US says NK test was of short to medium range ballistic missile, fired from sea-based platform

The US Joint Chiefs of Staff said Thursday that North Korea's latest test was of a short to medium range ballistic missile, which was fired from a sea-based platform.JCS spokesman Air Force Col. Patrick Ryder told reporters there was no indication the missile on Wednesday was launched from a submarine, but declined to provide other details.The comments come after North Korea said it successfully tested a new submarine-launched ballistic missile off its east coast, "usher(ing) in a new phase

North KoreaOct. 4, 2019

N. Korea's chief envoy arrives in Sweden for nuke talks with US

North Korea's chief nuclear negotiator arrived in Stockholm Thursday to resume working-level denuclearization negotiations with the United States this weekend.Kim Myong-gil and his delegation arrived at Stockholm Arlanda Airport around 5:40 p.m. on a flight from Beijing. They left the airport shortly after through the VIP hall instead of the main arrivals gate.The US chief negotiator, Stephen Biegun, is also expected to head to the Swedish capital soon. North Korea said earlier that the two side

North KoreaOct. 4, 2019

Trump: US will talk to N. Korea soon

US President Donald Trump said Thursday that the United States will be talking to North Korea soon, indicating denuclearization negotiations will go ahead as planned despite the regime's test-firing of a submarine-launched ballistic missile earlier this week.Trump's remarks come as negotiators from the two countries are expected to meet in Sweden this weekend to resume working-level talks on denuclearizing the regime."We'll see," Trump told reporters at the White House when asked if No

North KoreaOct. 4, 2019

Police block anti-Cho Kuk protesters outside Cheong Wa Dae; 46 arrested

A large-scale rally calling for Justice Minister Cho Kuk’s resignation is expected to last all night.Hundreds of thousands gathered Thursday afternoon in Gwanghwamun Square, central Seoul, to protest the minister over spiraling corruption allegations against his family. The anti-Cho rally kicked off at around 1 p.m., and the protesters marched toward Cheong Wa Dae at around 4 p.m. only to be halted by a police barricade.  The police blocked the way, preventing the protesters from get

Social AffairsOct. 3, 2019

Justice minister's wife grilled over alleged family corruption

Prosecutors on Thursday questioned Justice Minister Cho Kuk's wife for the first time as part of a widening probe into corruption allegations surrounding the family.Cho's wife, a university professor surnamed Chung, is suspected of inappropriately helping the couple's daughter gain admission to medical school, as well as being involved in a dubious private equity fund investment.Chung showed up for the questioning at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office in southern Seoul at around 9 a.m

PoliticsOct. 3, 2019

Debts of public institutions under Trade Ministry rise to W182tr

Public institutions affiliated with the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy have not recovered financially from past failures of overseas resource development projects, data showed Thursday.According to data supplied by Rep. Wi Seong-gon of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, the combined debt of 41 ministry-affiliated public institutions stood at 182 trillion won ($150 billion) last year, up 8 trillion won from the previous year.  “The debt of the public organizations has grown

IndustryOct. 3, 2019

BIFF kicks off in the aftermath of typhoon

Although Typhoon Mitga’s landfall forced organizers to cancel the inaugural ceremony, the 24th Busan International Film Festival kicked off Thursday for 10 days of festivities.Actors Jung Woo-sung and Lee Hanee hosted the opening event of the festival that will feature 303 movies from 85 countries until next Saturday, including the world premiere of 97 feature films and 23 short films. The opening film was the world premiere of “The Horse Thieves. Roads of Time” by Kazakhstan&r

FilmOct. 3, 2019

TikTok hopes to form ties with K-pop

Short-form video sharing app TikTok stresses it can be a powerful tool in promoting the ongoing K-pop trend around the world. On Thursday, TikTok officials took to the podium for at the 2019 Seoul International Music Fair held at Coex in southern Seoul to give a presentation titled “The New Kid on the New Music Block: TikTok.”The Chinese app, launched in 2016, is available in 150 countries in 75 languages, and bills itself as a music discovery app, allowing “TikTokers” (T

PerformanceOct. 3, 2019

[Graphic News] S. Korea’s trade surplus in beauty products hits new high

　South Korea’s trade surplus in beauty products hit an all-time high of 5.47 trillion won ($4.56 billion) last year on the back of strong demand from China and other Asian countries, government data showed.　Outbound shipments of cosmetics stood at 6.89 trillion won last year, up 23.3 percent on-year, while imports grew 6.8 percent to 1.42 trillion won, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. (Yonhap)

BusinessOct. 3, 2019

Subway, railway workers in Seoul, Gyeonggi Province plan strikes starting next week

