S. Korean stocks open lower on tech losses

South Korean stocks opened lower Friday as investors waited to see clues for the future direction of US rates.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) lost 7.15 points, or 0.37 percent, to 1,943.86 in the first 15 minutes of trading. The drop came despite overnight gains on Wall Street ahead of the Jackson Hole Fed meeting, where US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell is widely expected to hint at a rate reduction down the road.The Dow Jones industrial average added 49.51 point

EconomyAug. 23, 2019

Moon replaces five Cheong Wa Dae secretaries

President Moon Jae-in on Friday appointed five new secretaries at his office in the latest of changes in the lineup of his key aides.Moon is seeking fresh momentum in his presidency as he nears the halfway point of his five-year tenure. Many of his aides are also preparing to run in next spring's general elections. He named Shin Jee-yeon, a Cheong Wa Dae secretary, his "personal secretary." Shin, formerly an international lawyer, has worked as the secretary of first lady Kim Jung-sook.

PoliticsAug. 23, 2019

[Herald Interview] Behind Korea’s first shamanism museum, a folklorist’s lifelong devotion

At first, it seemed the museum was in the wrong place. Traditional wooden architecture standing smack in the middle of a new residential town, the Museum of Shamanism appears out of place among the towering apartment buildings around it. It has no space even for a parking lot. Ironically, though, this might be the location most befitting a building dedicated to shamanism -- which, despite being deeply ingrained in Korean society, is dismissed by many as a backward relic of the past and demonized

CultureAug. 23, 2019

N. Korea says it would be 'miscalculation' if US confronts Pyongyang with sanctions

North Korea's top diplomat warned Friday that it would be a miscalculation if the United States tries to use sanctions to deal with the communist regime, after US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the "toughest" sanctions will remain unless Pyongyang denuclearizes.Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho also warned in a statement that Pyongyang is ready for both dialogue and a standoff, but it will remain "the biggest threat" to Washington for a long time should the US stick to a hosti

North KoreaAug. 23, 2019

S. Korea mulling inviting N. Korea to intl. security forum in Seoul

South Korea is mulling whether to invite North Korea to an annual international security forum to be held in Seoul next month, a government official said Friday.The 8th vice-ministerial Seoul Defense Dialogue (SDD) is set to take place on Sept. 4-6, with the attendance of hundreds of government officials and experts from 56 countries and five international organizations, including the UN. "We are reviewing whether to invite North Korea here," the official said, without elaborating furt

North KoreaAug. 23, 2019

[Weekender] Vegan bakeries gaining traction in Seoul

Vegan bakeries started to emerge in Seoul just a couple of years ago. 　Eschewing the usual wheat, butter, yeast, milk and eggs, vegan bakeries create their goods with alternative ingredients such as soy milk, brown rice or coconut oil. In addition to vegans, these shops attract people with food allergies or atopic diseases, mothers of newborns and customers simply seeking healthy alternatives. The Korea Herald checked out four of the most talked-about shops in Seoul. Yummyyomil “

FoodAug. 23, 2019

[Weekender] Going vegan on the face

The vegan way of life is not limited to diet or eating but encompasses the full spectrum of a person’s life choices, including things like skin care and cosmetics. With more consumers opposing animal testing and the use of animal-derived ingredients, a number of vegan beauty brands have popped up in recent years.To qualify as vegan, a cosmetics maker must not use any animal products or by-products. Animal testing is out of the question too. South Korea, a country that is keen on keeping up

Arts & DesignAug. 23, 2019

[Weekender] Korea’s vegan scene, through eyes of an expat

The following is a Korea Herald copy editor’s personal account of her encounters with the local vegan community. The writer, a vegan since the early 1990s, has lived in Korea for more than 15 years. -- Ed. It was Aug. 7, three days before “A Piece of Vegan Festival” at Seoul Innovation Park in Eunpyeong, northwestern Seoul. One of the organizers, Kang So-yang, posted a picture of the venue on Facebook. Some rooms still had signs left behind by the previous occupants, reading &l

CultureAug. 23, 2019

Three South Koreans die in Hungary rail crossing crash

BUDAPEST (Reuters) -- Three South Korean citizensdied in Hungary in an accident late on Wednesday, when the carin which they were travelling was hit by a train, local policesaid on Thursday.The crash happened at a rail crossing at the Danube Bend, a tourist spot about 60 kilometres (37 miles) north of the Hungarian capital Budapest, when the car ignored a red light and drove onto the tracks. The accident comes less than three months after 26 South Korean tourists died in a boat crash on the Danu

Social AffairsAug. 23, 2019

Govt. to strengthen radiation checks on Japanese food products

The South Korean government said Friday that it will strengthen safety checks on imported food from Japan for possible radiation.The scale of radiation contamination checks on foods will be doubled starting later in the day, according to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. The products that will be subject to closer scrutiny by inspectors are those that have a record of being returned to sellers in the past five years after minute amounts of radiation were detected, the ministry said.Products

