[Today’s K-pop] Ateez will be back on Nov. 15

Ateez will bring out 11th EP “Golden Hour: Part 2” on Nov. 15, said agency KQ Entertainment Friday. It is the second installment for its “Golden Hour” series that began with previous EP, which came out in May and hit Billboard 200 at No. 2 and stayed on it for seven weeks straight, a record for the eight-piece act. The band has set the bar high for the upcoming album, having placed its all four preceding albums among top three on the main albums chart including the second

K-popOct. 25, 2024

[Photo News] Poland reaffirms ties with Hanwha

IndustryOct. 25, 2024

Kia logs record-high operating profit for 3Q

Hyundai Motor Group’s smaller affiliate Kia said Friday that it has posted 2.9 trillion won ($2.1 billion) in operating profit, marking the highest ever for a third quarter, despite mounting challenges in the automotive industry. The carmaker’s profit increased 0.6 percent from the same period last year, while its sales revenue surged 3.8 percent to 26.5 trillion won. The sales volume decreased 1.9 percent to 763,639 units, due to a temporary production hiatus from its two car manufa

MobilityOct. 25, 2024

KMA chief demands money in exchange for dropping defamation suit against member

A dispute has emerged surrounding Lim Hyun-taek, chair of South Korea's largest doctors' association, that he had alleged requested to be paid by a member doctor as a settlement for dropping a defamation lawsuit. Local media outlets here reported that Korean Medical Association chief Lim had recently sought to file a defamation suit against the member, who had criticized him online. The member, who is public relations director of the Seoul Medical Association, sent Lim a written lett

Social AffairsOct. 25, 2024

[From the Scene] How robotics reflect shift in S. Korea's food industry

Upon receiving an affogato order, the three-jointed arm of barista robot Porty readies the portafilter and locks it into the coffee grinder. After extracting a fresh shot from the espresso machine, Porty pours it over a cup of ice cream, prepared by fellow robot, Mixie. When there are no visitors, the duo reportedly spend their time dancing to the cafe's background music. Mixie and Porty are the only servers at Better Than Yours, a fully automated cafe in Seongsu, eastern Seoul. Together,

IndustryOct. 25, 2024

Gangnam real estate scammer sentenced to 20 years after defrauding 100 investors

A man who defrauded 100 investors of about 20 billion won ($14.4 million) by impersonating an investment adviser for the state-run housing developer and selling apartments in Seoul’s affluent Gangnam area was sentenced to 20 years in prison, slightly reduced, on Friday. The defendant, a man in his 40s identified only by his surname Seo, was sentenced to 20 years and 10 months in April, but the Seoul High Court cut the sentence by 10 months. The court noted that the defendant’s meth

Social AffairsOct. 25, 2024

Woori Financial’s cumulative Q3 earnings increases by 9.1% on-year

Woori Financial Group announced Friday its cumulative net profit stood at 2.65 trillion won ($1.9 billion), marking a 9.1 percent surge from the same period last year. The figure surpasses last year’s yearly earnings of 2.5 trillion won. The financial service provider posted 903 billion won net income in the third quarter, marking a 0.6 percent increase year-on-year. The figure is slightly higher than the market estimate of around 890 billion won. Cumulatively, the year-to-date net profit

IndustryOct. 25, 2024

Shinhan Financial net profit up nearly 4% in Q3

Shinhan Financial Group, one of the country's top financial providers, posted lower-than-expected earnings for the July-September quarter, hit by the derivative fiasco from its brokerage arm. The financial group announced Friday that its net profit for the third quarter recorded 1.23 trillion won ($885 million), marking a 3.9 percent increase year-on-year. The figure, however, is slightly lower than the market forecast of around 1.3 trillion won. It also lost 186.9 billion won or 13.1 perce

IndustryOct. 25, 2024

Hanwha Ocean strengthens partnership with US Navy

Hanwha Group is seeking further cooperation with the US Navy, to build on ongoing projects. The group said on Friday that Hanwha Group Vice-president Kim Dong-kwan and US Pacific Fleet Cmdr. Admiral Stephen Koehler met at Hanwha Ocean’s Geoje site on the previous day and discussed ways for further cooperation. Kim and Koehler toured the Wally Schirra, a US Navy logistics support ship currently under maintenance, and discussed further cooperation on maintenance, repair and operations projec

IndustryOct. 25, 2024

Pyongyang erects blockades along inter-Korean railways

In a latest development in North Korea’s isolationist policy, new blockades were being built along inter-Korean railways running along the east and west sides of the Korean Peninsula to fortify the border areas, South Korea's Unification Ministry confirmed Friday. Kim In-ae, vice spokesperson for the Ministry of Unification in Seoul, said in a briefing that North Korea "had already built barriers at the undermined sections of Donghae lines through additional construction projects.&quo

