Korean brokerages see record-high H1 net profit

The combined net profit of South Korea’s major brokerages for the first half of the year inched up 5.7 percent on-year, data released by the Financial Supervisory Service showed Tuesday, marking a new record high. According to the financial watchdog, the combined net profit of 56 brokerages for the January-June period came to 2.8 trillion won ($2.35 billion), slightly up from the corresponding figure of 2.7 trillion won from the same period last year, which was also then a record high. The

MarketSept. 10, 2019

Samsung BioLogics stocks buoyed by top court decision

In the hours following the South Korean Supreme Court’s decision to reject an appeal by the Financial Service Commission on imposing disciplinary actions on Samsung BioLogics, the biopharma firm’s stocks rallied on Tuesday.The biopharma arm of Samsung Group closed 1.25 percent higher from the previous trading session at 283,500 won ($237.58). 　 The Securities & Futures Commission, a legal watchdog under the FSC, filed an appeal at the Supreme Court in May, after the lower co

MarketSept. 10, 2019

KDB-Eximbank merger needed for better policy financing: KDB chief

Lee Dong-gull, chairman of the state-run Korea Development Bank, suggested Tuesday that the government should consider merging the country’s two policy finance institutions -- KDB and the Export-Import Bank of Korea -- for state budget efficiency.“It is about time that we reshuffled the government’s policy finance functions so as to keep in step with the fast-changing market trends,” Lee said in a press briefing to mark two years in office in his three-year tenure.“

MarketSept. 10, 2019

South Korea forms consultative group to back global M&As

South Korean business associations have formed a consultative group to support local companies seeking to secure original technologies related to parts, materials and equipment through acquisitions and investments, according to a business representative on Tuesday. The consultative group will work together to back Korean companies that seek to acquire foreign companies or invest in overseas facilities in order to improve competitiveness. This is in line with the government’s efforts to dou

IndustrySept. 10, 2019

Top diplomats of South Korea, Kazakhstan to hold talks in Seoul next week

The top diplomats of South Korea and Kazakhstan will hold talks in Seoul next week to discuss joint efforts to deepen bilateral cooperation, Seoul's foreign ministry said Tuesday. Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and her Kazakh counterpart, Beibut Atamkulov, will meet on Monday to explore ways to enhance cooperation in a "forward-looking" manner, Kim In-chul, the ministry's spokesman, told a regular press briefing.The two countries have been seeking to strengthen their friendly ties as

Foreign AffairsSept. 10, 2019

KITA offers test bed for startups in Coex

The Korea International Trade Association said Tuesday it will offer selected local startups a test bed to showcase their innovative technologies and services in hopes of vitalizing the ecosystem.According to KITA, Coex Startup Testbed provides opportunities for budding startups to test ideas and technologies that could be implemented in the service industry at Coex.After several stages of expert reviews, startups that make it to the final roster for the test bed will be given the chance to coll

IndustrySept. 10, 2019

Four Netflix films invited to Busan Int'l Film Festival

Four Netflix original movies have been invited to this year's Busan International Film Festival in an apparent move to keep up with rapidly changing trends in the industry.Last week, the festival announced this year's lineup of 303 films from 85 countries. The list included four Netflix films -- "The King" by David Michod, "The Two Popes" by Fernando Meirelles, "Marriage Story" by Noah Baumbach and "I Lost My Body" by Jeremy Clapin.The 24th edition of BIFF

FilmSept. 10, 2019

Police seek help from Interpol to track down man who threatened Moon

Police said they had suspended indictment procedures for a man suspected of issuing an online threat to assassinate President Moon Jae-in. The decision was made owing to the man’s foreign citizenship, and police have enlisted the help of international authorities in tracking him down. Seoul Gangbuk Police Station said Monday that the man, who allegedly posted the threat last month, turned out to be a foreign national living overseas. Police did not release additional information about the

Social AffairsSept. 10, 2019

Govt. to open Moon's presidential library in 2022

South Korea has decided to build a separate library for President Moon Jae-in by 2022, when his tenure ends, a related ministry announced Tuesday.A national library for the country's retired presidents is located in Sejong, an administrative town some 120 kilometers south of Seoul.But the government plans to construct a separate repository for official papers, records and historical materials produced during Moon's presidency, according to the National Archive of Korea under the wing of the Mini

PoliticsSept. 10, 2019

[Newsmaker] Patients check out of strike-hit National Cancer Center

With a labor union strike continuing at the National Cancer Center, more patients are deciding to leave the state-run hospital.Workers at the hospital went on strike over pay conditions on Sept. 6, marking the first strike at the center since it opened in 2001. “Throughout its 18 years of existence, there have never been wage negotiations at the National Cancer Center,” the NCC branch of the Korean Health and Medical Workers’ Union said. Nurses and nurse aides make up the

