[Weekender] Spending Seollal alone may be unorthodox, but there is still plenty to do in Seoul

As Koreans halt operations and leave on an exodus for their hometowns for the Lunar New Year holiday, travelers and expats alike may find themselves scratching their heads as to how to spend their weekend. This year, Seollal falls on Jan. 24-26, giving South Koreans a three-day weekend to celebrate with their loved ones.Customs, family and food are at the heart of this national holiday. However, in recent times, there has been a shift away from traditional celebrations, meaning more to do for th

CultureJan. 16, 2020

KEB Hana, Woori tense up on DLF penalty decision

KEB Hana Bank and Woori Bank, the two major commercial banks blamed for the misselling of high-risk derivative-linked financial products, were caught in a heated last-minute debate to minimize the level of sanctions on their top executives.The Financial Supervisory Service on Thursday convened its sanctions committee to review sanctions for the two banks and their chiefs: Woori Financial Group Chairman Sohn Tae-seung and Hana Financial Group Vice Chairman Ham Young-joo.The two banks, along with

MarketJan. 16, 2020

S. Korea all set for annual ADB meeting slated for May in Songdo

South Korea’s government will be initiating the registration process for the annual meeting of the Asia Development Bank, to be held here in May this year, the Ministry of Economy and Finance said Thursday.“We have finished reorganizing the official website for the operation of the 53rd ADB Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors,” said Jung Byung-sik, operation head of the ministry’s task force, adding that registration starts Friday.While official registration is throu

EconomyJan. 16, 2020

ICT Ministry to ramp up R&D support, investment

The Ministry of Science and ICT said fostering the industries of data, network and artificial intelligence will be a priority this year in its annual policy briefing to President Moon Jae-in on Thursday. This year, the ICT Ministry will control some 24 trillion won ($20.7 billion) for its research and development budget, an increase by about 18 percent from 2019, it said in the presentation held at Daedeok Innopolis, an R&D complex in Daejeon. The budget will be spent in sectors with growing

TechnologyJan. 16, 2020

NTS publishes year-end tax settlement manuals for foreigners

South Korea’s tax agency said Thursday that it has published its year-end tax settlement manuals for foreigners in English, Chinese and Vietnamese.The publication of tax manuals in foreign languages, while are available both online and offline, comes as the number of foreign employees has been growing.According to the National Tax Service data, Chinese and Vietnamese filers for the 2018 year-end tax settlement accounted for 44 percent of the total filers.  The tax agency also provides

EconomyJan. 16, 2020

[Newsmaker] Transgender sergeant seeks to continue serving in military

A South Korean transgender sergeant faces a possible discharge from the South Korean Army after undergoing sex reassignment surgery while enlisted, despite his wish to continue the service as a female officer. The trans person, a 20-something tank driver in a unit in Gyeonggi Province, underwent sex reassignment surgery in December in Thailand after gaining approval from his unit. The staff sergeant, while recovering at a national Army hospital, had applied for a legal gender change and expresse

Social AffairsJan. 16, 2020

Celltrion Chairman Seo appointed Korea National Opera’s board director

South Korean biopharma giant Celltrion Group Chairman Seo Jeong-jin has been appointed the director of the board of the Korea National Opera.The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced Seo’s appointment Wednesday. His three-year term will run until Jan. 14, 2023.  Seo’s contributions to the cultural sector include a 3 billion won ($2.5 million) investment in the 2016 film “Operation Chromite” through Celltrion Entertainment as well as developing expertise a

PerformanceJan. 16, 2020

Park Na-rae to ‘Stand Up’ on small screen

Comedian Park Na-rae has landed a new stand-up comedy show on the small screen.After airing two pilot episodes in November, KBS will air comedy show “Stand Up” every Tuesday starting Jan. 28, featuring Park as the main host. A total of 10 episodes are scheduled for release. “Stand Up” is a comedy show for adults that delivers diverse stories about life, according to KBS. Park will lead the program, with guest comedians joining her on the show. The 34-year-old comedian has

TelevisionJan. 16, 2020

Seoul seeks to revive tours to NK

Seoul is moving to pursue inter-Korean projects -- such as allowing individual South Korean tourists to travel to North Korea -- and seeking ways to work around international sanctions on Pyongyang. Key officials in Seoul have reaffirmed a renewed push for engagement with the North, after President Moon Jae-in said stronger inter-Korean cooperation could break the nuclear impasse between North Korea and the US and pave the way for international sanctions to be lifted. 　Lee Do-hoon, special

North KoreaJan. 16, 2020

[Monitor] Asset ranks of conglomerates change in decade

The ranking of fair assets held by large conglomerates in South Korea has changed over the past decade, with only seven out of 59 surveyed firms having maintained the same rank, data from corporate tracker CEOScore showed.CEOScore surveyed assets and capital of firms with assets of at least 5 trillion won ($4.3 billion) -- defined as large conglomerates by the Fair Trade Commission. Among the top six groups, Samsung, Hyundai and SK saw their assets rise rapidly by at least 100 trillion won from

