Line Man gains traction in Thailand

BANGKOK -- Line Man, an on-demand service platform of Thailand’s most popular messenger app Line, is making inroads in the local market by providing a variety of services, including food delivery, taxi-hailing, parcel and convenience goods, with a large subscriber base, according to a top company executive. Line, a subsidiary of Korean internet search giant Naver, launched its messenger app in Thailand in 2012 and has grown into a leading social media platform with 44 million users out of

IndustryAug. 25, 2019

Kia’s Soul EV picked ‘most competitive compact EV’ by Auto Zeitung

Kia Motors said Sunday its subcompact crossover Soul EV has been picked as the most competitive compact-size electric vehicle by German automotive magazine Auto Zeitung, beating rivals including BMW’s i3s and Nissan’s Leaf e+.  Soul EV received the highest marks in most evaluation categories including body, driving comfort, powertrain and environment/cost, except in driving dynamics, winning 2,989 out of 5,000 points. BMW’s i3s and Nissan’s Leaf e+ received 2,894 poi

MobilityAug. 25, 2019

[Newsmaker] S. Korea launches Dokdo defense drill amid tension with Japan

The South Korean armed forces launched a two-day military exercise to defend the easternmost islets of Dokdo on Sunday amid growing tensions over trade and their shared history, in a show of its staunch defense stance against Japan's repeated claims to sovereignty over the cluster of rocks in the East Sea.The Navy announced that the drill involves Navy, Air Force and Army forces, such as naval warships and aircraft, as well as Army and Marine Corp troops."Indeed, it's an exercise to guard o

DefenseAug. 25, 2019

N. Korea says it tested new super-large multiple rocket launcher

North Korea said Sunday that it has successfully tested a 'new' super-large multiple rocket launch system the previous day under the guidance of leader Kim Jong-un. Kim "guided the test-fire of newly developed super-large multiple rocket launcher on Saturday," the Korean Central News Agency said. "The test-fire proved that all the tactical and technological specifications of the system correctly reached the preset indexes."The KCNA added that Kim underscored the need to push

North KoreaAug. 25, 2019

S. Korea falls to Japan in semifinals at Asian women's volleyball tourney

Host South Korea lost to Japan in the semifinals of the Asian Women's Volleyball Championship on Saturday, coming up short in a bid to claim its first continental title on home court.Japan rallied after dropping the first set for a 3-1 (22-25, 25-23, 26-24, 28-26) victory at Jamsil Arena in Seoul and moved on to Sunday's final. It will face the winner of the other semifinal clash between Thailand and China, scheduled for later Saturday.The loser of that match will take on South Korea in the thir

More SportsAug. 24, 2019

Cheong Wa Dae says it never used Japan's intel in analyzing NK missiles under Moon

South Korea never used Japan's intelligence in analyzing North Korea's missile launches under the current Moon Jae-in administration, a senior official at the presidential office said Saturday, amid concerns over possible limits in countering the North's threats with the termination of an intel-sharing deal between Seoul and Tokyo. The official made the remark after North Korea fired two projectiles believed to be short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea earlier in the day, marking the s

DefenseAug. 24, 2019

[Newsmaker] Police launch probe as video shows man allegedly beating Japanese woman on street

Police have launched a probe after a video and photos of a South Korean man allegedly threatening and beating a Japanese woman went viral on social media, they said Saturday."We have found the victim and the suspect in the alleged assault case, which occurred the previous day and contacted them," an official at Seoul Mapo Police Station said. "We will call them in later in the day and investigate the details of the incident."  In the video that went viral online, the man

Social AffairsAug. 24, 2019

Dodgers' Ryu Hyun-jin roughed up by Yankees, loses 2nd straight game

Los Angeles Dodgers' Ryu Hyun-jin seems to be losing his grip on the Cy Young Award.The South Korean left-hander got rocked by the New York Yankees to the tune of three homers and seven earned runs in 4 1/3 innings at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles on Friday (local time). The Dodgers lost 10-2 as Ryu suffered his second straight loss and dropped to 12-4 for the season. He hadn't lost consecutive starts since Sept. 5 and 11 last year.Ryu entered the game with a major league-best 1.64 ERA, but it h

BaseballAug. 24, 2019

Culture, tourism ministers of S. Korea, China, Japan to meet in Incheon next week

Culture and tourism ministers of South Korea, China and Japan will hold their annual meeting in Incheon, west of Seoul, next week, the South Korean culture ministry said Saturday.Culture Ministers Park Yang-woo of South Korea and Luo Shugang of China, as well as Japan's Masahiko Shibayama and Keiichi Ishii, in charge of the country's culture and tourism ministries, respectively, will gather in Incheon for the three-day event set to kick off Thursday, according to the Ministry of Culture, Sports

CultureAug. 24, 2019

Trump says US has really good relations with N. Korea: report

US President Donald Trump has said his country has a very good relationship with North Korea, foreign media reported, after Pyongyang fired two projectiles believed to be short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea on Saturday."Kim Jong-un has been, you know, pretty straight with me,"Trump told reporters at the White House on Friday (Washington time), according to a video released by the cable channel C-Span."He likes testing missiles, but we never restricted short-range miss

