S. Korea mulling further delay of Dokdo defense drills

South Korea is considering conducting maritime defense drills on and around its easternmost islets of Dokdo later this month, military sources said Monday, far behind its usual schedule amid ongoing diplomatic and trade disputes with Japan.The military "plans to stage the drills at an appropriate time," defense ministry spokesperson Choi Hyun-soo told a regular briefing Monday, adding the authorities are reviewing "the exact schedule and scale."The drills, involving the Navy,

DefenseAug. 12, 2019

Rain forecast until Tuesday morning under indirect influence of typhoon

Rain will continue to fall in South Korea's central regions, including Seoul and the surrounding Gyeonggi Province, until early Tuesday morning under the indirect influence of Typhoon Lekima, which hit China's eastern coast over the weekend, local weather forecasters said. According to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) on Monday, Lekima, the ninth typhoon of the season, was moving over the sea about 190 kilometers northwest of Qingdao as of 9 a.m. and is expected to dissipate in the

Social AffairsAug. 12, 2019

S. Korea says NK apparently eyes nuclear talks with US after military drills end

North Korea appears to be seeking the resumption of working-level nuclear talks with the United States after ongoing joint military drills between Seoul and Washington end, South Korea's presidential office said Monday.A senior Cheong Wa Dae official was responding to a statement issued by a North Korean foreign ministry official Sunday that contains strong condemnation against South Korea and blasted Seoul for staging the allies' military exercises that kicked off last week.The message came aft

North KoreaAug. 12, 2019

Seoul to strip Tokyo's trusted trade status in tit-for-tat measure

South Korea on Monday decided to remove Japan from its trusted trading partners, upping the ante in the trade haggling sparked by the neighboring country's export restrictions against Seoul.  The trade ministry said it will revamp its export list into three groups of trading partners from the current two, placing Tokyo in the newly established bracket, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Tokyo had been on Seoul's top-tier list of 29 countries subject to preferential exp

EconomyAug. 12, 2019

17 suffer carbon monoxide poisoning at barbecue restaurant

Seventeen people were poisoned by carbon monoxide while dining at a charcoal-grill barbecue restaurant in Seogwipo on Jeju Island.Jeju fire authorities said the diners were sent to hospital at around 8 p.m. Sunday after they showed signs of carbon monoxide poisoning.Emergency dispatchers moved them to state-run Seogwipo Medical Center and Jeju Naval Base which are equipped with hyperbaric chambers. Seogwipo city government and fire authorities suspect the toxic gas was generated from palm tree c

Social AffairsAug. 12, 2019

Trump ridicules S. Korea on defense cost-sharing

US President Donald Trump ridiculed South Korea at his reelection campaign fundraiser Friday, saying it was very easy to force Seoul to hike its share of costs for stationing American troops here.According to the New York Post, Trump referred to how as a boy he used to accompany his father to collect rent, saying: “It was easier to get a billion dollars from South Korea than to get $114.13 from a rent-controlled apartment in Brooklyn, and believe me, those 13 cents were very important.&rdq

DefenseAug. 12, 2019

Korean father, daughter found dead in Croatian river: ministry

The Foreign Affairs Ministry said Monday two South Koreans died at a national park in Croatia, confirming earlier media reports.According to the ministry, the two Korean tourists were found dead at around 3:40 p.m. Sunday about 50 meters from a wooden bridge which cuts across the Krka River in the Krka National Park.The man in his 50s and his daughter in her 20s were found by police after a French tourist filed a report.The Korean Embassy in Croatia informed the victims’ family after confi

Social AffairsAug. 12, 2019

Hong Kong mops up after weekend of violence, braces for more protests

HONG KONG (Reuters) -- Metro stations in Hong Kong resumed regular service on Monday and streets were being cleaned of debris as the city recovered from another night of violent clashes between anti-government protesters and police, with more protests planned this week.Police fired volleys of tear gas at protesters across the territory on Sunday and staged baton charges in flashpoints in downtown Hong Kong and in working class districts. Protesters threw two petrol bombs, which police said

World NewsAug. 12, 2019

Exports dip 22% in first 10 days of Aug.

