Most Popular
-
1
Yoon warns North Korea against nuclear attack attempt
-
2
81-year-old model awarded ‘best dressed’ in Miss Universe Korea
-
3
Seoul mayor suggests shift in immigration policy
-
4
'Smart pill'? ADHD treatment prescriptions spike this year
-
5
[KH Explains] Korea pursues ‘fire-free’ batteries amid EV fears
-
6
AI textbook bubble could burst, expert warns
-
7
Man calls 119, found dead 1 week later because officials went to wrong place
-
8
[Herald Review] One of Netflix's most expensive Korean originals returns, but at what cost?
-
9
Fights, complaints, stalker fans among reasons passengers exit planes before takeoff
-
10
SF Giants outfielder Lee Jung-hoo back home after injury-shortened rookie season
-
Rivals cry foul over SKT’s merger plan
Mobile carrier SK Telecom’s desire to increase its presence beyond the mobile network industry into the media content platform segment has sparked a backlash from its rival network operators KT and LG Uplus.SKT, which has Internet Protocol TV operator SK Broadband under its wing, has been pushing to acquire Korea’s top cable TV operator CJ Hellovision. Park Hyung-il, an executive of LG Uplus, gives a speech at a press conference last week in Seoul, opposing to SK Telecom’s proposed plan to acqui
TechnologyDec. 6, 2015
-
[Editorial] Fate of bar exam
Last week, the Ministry of Justice committed a folly typical of an immature government. It announced a half-baked policy on the state-run bar exam without consulting with related government offices or thinking about the response of those to be affected by its decision. On Thursday, Vice Minister of Justice Kim Joo-hyun held an unexpected briefing to announce that the ministry would delay scrapping the bar exam by four more years until 2021. The exam, which had long served as the only point of e
EditorialDec. 6, 2015
-
[Stephen Groff] Putting out Indonesia’s fires
Every year, forest fires ravage Indonesia, causing massive environmental, social and economic devastation. This year’s fires are the largest in nearly 20 years, destroying 3 million hectares of land and causing an estimated $14 billion in losses related to agriculture, forest degradation, health, transportation and tourism. Perhaps even more alarming is the climate impact. Indonesia is already among the world’s biggest carbon emitters. Thanks to the fires, its daily average emissions this Septe
ViewpointsDec. 6, 2015
-
Grotesque exposure of human condition
A figure, half-woman, half-bird, sits helplessly as if she has failed at several attempts to fly. She lacks feathers, except for the colorful few on her back.Artist Sohn Jung-hee stands behind the “Debutantes: 7 Sins” series displayed at Hakgojae Gallery in Seoul, Dec. 4. (Park Hae-mook/The Korea Herald)For artist Sohn Jung-hee, the ceramic sculpture “Siren” embodies the conflict between the public and the private selves of modern people. “It can describe an office worker, or someone like me, w
CultureDec. 6, 2015
-
‘Why have kids’ 20% of teens say
One out of 5 teenagers in South Korea do not think there is a need to have children in life, a report showed Sunday.The Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs surveyed 1,179 students in middle and high schools to look into teen perceptions of marriage and childbirth. (123rf)While 21.1 percent said they did not think they “must have children” when they became adults, 55.1 percent said they should. Some 23.6 percent said they were not sure yet. The response also varied between genders, with
Social AffairsDec. 6, 2015
-
ECB’s covert monetary financing is risky business
The European Central Bank introduced, by a large majority, a new twist to its stimulus agenda Thursday. From here on, the principal repayment on government bonds purchased under QE will be used to buy more bonds. It’s hard to overstate the significance of the reinvestment provision, which ECB Board Member Yves Mersch called “the most important” element of Thursday’s announcement. ECB President Mario Draghi tried his best to have it both ways. He portrayed the move as an extension of the QE time
ViewpointsDec. 6, 2015
-
Brazil declares war on itself
Brazil is in a bad way. The economy, already in deep recession, is possibly sliding into outright depression, according to Goldman Sachs. The public deficit and inflation are rising, and Congress is quarreling the country into insolvency. So you might expect its political leaders to drop their fists and rally for the national interest. Brazilians should be so lucky. President Dilma Rousseff did, in fact, call her closest aides for an unscheduled meeting in Brasilia on Wednesday, but the nation
ViewpointsDec. 6, 2015
-
Argentina’s new president may turn economic tide
The drama never ends for Argentina, land of failed expectations and the setting for a great Broadway musical. Next week, a new leading man steps into the role of president with a chance to fix the broken economy and set a positive example for South American democracy. Mauricio Macri is an outsider, which in Argentina means he isn’t a Peronist, the dominant political force for ages (“Evita” was the celebrated Eva Peron). If Macri turns out to be the least theatrical political figure ever, that wo
ViewpointsDec. 6, 2015
-
Another victim of Japan’s wartime sex slavery dies
Another South Korean woman who was forced into sexual slavery for the Japanese military during World War II died Saturday, bringing the number of Korean survivors to 46. Choi Gab-soon died at age 96, after years of suffering from chronic conditions including high blood pressure, diabetes and dementia, said the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family. Choi was the ninth Korean victim of slavery to die this year. The late victim was born in 1919 in Gurye, South Jeolla Province. When she was 15, Ch
Social AffairsDec. 6, 2015
-
Drugmakers' market cap nearly triples in 4 years
