NK vice sports minister cancels plan to visit Japan: report

North Korea's vice sports minister has canceled his plan to visit Japan this week to attend a 2020 Tokyo Olympics-related meeting, a Japanese news outlet reported Saturday.North Korean vice minister Won Kil-u and two officials had planned to visit Tokyo from Tuesday to Thursday, but withdrew their plan, Kyodo News reported, citing multiple government sources. The North Koreans originally planned to take part in a meeting of countries that will participate in the Tokyo Olympics. The reason f

North KoreaAug. 17, 2019

S. Korea voices willingness to talk with Japan over its 'whitelist' move

South Korea has notified Japan in advance of its plan to remove Tokyo from its list of trusted trading partners and is willing to talk with Japan further if needed, the trade minister said Saturday.South Korea decided on Monday to remove Japan from its "whitelist" of countries that receive preferential trade status amid a bilateral trade row sparked by Tokyo's July export curbs against Seoul and its subsequent removal of the South from a list of trusted buyers. "The governmen

EconomyAug. 17, 2019

US cites close ties with S. Korea, Japan amid reports Pompeo sided with Tokyo

The United States is committed to maintaining close relationships with both South Korea and Japan, the State Department said Friday amid reports that Washington's top diplomat expressed his support for Tokyo's view on the issue of wartime forced labor.Japanese media have reported that US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo recently agreed with Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono's assertion that all matters of compensation related to Tokyo's past use of forced labor were settled under a 1965 deal nor

Foreign AffairsAug. 17, 2019

Seoul stocks likely to remain subdued next week on global economic woes

South Korean shares are likely to remain subdued next week amid lingering concerns over a global economic slowdown prompted by the US-China trade row, analysts said Saturday.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index closed at 1927.17 points on Friday, up 0.34 percent from a week ago. The index suffered a 3 percent decline last week. Analysts said the market direction for next week will largely depend on developments in the US-China trade spat, although the latest moves from the world'

MarketAug. 17, 2019

Police raid YG Entertainment over ex-chief Yang's suspected gambling

Police raided the headquarters of YG Entertainment on Saturday over allegations that Yang Hyun-suk, former CEO and chief producer of the influential K-pop label, engaged in habitual gambling.Police have been looking into suspicions that Yang, 49, and Seungri, a former member of the K-pop boy band BIGBANG, gambled while overseas. They were both booked for the allegation earlier this week. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency sent investigators to YG Entertainment in Mapo Ward, western Seoul,

Social AffairsAug. 17, 2019

N. Korea says it tested 'new weapon' under leader Kim's guidance

North Korea said Saturday that it has tested a "new weapon" under the guidance of its leader, Kim Jong-un, in the launch of two projectiles the previous day.Kim "guided the test-fire of (a) new weapon again on Friday morning," the Korean Central News Agency said. "The national defense scientists showed a perfect result in the test-fire, too, and helped cement bigger confidence in this weapon system." "It is our party's goal of defense building to possess i

North KoreaAug. 17, 2019

Foreign ministry voices regret over Kono's remarks on President Moon

South Korea's foreign ministry expressed regret Friday over the top Japanese diplomat's remarks calling for President Moon Jae-in to "exert his leadership" to address a rancorous row over Tokyo's wartime forced labor.    In a meeting with reporters on Thursday, Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono renewed Tokyo's claim that South Korea breached international law by demanding compensation for the victims of forced labor and said that Moon should "rectify" the sit

Foreign AffairsAug. 16, 2019

Special festival recreates major intangible Korean cultural assets in Seoul

A special festival in central Seoul will showcase the essence of some internationally recognized traditional Korean performing arts, the culture ministry said Friday.    The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in collaboration with the Korean Traditional Performing Arts Foundation, will host the festival, whose title translates as "Great Inheritance Meets Today," from Aug. 31 to Sept. 21 on the premises of the National Museum of Korea.     The upc

CultureAug. 16, 2019

Korea to commemorate 10th year of ex-president Kim Dae-jung's death

An official ceremony to commemorate the death of former President Kim Dae-jung 10 years ago will be held in Seoul on Sunday, organizers said.     The Kim Dae Jung Peace Center said on Friday about 2,000 people are expected to participate in the event starting at 10 a.m. at the Seoul National Cemetery.      National Assembly Speaker Moon Hee-sang, who heads the commemoration committee, Prime inister Lee Nak-yon, Presidential Chief of Staff Noh Young-min and the

PoliticsAug. 16, 2019

Becoming a K-pop star for a day with Airbnb

As Korean culture gains popularity around the world, Airbnb has launched a new K-wave Trip section -- a chance for tourists to take part in K-pop or K-beauty activities.The global house-sharing platform held a press event Friday in the Itaewon area of central Seoul, inviting reporters to a class on how to make a vegan bath scrub, registered as a K-beauty trip under Airbnb. “On Airbnb, we have always seen the want for local, authentic experiences. As the K-wave has proved itself to be