Subway workers in Seoul and Gyeonggi Province are expected to go on a series of strikes starting Monday, affecting more than 8 million commuters.The four public transport unions affiliated with the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions announced Wednesday that they would start separate strikes beginning next week. Unionized workers of Seoul Subway Line No. 9 will go on a preliminary strike on Monday with the actual strike scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday.The labor union of Seoul Metro, which o

PoliticsOct. 3, 2019

[Herald Interview] ‘What is Korean is what is most global’

In 1965, a group of history majors from Ewha Womans University visited Sosu Seowon in Yeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, a Confucian academy built in the 16th century during the Joseon era (1392-1910). The simple, relatively uneventful field trip ended up kicking off a series of events that saw nine of the “seowon” -- Korean neo-Confucian academies -- being inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List over half a century later.“I was struck by the grace of the wooden buildings

PeopleOct. 3, 2019

Holiday on rails: cruise train Haerang

It is every couch potato's dream come true: You get to travel around the country with a friendly guide at your side, try each region’s delicacies, enjoy a performance once in a while and sleep in a comfy bed -- all while not once having to book for a ride. The catch? It comes with a rather hefty price tag. But if you are up for it, a trip aboard Korail’s Rail Cruise Haerang could be quite an experience.On a recent sunny fall day, I boarded the train at Seoul Station for a trip slated

TravelOct. 3, 2019

[Travel Bits] Festivals, sights across Korea

Everland ‘Blood City’ Halloween festivalEverland theme park is holding the latest edition of its zombie-themed Halloween festival “Blood City” until Nov. 17.Parts of the park feature a horror theme, with around 100 staff dressed as zombies, clowns and monsters. Performances and photo spots are available, including at the recently unveiled Raptor Ranger attraction. Some of the most popular attractions, including T-Express, have a horror theme as well.For more information i

TravelOct. 3, 2019

[Box Office] Movies in theaters this week

Joker(US)Opened Oct.2Drama, mystery & suspense Directed by Todd Phillips A clown-for-hire by day, Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix) aspires to be a stand-up comic at night. But finds the joke always seems to be on him. Caught in a cyclical existence between apathy and cruelty, Arthur makes one bad decision that brings about a chain reaction of escalating events in this gritty character study. Crazy Romance (Korea)Opened Oct.2RomanceDirected by Kim Han-gyeolJae-hoon (Kim Rae-won) is hu

FilmOct. 3, 2019

[Hal Brands] Singapore has some tough advice for US and China

These are fraught times for Asia-Pacific nations caught in the crossfire of the US-China rivalry. I recently wrote about how one longtime US ally, the Philippines, is repositioning itself between Washington and Beijing. But Manila is hardly alone in trying to protect itself as the geopolitical giants clash. Singapore confronts a similar challenge, which was thrown into relief by an interview its Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong gave last week. Lee’s remarks highlight the dilemmas faced by we

ViewpointsOct. 3, 2019

[Daniel Moss] South Korea has a problem other countries can only dream of

South Korea’s economy is in a tough spot. Too bad the monetary policy response has been so tame.The country is flirting with outright deflation, figures Tuesday showed, as consumer prices declined for the first time on record. Exports, which account for about 40 percent of gross domestic product, had slipped for 10 straight months. The Bank of Korea says the country will struggle to meet even lowered growth forecasts.BOK policymakers need to articulate a broad strategy to get inflation bac

ViewpointsOct. 3, 2019

Shareholders make profit from poultry stocks amid swine fever outbreak

Even as the African swine fever outbreak is spreading in South Korea, many investors are offloading their stocks to make profits from businesses related to meat processing and quarantine services, data showed Thursday.Though such profit-taking sales are legal, the stock price plunge and consequent impact on smaller individual investors has invoked criticism.According to the electronic disclosure system operated by the Financial Supervisory Service, poultry processor and distributor Maniker&rsquo

MarketOct. 3, 2019

North Korea’s nuclear negotiators head to Sweden after successful SLBM launch

North Korea said Thursday its testing of a new submarine-launched ballistic missile was successful -- touting it as a significant milestone in strengthening its self-defense -- even as its nuclear negotiating team headed to Sweden for working-level talks with the US. Its state news agency KCNA said that the Pukguksong-3 missile was test-fired at a high angle in the waters off Wonsan, a military base used for previous missile launches, and was designed to contain external threats. “The succ

North KoreaOct. 3, 2019

Protesters call for sacking justice minister

Massive demonstrations were held in central Seoul on Thursday demanding the resignation of Cho Kuk, the controversial minister of justice. On the National Foundation Day, groups of protesters took to the Gwanghwamun Square and adjoining crossroads, filling up the 12-lane road from the square to the City Hall Subway Station Exit No. 7 -- about 100 meters in width and 1.4 kilometers in length – by around noon.A separate rally organized by the ultraconservative Our Republican Party saw protes

Social AffairsOct. 3, 2019