Guess what sector of the Korean economy expanded at the fastest pace in the past four years? It wasn’t automobiles or memory chips. According to a report released Sunday, it was pharmaceuticals, with front-runner Hanmi Pharmaceutical making some big strides this year into a global industry long considered an exclusive league of richer and more advanced economies. The combined market cap of bio and health care companies on Korea’s main bourse KOSPI came in at 28.53 trillion won ($24.57 billion) a
Dec. 6, 2015
-
Hotel Lotte mulls employee stock ownership plan
South Korean retail giant Lotte's hotel unit has been working on an employee stock ownership scheme as part of preparations to list its stocks on the Seoul bourse, company officials said Sunday. Hotel Lotte, a unit of South Korea's fifth-largest conglomerate Lotte Group, plans to submit an application next month for a preliminary regulatory review of its initial public offering .The company said it has been preparing to establish an employee stock ownership association under the regulation that
CompaniesDec. 6, 2015
-
Korea secures No. 7 stakeholder in IDB’s NewCo
The Ministry of Strategy and Finance said Sunday that Korea would increase its current 0.221 percent stake in an investment unit of the Inter-American Development Bank to 4 percent. This will make Korea the seventh-largest global shareholder, and the second-largest nonregional shareholder after China at 4.5 percent, of NewCo., a soon-to-be launched development finance institution under the Washington-based IDB for private sectors. “We could secure larger stakes than we had expected, thanks to
Dec. 6, 2015
-
Sales of Hyundai, Kia forecast to top 8 mln units this year
Global sales of Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Motors Corp., South Korea's top two automakers, are likely to exceed the 8 million unit mark in 2015 for the second consecutive year on the back of brisk demand for new cars, industry sources said Sunday.In the first 11 months of the year, Hyundai and Kia sold a combined 7.19 million vehicles worldwide, down 0.8 percent from the same period a year earlier.Despite the slight drop, the two carmakers will likely see their full-year sales hover just above 8
MobilityDec. 6, 2015
-
Ahn renews calls for choosing new opposition leader
Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo, a former co-chairman of the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy (NPAD), said Sunday the party must choose a new leader in order to win back voters' trust ahead of next year's general elections. Ahn, who co-led the party with current NPAD chairman Moon Jae-in last year, had repeatedly called for a complete leadership change since the party's crushing defeat in April's parliamentary by-elections. "Now is not the time to get hung up on vested rights," Ahn to
PoliticsDec. 6, 2015
-
All public firms agree to adopt wage peak system
All of South Korea's public corporations have agreed to adopt the wage peak system, which delays the mandatory retirement age in return for lower wages as part of labor reform measures, the finance ministry said Sunday.The wage peak system calls for the retirement age of workers to be pushed back, giving them greater job security. The same people benefiting from this, on the other hand, must accept lower wages just before retirement. The money saved will be used to hire new employees in a kind o
CompaniesDec. 6, 2015
-
Korean economy maintaining modest growth pace: KDI
The South Korean economy is maintaining a modest pace of growth on the back of a rise in domestic demand and corporate investment, a state-run think tank said Sunday.In its latest monthly economic trends report, the Korea Development Institute said consumption and business investment are on the mend along with consumer confidence."Overall, the lowering of excise taxes has spurred domestic demand that has been the driving force behind recent growth," the report said. "The construction sector is c
Dec. 6, 2015
-
Seoul to develop unmanned stealth aircraft to counter Pyongyang
South Korea will develop a stealth unmanned aerial vehicle to counter North Korea's long-range artillery and mobile missile systems, a South Korean defense official said Sunday.The development is part of the 31 research projects to be conducted by the South Korean military by the end of next year, the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Yonhap News Agency.These stealth UAVs will stand by at higher altitudes than other aerial defense systems owned by North Korea and thwart the ene
DefenseDec. 6, 2015
-
Foreign IBs remain pessimistic about Korean exports: report
Foreign investment banks predict South Korea's exports to remain sluggish down the road due to continued unfavorable conditions, weighing down on the growth of Asia's fourth-largest economy, a report showed Sunday.According to the report by the Korea Center for International Finance, Barclays, Nomura, Citigroup and other foreign investment banks have forecast South Korea's overseas shipments not to recover from their slump for the time being because of such negative factors as a drop in oil pric
Dec. 6, 2015
-
Samsung's Galaxy phone most valuable brand in Korea
South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics' Galaxy smartphone was selected as the most valuable brand in South Korea for the fifth consecutive year, a survey showed Sunday. The Samsung Galaxy phone ranked first in the brand survey by Seoul-based market researcher Brandstock, followed by E-Mart, a discount store chain by retail giant Shinsegae Co.Incheon International Airport, South Korea's gateway airport, climbed up one notch to take third place.Kakao Talk, South Korea's biggest mobile messen
TechnologyDec. 6, 2015
-
Wearable device users in Korea top 300,000 in Oct.
The number of South Koreans using wearable telecommunications devices has jumped nearly 90 times over the past year thanks to the rising popularity of smartwatches in the country, data showed Sunday.According to the data by the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning, subscribers to wearable telecommunication devices totaled 320,692 as of the end of October, up 90.5 times from a mere 3,542 a year earlier.The market for wearable devices, including smartwatches, has been growing exponentially
TechnologyDec. 6, 2015