TravelAug. 16, 2019

Korean Air shares hit record low after poor Q2 earnings

Stocks of the country’s largest full-service carrier, Korean Air, hit another record low on Friday after the company reported poor second-quarter earnings amid a deteriorating business environment and hefty foreign exchange losses.On Friday, shares of Korean Air fell 0.2 percent to close at 22,850 won ($18.87) per share, recording a new 52-week low, while the benchmark Kospi remained relatively steady. According to Korean Air, the airline recorded 3.2 trillion won in sales from April to Ju

IndustryAug. 16, 2019

S. Korea, China, Japan to hold foreign ministers' meeting in Beijing next week

South Korea, China and Japan will hold a trilateral meeting of their foreign ministers in Beijing next week to discuss three-way cooperation and regional and international situations, Seoul's foreign ministry said Friday. Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and her Chinese and Japanese counterparts, Wang Yi and Taro Kono, plan to hold talks from Tuesday to Thursday, but they are still coordinating over whether they would meet bilaterally, the ministry said.The first such gathering since 2016 would c

Foreign AffairsAug. 16, 2019

Seoul stocks down on economic slowdown woes, Korean won advances

South Korean stocks closed lower Friday morning as investors remained worried over a global economic slowdown amid the protracted US-China trade war. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 11.20 points, or 0.58 percent, to 1,927.17. Trading volume was moderate at 413 million shares worth 4.18 trillion won ($3.4 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 644 to 203.The index dropped to as low as 1,911.72 at one point in the morning session

MarketAug. 16, 2019

Serial version of latest BTS doc, 'Bring the Soul,' to hit mobile app

"Bring the Soul: The Movie," the latest documentary film featuring global band BTS, will be released in a new mobile version this month on an application for BTS fans, the band's management agency said Friday.The first of the six episodes of the mobile version, "Bring the Soul: Docu-Series," will hit the Weverse mobile application's BTS category for paid service on Aug. 27, Big Hit Entertainment said. The remaining five episodes will be released every Tuesday one by one till

PerformanceAug. 16, 2019

Justice minister nominee’s 2017 investment agreement sparks new questions

Justice Minister nominee Cho Kuk, ex-senior presidential secretary on civil affairs, faced new controversy on Friday over a 2017 investment agreement signed by his family that exceeds their total wealth. Cho’s wife and his two children had agreed to invest a total of 7.4 billion won ($6.1 million) won in a private equity fund in 2017, two months after Cho was named presidential secretary on civil affairs.The figure exceeds Cho’s family wealth, reported to amount to 5.6 billion won, r

PoliticsAug. 16, 2019

37 injured in expressway pileup involving 5 vehicles

A pileup of five vehicles on a highway in the southeast of South Korea injured 37 people Friday, police said.  The accident occurred on the Namhae Expressway in Changwon, about 400 kilometers southeast of Seoul, at around 11:40 a.m., when an intercity bus failed to slow down in a congested section and rear-ended two sport utility vehicles. Two other buses also ran into the vehicle from behind.Of 62 people in the cars, 37 sustained minor injuries, police said. (Yonhap)

Social AffairsAug. 16, 2019

Shinhan Bank Vietnam opens branch in Da Nang

Shinhan Bank Vietnam, the local subsidiary of South Korea’s major lender, opened four new branches in the Southeast Asian country this week, officials said Friday.It also became the first Korea-based bank there to run a complete nationwide network that covers the central region, with a branch in the popular tourist city of Da Nang. Shinhan Bank CEO Jin Ok-dong attended the opening ceremony on Thursday, along with key officials from the local government and the country’s central bank,

MarketAug. 16, 2019

Seoul to toughen inspections of waste imports from Japan

South Korea will tighten its environmental and safety inspections for recycling waste imported from Japan, the government said Friday, in an apparent attempt to counter Japan’s recent trade restrictions on Korea.The Ministry of Environment said it would conduct radioactive and heavy metals tests on battery, tire and plastic waste imported from Japan into Korea once a month, instead of the current quarterly inspection.Announcing the decision, the ministry cited public concerns about radioac

Foreign AffairsAug. 16, 2019

Cheong Wa Dae holds NSC meeting over NK projectiles

South Korea’s presidential office on Friday convened an emergency National Security Council meeting following North Korea’s latest projectile launches. “An emergency NSC meeting was called, and the North Korea’s short-range projectiles and the overall military security situation on the Korean Peninsula was reviewed,” Cheong Wa Dae said in a statement. The meeting was held at 9 a.m., presided by national security director Chung Eui-yong. Earlier in the day, the

North KoreaAug. 16, 2019

North Korea fires two projectiles into East Sea

North Korea has fired two more projectiles into the East Sea in the early hours of Friday, further raising tensions on the peninsula. According to Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff, North Korea fired two projectiles from Tongchun, a country near the east coast of North Korean part of Gangwon Province. Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said that the military is analyzing the projectiles, and maintaining high level of readiness. South Korean and US militaries have yet to release details o

North KoreaAug. 16, 2019