Social AffairsSept. 10, 2019

Vice unification minister to make 2-day trip to inter-Korean liaison office

Vice Unification Minister Suh Ho will make a two-day trip to an inter-Korean liaison office Tuesday on the occasion of the first anniversary of the opening of the office aimed at fostering cross-border exchanges, a ministry official said.Suh will leave for the office in the North's border town of Kaesong later on Tuesday with a plan to stay there until Wednesday, according to the official. It is rare for a vice unification minister, who also serves as a co-head of the office, to spend a night th

North KoreaSept. 10, 2019

Cabinet approves bill to support job seekers

The Cabinet on Tuesday passed a bill on government support for job seekers in the low-income bracket who do not have employment insurance. Under the new program, the government will provide 500,000 won ($420) per month for up to six months to job seekers between 34 and 64 years old from households that earn less than 60 percent of the median income and have less than 600 million won in assets. For those between 18 and 34 years old, the condition is less than 120 percent of the median income

Social AffairsSept. 10, 2019

Sexual assaults against children up 17.9%: report

The number of sexual crimes committed against children jumped 17.9 percent in 2018 compared with two years earlier, police data showed Tuesday, highlighting the need to strengthen policies to protect children. Sexual assault cases in which children under the age of 13 were victims totaled 1,277 cases last year, compared with 1,083 cases in 2016, according to the data police provided to independent lawmaker Jeong In-hwa.By category, rape and sexual abuse accounted for 1,081 cases, up by 179 cases

Social AffairsSept. 10, 2019

[News Focus] Korea ranked 28th among 36 OECD members in employment

SEJONG -- The government is claiming that the nation’s index on employment has improved, compared to past months.But the situation is still bleak when it comes to the comparison with the 36 members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, which measures employment as a proportion of the working age population -- those aged between 15 and 64. In the latest data held by the OECD, South Korea ranked 28th out of the 36 OECD countries in terms of this employment rate,

Social AffairsSept. 10, 2019

N. Korea says willing to hold talks with US in September

Nuclear-armed North Korea said Monday it is willing to resume talks later this month with the United States, after a standstill in the denuclearisation process since the collapse of a February summit between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un.The pair agreed to restart working-level dialogue during an impromptu meeting at the Demilitarised Zone dividing North and South Korea in June, but those talks have yet to begin."We are willing to sit face-to-face with the US around late September at a time

North KoreaSept. 10, 2019

All 4 Korean crew members rescued from capsized vessel off US coast

All four Korean crew members trapped inside a capsized vessel off the US east coast have been rescued, the US Coast Guard said.News of Monday's rescue came more than 30 hours after the Golden Ray cargo vessel flipped onto its side as it left the Port of Brunswick, Georgia, on Sunday.Three were rescued first in "relatively good" condition and taken to a hospital for emergency medical care, Capt. John Reed of the Coast Guard said at a press briefing near the site of the incident.The four

Social AffairsSept. 10, 2019

NSC voices 'strong concern' about N. Korea's projectile launch

South Korea's National Security Council expressed "strong concern" Tuesday about North Korea's latest launch of projectiles.The NSC standing committee convened an emergency videoconferencing session, presided over by Chung Eui-yong, chief of the presidential national security office.Its members "expressed strong concern that North Korea is continuing the launch of short-range projectiles since May," Cheong Wa Dae said. They also reviewed the overall security conditions on the

DefenseSept. 10, 2019

US is aware of reports of NK projectile launch: official

The United States is aware of reports of North Korea's latest projectile launches and is monitoring the situation with its allies in the region, a senior US government official said Monday. Hours earlier, North Korea twice fired unidentified projectiles into the East Sea, according to South Korea's military.The launches came shortly after the regime offered to resume denuclearization talks with the US in late September."We are aware of reports of projectiles launched from North Korea. We ar

North KoreaSept. 10, 2019

N. Korea fires short-range projectiles toward East Sea: JCS

North Korea fired two short-range projectiles from a western region toward the East Sea on Tuesday, South Korea's military said, just hours after the communist nation offered to resume nuclear talks with the United States.The projectiles were fired at 6:53 a.m. and 7:12 a.m. from areas in the city of Kaechon, South Pyongan Province, about 80 kilometers north of the capital, Pyongyang, in a northeastern direction, the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.Both flew around 330 km across the peninsula,

North KoreaSept. 10, 2019

Posco workers reach agreement on wage deal

Posco, South Korea's largest steelmaker, said Monday it reached a deal with its labor union on a wage and collective bargaining agreement that includes a 2 percent raise in base pay. The union put the deal to a vote earlier in the day, with 86.1 percent, or 5,449 workers, choosing to accept it, the company said.Of 6,485 unionized workers, 6,330 took part in the vote and 881 people opposed the deal, it said.Posco and the union had tentatively reached an agreement late last month in negotiations i

IndustrySept. 9, 2019