Foreign AffairsAug. 23, 2019

US expresses 'strong concern,' 'disappointment' at termination of Seoul-Tokyo intel pact

The United States expressed "strong concern" and "disappointment" Thursday after South Korea withdrew from a military intelligence-sharing pact with Japan.Earlier, Seoul announced its decision to end the General Security of Military Information Agreement amid a bilateral dispute over trade and history.In a rare public rebuke of its South Korean ally, the US State Department and the Pentagon expressed their displeasure with the move."We're disappointed to see the decision

Foreign AffairsAug. 23, 2019

Parties show mixed reaction to govt.'s move to scrap info-sharing pact with Japan

South Korea's ruling party welcomed the government's decision to terminate its military info-sharing pact with Japan on Thursday, calling it due action against Japan's retaliatory export curbs.But the main opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP) condemned the decision as an action that will hurt national interests, calling on the government to immediately recant it.Earlier in the day, South Korea decided not to extend a bilateral deal with Tokyo on exchanging classified military information, citing

PoliticsAug. 22, 2019

S. Korea vows staunch combined posture with US regardless of intel-sharing pact decision

South Korea will maintain a watertight combined readiness posture with the United States based on their strong alliance regardless of its decision to end the military information-sharing pact with Japan, the defense ministry said Thursday.Earlier in the day, the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae announced its decision not to renew the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA) amid deteriorating bilateral ties following Japan's export restrictions on South Korea."The defens

Foreign AffairsAug. 22, 2019

Lotte Chemical to merge its specialty chemicals unit

Lotte Chemical Corp., a major South Korean chemical company, said Thursday it has decided to merge with its wholly owned subsidiary as part of efforts to streamline its chemical business.Lotte Chemical said its merger with Lotte Advanced Materials Co. will be completed by Jan. 2, 2020.Lotte Chemical formerly owned a 90 percent stake in Lotte Advanced Materials after it acquired the company from Samsung Group in April 2016.  It bought the remaining 10 percent stake from Samsung SDI Co. for 2

IndustryAug. 22, 2019

First military pact between S. Korea, Japan set to become history

The military information-sharing accord between South Korea and Japan, which Seoul decided Thursday to terminate, represented the first military agreement between the two sides since Korea was liberated from Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule.The pact, titled the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA), was signed on November 23, 2016, between then-South Korean Defense Minister Han Min-koo and then-Japanese Ambassador to South Korea Yasumasa Nagamine in Seoul, effective immediatel

Foreign AffairsAug. 22, 2019

Kang says decision to end military pact with Japan separate from S. Korea-US alliance

Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said Thursday that South Korea's decision to terminate a military pact with Japan is separate from the Seoul-Washington alliance, amid concerns that it could erode cooperation among the three countries for regional security."(The decision) is a separate issue from the South Korea-US alliance, and the alliance will incessantly strengthen cooperation," Kang told reporters at Incheon International Airport upon arriving from Beijing.The minister added that t

Foreign AffairsAug. 22, 2019

Key developments leading to S. Korea's decision to end information-sharing pact with Japan

The following is a chronology of major developments leading to South Korea's decision to end a military information-sharing pact with Japan amid a row over wartime history and trade.2018Oct. 30 -- South Korea's Supreme Court orders a Japanese company, Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corp., to compensate South Korean victims for forced labor and unpaid work during World War II. Nov. 29 -- South Korea's top court orders a Japanese company, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd., to compensate South K

Foreign AffairsAug. 22, 2019

South Korea pulls out of intel-sharing pact amid spat with Japan

South Korea decided to withdraw from the bilateral military intelligence-sharing pact with Japan on Thursday, amid escalating friction over trade and historical issues.In a televised announcement, Cheong Wa Dae said it has made the decision to abolish General Security of Military Information Agreement and will notify Japan via diplomatic channels by midnight on Saturday, the deadline for a decision on whether to renew the agreement.“The government deemed that Japan caused grave change

Foreign AffairsAug. 22, 2019

S. Korea signs FTA with Britain, bracing for post-Brexit

South Korea signed a free trade agreement (FTA) with Britain on Thursday, a step to help maintain the continuity of their trade and economic ties even after London's departure from the European Union (EU).There have been concerns that South Korean exporters may no longer enjoy the benefits under the existing South Korea-EU FTA when Britain leaves the world's single largest economic bloc without agreeing on post-Brexit conditions.In London, South Korean Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee and her Britis

Foreign AffairsAug. 22, 2019

[Graphic News] Over 50% of Seoul citizens watch TV or go online for weekday leisure

　More than half of Seoul citizens watch TV or use the internet and play online games for leisure during weekdays, a poll showed.　The survey of 1,000 people by the Seoul Metropolitan Government showed that 51.2 percent spend their free time on weekdays watching TV and doing online activities, followed by exercising with 17.5 percent and taking a rest with 6.6 percent.　On the weekend, traveling or doing outdoor activities topped the list, followed by watching TV or playing online games at 17.3 per

Social AffairsAug. 22, 2019