North KoreaAug. 24, 2019

Int'l lawyers to visit Seoul, Pyongyang to probe N.K. restaurant workers' defection

A team of international lawyers will visit South and North Korea in the coming weeks to investigate a high-profile 2016 defection of a dozen North Korean restaurant workers, a Seoul-based lawyers' group said Saturday.Members of two organizations -- the International Association of Democratic Lawyers and the Confederation of Lawyers of Asia and the Pacific -- will arrive in Seoul on Sunday for a six-day stay and travel to Pyongyang next week for another six-day visit, according to the Lawyer

North KoreaAug. 24, 2019

Seoul stocks likely to remain subdued next week on global woes

South Korean stocks are expected to face volatile sessions next week on growing concerns of a global slowdown, analysts said Saturday.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index closed at 1,948.30, up 21.13 points, or 1.1 percent, from 1,927.17 a week earlier."We expect to see a below neutral movement of the local stock market next week when the KOSPI will be put to a test to defend the psychologically important 1,900-point threshold," Hana Investment & Securities analyst Kim Y

MarketAug. 24, 2019

S. Korea mulling further delay of Dokdo defense drills

South Korea is considering determining when to conduct maritime drills on and around its easternmost islets of Dokdo after watching whether Japan will take the South off a list of trusted trading partners as planned next week, an official said Saturday.The drills, involving the Navy, the Marine Corps and the Coast Guard, have been held twice a year, usually in June and December, to better fend off possible foreign infiltrations to the rocky outcroppings and the surrounding waters.But this year's

DefenseAug. 24, 2019

NSC members express 'strong concern' about N. Korea's launch of projectiles

South Korea's top security officials voiced "strong concern" Saturday over North Korea's continued launch of projectiles despite the end of its combined military training with the United States.They urged the North to halt such acts of escalating military tensions on the Korean Peninsula during an emergency session of the National Security Council standing committee, Cheong Wa Dae said.Its members began the meeting at 8:30 a.m., presided over by Chung Eui-yong, chief of the presidentia

DefenseAug. 24, 2019

N. Korea fires unidentified projectiles into East Sea: JCS

North Korea fired two projectiles presumed to be short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea on Saturday, South Korea's military said, ratcheting up tensions even after the end of a joint military exercise between the South and the United States.The projectiles were fired at 6:45 a.m. and 7:02 a.m. from the eastern town of Sondok in South Hamgyong Province into the East Sea, and both flew around 380 kilometers at a maximum altitude of 97 km and a top speed of around Mach 6.5, according to t

DefenseAug. 24, 2019

Scrapping GSOMIA raises questions about intel-sharing capability, alliance with US

The South Korean government is attempting to ease concerns that the country’s decision to abandon a military intelligence-sharing pact with Japan will weaken its alliance with the US and cooperation in fending off North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats. Following Cheong Wa Dae’s announcement Thursday that the General Security of Military Information Agreement with Japan would be scrapped, the presidential office and related ministries here on Friday stressed that the allianc

DefenseAug. 23, 2019

Moody's cuts S. Korea's 2019 growth outlook to 2%

International ratings agency Moody's on Friday slashed its forecast for South Korea's 2019 economic growth to 2 percent from the previous 2.1 percent. In a report, Moody's also cut its outlook for South Korea's economic growth for next year to 2.1 percent from 2.2 percent. "The weaker global economy has stunted Asian exports, and the uncertain operating environment has weighed on investment," Moody's said in the report. "In particular, softer capital formation has mirrored the w

EconomyAug. 23, 2019

Lotte Chemical said to submit initial bid for Japan's Hitachi Chemical

Lotte Chemical, a major South Korean chemical company, is said to have submitted an initial bid to buy Hitachi Chemical Co., the chemical unit of Japan's Hitachi. An official at Lotte Chemical said the company reviewed the feasibility of the bid but declined to confirm whether it submitted the bid for Hitachi Chemical.Hitachi has planned to sell the chemical unit since early this year, and the initial bids for Hitachi Chemical closed on Aug. 9.Meanwhile, Lotte Chemical has said it will merge wit

IndustryAug. 23, 2019

France to host 47th WorldSkills Competition

KAZAN, Russia -- Lyon, France, has been selected to host the 47th WorldSkills Competition in 2023, beating Japan’s Aichi with more than double the support from member countries, organizers said Friday.In a vote held during the 2019 General Assembly in Kazan, Russia on Wednesday, Lyon gained 44 votes and Aichi, a village in Japan’s Nagano prefecture, 20 votes.  Lyon, the third-largest city in France, hosted the 33rd WorldSkills Competition in 1996.“Thank you for trusting us

Social AffairsAug. 23, 2019

S. Korea beats Thailand at continental volleyball tournament, avenges Asian Games loss

South Korea got the better of Thailand at the continental women's volleyball tournament on Friday, avenging a loss from last year's Asian Games.World No. 9 South Korea came away with a hard-fought victory over the 14th-ranked Thailand by the score of 3-1 (25-20, 23-25, 25-17, 25-21). South Korea had fallen to Thailand in the semifinals of the Asian Games in Jakarta last August, getting denied in its bid for a second straight gold medal.Nine of 14 Thai players faced South Korea at the Asian Games

More SportsAug. 23, 2019