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

MMCA initiates new art project with Hyundai Motor

The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art of Korea announced Friday it has started “Project #” to promote new artists.  Starting this year, it will annually select two art teams and provide them with financial support for exhibitions until 2023. Each team will be given 30 million won ($24,790) by Hyundai Motor for exhibitions, while the MMCA will provide studios at its residency in Chang-dong for six months and exhibition space at the museum’s main branch in Seoul

Arts & DesignAug. 23, 2019

Seoul stocks down for 2nd day ahead of Fed chief's speech

South Korean stocks closed slightly lower Friday as investors took to the sidelines amid uncertainty over the US Federal Reserve's much-awaited rate cuts and concerns over the escalating tension with Japan. The Korean won lost ground against the US dollar for a second consecutive session.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) shed 2.71 points, or 0.14 percent, to close at 1,948.30. Trading volume was slim at some 365 million shares worth 3.27 trillion won ($2.7 billion), with lo

MarketAug. 23, 2019

Cheong Wa Dae: S. Korea has talked enough with US on GSOMIA issue

South Korea consulted with the United States often and adequately on the fate of a bilateral pact with Japan on sharing military intelligence, Cheong Wa Dae said Friday, as Washington has voiced "strong concern" and "disappointment" over Seoul's decision to discard the key tool for strengthening trilateral security cooperation in Northeast Asia."It's true that the US hoped for the extension of the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA)," South K

Foreign AffairsAug. 23, 2019

N. Korea hopes for more investment, economic cooperation with foreign countries

A senior North Korean official said Friday that Pyongyang is making active efforts to create a business-friendly environment to attract investment and foster economic cooperation with foreign countries.North Korea's Minister for External Economic Affairs Kim Yong-jae made the remark at a forum held in Changchun, the capital city of China's Jilin province. "(We) are making active efforts to expand and advance economic cooperation with several countries, while pushing to preserve an investmen

North KoreaAug. 23, 2019

Volkswagen Korea ordered to compensate car owners for psychological damages

A Seoul court on Friday ordered Volkswagen, Audi and their Korean unit to compensate local consumers for mental distress caused by their emission manipulation scheme and improper recalls.The Seoul Central District Court issued a ruling on a lawsuit filed by some Korean owners of Audi and Volkswagen cars fitted with the so-called defeat devices designed to cheat emissions tests. The court awarded 1 million won ($825) in damages to each of the plaintiffs over their emotional anguish, but dismissed

IndustryAug. 23, 2019

British American Tobacco ad sparks discussion on ad restrictions

British American Tobacco’s latest music video-like YouTube commercial has prompted Korean health authorities to discuss new legislature to restrict advertisements of e-cigarette devices. The ad “Glo Sens X Loopy&nafla” features popular musicians and has amassed close to 105,000 views as of Friday 11:30 a.m., 11 days after its release.Korean health authorities strictly restrict direct advertisements of tobacco products. However, Glo Sens is not classified as tobacco but as a

IndustryAug. 23, 2019

North Korea prepared for dialogue, confrontation

North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho said Friday the regime is ready for both dialogue and confrontation with the US, criticizing Washington for using sanctions as leverage in denuclearization talks. In a statement via the state-run Korean Central News Agency, Ri condemned US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo for invoking sanctions imposed on the North in a recent interview with Washington Examiner. “The US is miscalculating if it is trying to not lose (the) confrontational stance against

North KoreaAug. 23, 2019

[Newsmaker] Cho Kuk admits to ‘privileges,’ promises to hand over family-owned fund for charity

Justice Minister nominee Cho Kuk said Friday afternoon he would hand over a private equity fund and a school foundation to a nonprofit organization to be used for charity, in response to an opposition demand for an extended confirmation hearing.Earlier in the day, the main opposition Liberty Korea Party demanded a three-day confirmation hearing for scandal-ridden Cho, instead of the usual one-day hearing, in light of controversy surrounding Cho.  Liberty Korea Party Floor Leader Rep. Na Kyu