PoliticsOct. 25, 2024

BIAF 2024 kicks off five-day run for animation lovers

The 26th Bucheon International Animation Festival, showcasing animated works from across the globe, will begin its five-day run starting this Friday afternoon. BIAF 2024 is set to kick off with an opening ceremony at 6 p.m. on Friday at the Korea Manhwa Museum in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province. The opening ceremony, attended by a number of renowned animation industry officials, including Raul Garcia, the animator behind Disney's "Beauty and the Beast" and "Aladdin," and Rhie

CultureOct. 25, 2024

Soccer legends impress fans at 2024 Nexon Icons Match

More than 4 million fans gathered to watch a match featuring legendary soccer players hosted by Nexon, the game developer that published the FIFA Online series, the firm said Friday. For the Nexon Icons Match event, held at Seoul World Cup Stadium from Oct. 19-20, players were split into two teams -- former forwards played for FC Spear while defenders joined Shield UTD. A total of 64,210 fans attended the event, many of whom wore the players’ classic uniforms. The event drew an online view

IndustryOct. 25, 2024

Opposition slams Yoon's suggestion to send offensive weapons to Ukraine

South Korea's main opposition party lawmakers on Friday rallied in the halls of the National Assembly to condemn President Yoon Suk Yeol for his proposed shift in Ukraine aid policy in response to North Korean troop deployment by Russia. “The Yoon administration is reportedly considering providing ‘offensive weapons’ to Ukraine in the wake of Russia’s deployment of North Korean troops. This is an incredibly dangerous idea that treats people’s lives like pawns i

PoliticsOct. 25, 2024

Paris-based Cledia Fourniau's solo show explores reflection into self

Using acrylic paint and mica, Paris-based Cledia Fourniau's paintings feature poetic narratives with a glossy surface. The artist unveiled her new works at her solo exhibition at Koenig Seoul on Friday, the artist's first exhibition in South Korea. The artist’s approach to paintings lies somewhere in the space between formal, controlled and accidental practices, inviting the audience to arouse different feelings depending on each viewer’s perspectives. "That way, vie

Arts & DesignOct. 25, 2024

Seoul shares end tad higher; won at nearly 4-month low

Seoul shares closed slightly higher Friday on retail buying amid waning bets on the Federal Reserve's rate cuts. The Korean won fell to the lowest point in almost four months against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 2.24 points, or 0.09 percent, to 2,583.27. The main index has fallen 0.4 percent this week. Trade volume was moderate at 454.58 million shares worth 10.14 trillion won ($7.3 billion), with losers outpacing gainers 617 to 258. Institutions and i

MarketOct. 25, 2024

Yoon's national security adviser in Washington for three-way talks: Seoul

Shin Won-sik, national security adviser for President Yoon Suk Yeol, is scheduled to attend a trilateral meeting of the top national security aides representing South Korea, the United States and Japan, according to the presidential office on Friday. "Shin is on a trip to the US to attend the meeting there scheduled on Friday," an official of the presidential office said on condition of anonymity. The three-way meeting is meant to discuss "ways to maintain continuity in the cooper

PoliticsOct. 25, 2024

NCSoft adopts multistudio system in development push

South Korean gaming giant NCSoft said Friday it has decided to separate three of its intellectual properties and establish an independent game development studio system. This move is part of its efforts to strengthen its global competitiveness by adopting a multistudio system. In a bold move to accelerate change, NCSoft separated its in-house IP -- new game series -- into independent studios: TL, LLL and Tactan. The new system will allow each studio to maximize creativity and innovation in game

IndustryOct. 25, 2024

Korea to regulate cross-border trading of crypto

The Korean government is to tighten the monitoring of cross-border trading of virtual assets, including cryptocurrency, through a revised law set for enactment by the latter half of 2025. "The government will push for the revision of the Foreign Exchange Transactions Act related to virtual assets through discussions with relevant departments and legislation, with the aim to implement the changed measures within the latter half of next year,” Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok said at a pr

IndustryOct. 25, 2024

Korea's average salary $29,709, 87% less than top 1%: report

The average pretax annual salary in South Korea came to 41.23 million won ($29,709) last year, with the vast majority of high-paying jobs concentrated in the Seoul metropolitan area, highlighting the need to solve significant salary disparities between average and top earners, as well as between regions. According to data from the National Tax Service released by Rep. Ahn Do-geol of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea on Friday, the nation’s total number of salaried workers reach

Social AffairsOct. 25, 2024

Nearly half of residents who resigned now reemployed at lower-tier clinics

Some 44.9 percent of the medical residents who resigned en masse to protest the government's medical school admissions hike have been rehired at other medical institutions, a Ministry of Health and Welfare data showed Thursday. Of the 9,163 residents who have walked of the job in the nationwide medical strike, 4,111 have been reemployed as doctors as of Sunday, according to the ministry data submitted to Rep. Kim Yoon of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea. The data showed that

Social AffairsOct. 25, 2024