South Korea's exports dropped 22.1 percent in the first 10 days of August mainly due to decreased shipments of semiconductors, one of the country's key items, customs data showed Monday.The country's exports stood at $11.5 billion in the Aug. 1-10 period, according to the Korea Customs Service.By product, exports of semiconductors and petroleum products fell 34.2 percent and 26.3 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, outbound shipments of wireless communications devices and home appliances jumped 41

EconomyAug. 12, 2019

BTS announces long-term break from music scene after back-to-back album releases

K-pop super stars BTS went on a long-term break to recharge themselves following the band's Billboard-topping back-to-back album releases, its management agency said Monday. "Group BTS will have its first official long-term vacation since its debut," Bit Hit Entertainment said on the band's Twitter account and mobile fan application late Sunday.The break kicked off the same day following the band's performance at the 2019 Lotte Duty Free Family Concert earlier in the day.  "T

PerformanceAug. 12, 2019

S. Korean Hur Mi-jung wins Ladies Scottish Open

South Korean Hur Mi-jung has captured the Ladies Scottish Open in her third LPGA win in five years.The 29-year-old shot a 20-under 264 to win the four-round tournament on Sunday (local time). Hur shot a five-under 66 on the last day to edge out Thailand's Moriya Jutanugarn and South Korean Lee Jeong-eun, who tied for second place, at the Renaissance Club in North Berwick in Scotland.The win was Hur's third career title on the LPGA Tour.She picked up a check for $225,000. (Yonhap)

GolfAug. 12, 2019

Minor earthquake hits near western inter-Korean sea border

A 2.1 magnitude earthquake struck near the western inter-Korean sea border, South Korea's meteorological agency said Sunday.The temblor occurred at around 6:19 p.m. about 5 kilometers west-northwest of South Korea's northernmost island of Baengnyeong, the Korea Meteorological Administration said.The agency said the quake will have caused no damage.(Yonhap)

Social AffairsAug. 11, 2019

Chinese woman found dead on S. Korean resort island of Jeju

A Chinese woman was found dead on the coast of South Korea's southern resort island of Jeju, three days after she went missing, a police official said Sunday.The body of the 36-year-old, identified by her family name Jin, was found on a rock near an open sea fish farm on Jeju, according to Park Mi-ok, a police official handling the case. Jin is believed to have gone missing on Thursday in Seogwipo, the southern part of Jeju island, after arguing with her male friend while camping.Police plan to

Social AffairsAug. 11, 2019

Real estate market tenses up ahead of upcoming price regulations

Tension built up in Seoul’s housing market on Sunday, a day ahead of a scheduled government announcement about details of a price ceiling system for apartment complexes in key bubble-prone areas.The forthcoming actions, intended to stabilize the overheated real estate market and discourage speculation, are set to play out amid uncertain economic conditions aggravated by US-China economic tensions and South Korea-Japan strife.According to major local real estate industry trackers including

EconomyAug. 11, 2019

[Behind the Brand: 3] Brand names that let numbers do the talking

The meticulously planned out stories behind brand names often go unnoticed by consumers.That is the case especially for alphanumeric brands, which combine words and numbers. These brand names may roll off the tongue easily, but oftentimes consumers have very little understanding of why certain numbers have been chosen to represent the brand.Below are five well-known South Korean brands and the stories behind them.8SecondsHow long does a company have to make a first impression? According to cloth

IndustryAug. 11, 2019

[James Stavridis] If Hong Kong avoids a bloody crackdown, it can thank Taiwan

As Hong Kong recovers from a general strike that paralyzed transportation and led to mob violence and tear gas fired on protesters, the Beijing-controlled government’s chief executive, Carrie Lam, is hinting at even stronger action. The Chinese government agency that oversees Hong Kong held a rare press conference Tuesday, announcing support for Lam and accusing the protesters of fomenting a revolution. Most ominously, Chinese authorities have mobilized troops near the border with the main

ViewpointsAug. 11, 2019

[Shuli Ren] Down the rabbit hole with Trump and Xi

In the fable, the tortoise wins the race because the hare lies down to take a nap after bolting into the lead. Slow, dogged persistence triumphs over flighty arrogance. If this were the story of the US-China trade war, it’s easy to see which would be which.Trade wars are good and easy to win, President Donald Trump famously declared on Twitter in March 2018. Since then, US policy toward China has shifted repeatedly as the president bounced from one position to another, alternately offering

ViewpointsAug. 11, 2019

[News Focus] Population slides in 5 major cities in Korea

SEJONG -- The demographic structure is rapidly changing in South Korea, reversing from the situation in the 1970-80s, when more people relocated to Seoul or metropolitan cities such as Busan, Daegu and Gwangju.Government data showed that most of the big cities nationwide saw their population decline over the past five years, following the farming population drops in provincial areas for decades.The nation’s total population came to 51.84 million as of July 2019, inching up 1.1 percent from

Social AffairsAug. 11, 2019

[Graphic News] Exports of cultural contents rise 8.4% in 2018

South Korea’s exports of cultural contents increased 8.4 percent in 2018 from the previous year to $9.55 billion, a government report showed.Last year’s growth came after annual average growth of 16 percent between 2014 and 2017, with exports of $5.27 billion in 2014, $5.66 billion in 2015, $6.08 billion in 2016 and $8.81 billion in 2017, according to the report on trends in the content industry released by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Creative Content Ag

EconomyAug. 11, 2019