PoliticsAug. 23, 2019

S. Korea officially notifies Japan of intent to end military pact

South Korea's foreign ministry called in Japan's top envoy in Seoul on Friday to officially notify Tokyo of its intent to end a bilateral military intelligence-sharing pact. First Vice Foreign Minister Cho Sei-young gave Japanese Ambassador to South Korea Yasumasa Nagamine a note verbale, a diplomatic document, to formally express Seoul's intent to terminate the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA).But the two sides shared the view that it is important to continue diplomat

Foreign AffairsAug. 23, 2019

Esper raises concerns over S. Korea's decision to end intel-sharing pact with Japan: ministry

US Secretary of Defense Mark Esper voiced concerns Friday over South Korea's decision to terminate the intelligence-sharing pact with Japan when he spoke by phone with Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo, a ministry official said."Our minister explained to Esper detailed backgrounds that caused South Korea to make such a decision, including Japan's insincere responses to South Korea's diverse efforts (to resolve pending issues)," the official told reporters."While expressing concern

Foreign AffairsAug. 23, 2019

BTS propels Big Hit to near top of entertainment industry in H1

Big Hit Entertainment, home to K-pop superstars BTS, has revealed its larger-than-expected revenue for the first half of 2019, proving itself to be a great potential game changer in the industry. The unlisted company said Wednesday it posted a record 200.1 billion won ($166.5 billion) in sales for the first six months of the year, which is just 14 billion won shy of the sales it generated for all of 2018.Its first-half operating profit reached 39.1 billion won, which compares with a full-year pr

PerformanceAug. 23, 2019

As Amazon burns, Brazil's Bolsonaro tells rest of world not to interfere

Amid growing international criticism over the wildfires raging through the Amazon, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro on Thursday admitted farmers could be illegally setting the rainforest ablaze but told foreign powers not to interfere.French President Emmanuel Macron and United Nations Secretary General António Guterres both took to Twitter to express concern about the fires that have reached a record number this year, devastating vast swathes of forest considered a vital bulwark agains

World NewsAug. 23, 2019

SK chief urges digital transformation of businesses, platform

SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won called for strengthening the conglomerate’s competitiveness in innovative technologies such as artificial intelligence, the group said in a statement Friday.“If we do not minimize trade cost and utilize innovative technology to effectively deliver the value customers are looking for, we cannot secure the future of SK,” he said as he wrapped up four-day in-house forum held in Icheon, Gyeonggi Province, on Thursday evening. “We need to redefin

IndustryAug. 23, 2019

S. Korea vows to minimize negative economic impact from GSOMIA termination

A day after South Korea announced its decision to scrap a military intelligence-sharing pact with Japan, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Friday that the government will make efforts to minimize any negative impact this might have on the economy. On Thursday, Seoul announced it would terminate the General Security of Military Information Agreement amid an ongoing trade dispute with Japan. Hong said the “pact was deemed not beneficial to the country.”Wi

EconomyAug. 23, 2019

Samsung DeX solution to offer Chicago police digital access

South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics’ in-vehicle computing system DeX will be piloted by the Chicago Police Department in the United States, the company said Friday. Dubbed as “DeX In-Vehicle,” the solution will provide police officers the ability to dock their Galaxy smartphones and access policing applications on a dash-mounted display and keyboard. The officers in the pilot -- taking place across the city’s 11th District this year -- will be able to access compu

TechnologyAug. 23, 2019

Biegun departs for US amid tensions over Seoul's termination of military pact with Tokyo

US Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun headed home from South Korea on Friday, a day after South Korea decided to end a military intelligence-sharing pact with Tokyo seen as a symbolic element of trilateral security cooperation.Biegun came to Seoul on Tuesday for talks with senior Seoul officials over joint efforts to resume working-level nuclear negotiations between Washington and Pyongyang. He apparently extended his stay here by one day for an unspecified reason. Biegun refu

Foreign AffairsAug. 23, 2019