IndustryJan. 16, 2020

S. Korea, US still have differences on defense cost sharing: ministry

South Korea and the US still have their differences on how to share the costs of stationing American troops in Korea, the Foreign Ministry said Thursday, after the two sides wrapped up their latest round of negotiations in Washington.“The two sides broadened their mutual understanding and consensus but confirmed that there are still differences between them,” the ministry said in a statement Thursday without mentioning what the differences were. “In the latest meeting, our

DefenseJan. 16, 2020

[News Focus] South Korea’s farm population halves in 20 years

SEJONG -- Fifty years ago, the number of South Koreans engaged in agriculture accounted for more than 40 percent of the total population.But the farming population (defined by the government as people in farming households) has continued to drop. It fell to below 30 percent of the total population in 1980 and was about 15 percent in 1990, according to government data.The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs noted that the farming population posted 4.4 million in 1998, accounting for 9

EconomyJan. 16, 2020

Shinhan reviews legal action against Lime Asset

Shinhan Bank is considering taking legal action against Lime Asset Management, claiming the fund operator made a unilateral decision last year to hedge its portfolio with a fund sold through the commercial lender, officials said Thursday. According to Shinhan, Lime Asset didn’t inform the lender of its plans to use Lime Credit Insurance Trade Fund assets to prevent payment delays from other funds that were facing liquidity issues at the time and that its decision amounted to a breach of tr

MarketJan. 16, 2020

‘I am innocent’: Ex-convict granted chance for exoneration

A paroled ex-convict who spent 19 1/2 years locked behind bars as a child rapist and killer is challenging his 1989 conviction, with a new trial slated for next month.The man, 53, who wanted to be identified only by his surname Yun, told The Korea Herald on Thursday that “a chance to clear my name has come,” after “three decades framed as a criminal.”Suwon District Court on Wednesday said the pretrial hearing for Yun would take place at 10:40 a.m. on Feb. 6, following the

Social AffairsJan. 16, 2020

Korean investor in Nasdaq-listed OncoSec seeks to thwart Chinese takeover

Alpha Holdings, the largest shareholder of Nasdaq-listed OncoSec Medical, is pinning hopes on its last-ditch efforts to prevent a takeover of the biopharmaceutical firm by Chinese entities, ahead of its special shareholders meeting on Friday.The South Korean shareholder of OncoSec proposed to have controlling stake and hold four out of seven seats on the New Jersey-based firm’s board by injecting a fresh $39.3 million funding. OncoSec is pressed to accept Alpha’s new offer by Thursda

MarketJan. 16, 2020

Foreigners ownership on Kospi hits 13-year high

Foreign stock ownership on Seoul’s benchmark Kospi bourse reached the highest level this week since 2006, industry data showed Thursday.According to the Korea Financial Investment Association, offshore investors held a net 585.98 trillion won ($431 billion) as of Tuesday -- 38.90 percent of the bourse’s market capitalization of 1,506 trillion won. The figure is the highest since Aug. 8, 2006, that accounted for 38.91 percent of Kospi’s market value. Foreign investors’ str

MarketJan. 16, 2020

Celltrion chairman floats possibility of company consolidation

SAN FRANCISCO – South Korean biopharmaceutical firm Celltrion is likely to be consolidated with two of its subsidiaries -- Celltrion Healthcare and Celltrion Pharm -- by as early as 2021, if the shareholders approve, a top executive said WednesdaySpeaking at the JP Morgan Healthcare Conference 2020 in San Francisco, Chairman Seo Jung-jin also did not rule out the consolidation of two other subsidiaries -- Celltrion Skincure and Celltrion Entertainment. Although Seo has announced his retire

IndustryJan. 16, 2020

Samsung Biologics to open first US entity by April

SAN FRANCISCO -- Samsung Biologics said Wednesday it will open a contract development (CDO) laboratory in San Francisco Bay Area by April, signaling its first expansion outside South Korea. Speaking on the company’s aggressive global expansion plans, Vice President John Rim, who accompanied CEO Kim Tae-han at the JP Morgan Healthcare Conference 2020 in San Francisco, said that the CDO lab in the US will place Samsung Biologics closer to potential partners with promising molecules. “T

IndustryJan. 16, 2020

[From the Scene] Neuroscience takes center stage at JP Morgan 2020

SAN FRANCISCO -- The key takeaways from the JP Morgan Healthcare Conference 2020 held in San Francisco this week have been the increased attention to neuroscience and cell and gene therapies among global pharmaceutical companies.Neuroscience was a recurring theme in participating firms’ research. Big pharmas Biogen, Roche, Eli Lilly, Takeda and others put forth their pipelines for Alzheimer’s disease, Huntington’s disease and Parkinson’s disease for investors to take a lo

IndustryJan. 16, 2020

Hyundai Motor Group to invest W129b in UK EV startup Arrival

Hyundai Motor Group said Thursday that it will invest 129 billion won ($111 million) in London-based EV startup Arrival, in an effort to secure electric vehicle manufacturing technology and market dominance. According to the automaker, the two firms agreed to cooperate in developing urban-type EVs, after clinching a deal at the Hyundai Motor Group headquarters on Thursday.  Established in 2015 Arrival is an EV-developing startup focused on commercial-type vehicles including vans and bu

MobilityJan. 16, 2020