North Korea slams planned US military drills with South

North Korea on Wednesday slammed Washington for plans to conduct a joint military exercise with Seoul next month, as negotiations over Pyongyang's nuclear arsenal remain deadlocked.The allies cancelled the combined air exercise known as Vigilant Ace along with several other joint drills last year amid a rapid diplomatic thaw with the North, which considers them a rehearsal for invasion.But Pentagon spokesman David Eastburn said this week that the US had "no plans to skip upcoming combined e

North KoreaNov. 7, 2019