S.M. Entertainment pressed to answer activist shareholder’s demands

S.M. Entertainment, South Korea’s largest K-pop powerhouse by market cap, is at a crossroads having to decide on taking action ahead of a deadline issued by an activist investor to merge with another firm owned by founder and Executive Producer Lee Soo-man.S.M. must respond by Thursday to these and other demands by KB Asset Management, which has publicly called on Like Agency -- a private company owned by Lee -- to be merged with the entertainment firm in order to keep intact the corp

PerformanceJune 18, 2019

US in contact with Pyongyang to revive nuclear talks: envoy

The US is in contact with North Korea in various ways, South Korea’s chief nuclear negotiator Lee Do-hoon said Tuesday, raising hopes for the resumption of stalled nuclear talks between the two countries. “I believe various forms of contact are being made. I can tell you that we’re going in the direction where we can revive the momentum for dialogue,” he told reporters at Incheon Airport before boarding a plane bound for Washington. US President Donald Trump has hint

North KoreaJune 18, 2019

KEA shares energy efficiency know-how with South Asian nations

State-run Korea Energy Agency has opened a knowledge-sharing program with the World Bank, inviting officials from South Asia to Seoul, the government agency said Tuesday. The KEA began the third WB-KEA energy efficiency knowledge-sharing program hosted by the World Bank, inviting officials from Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. The five-day training program aims to share Korea’s energy policies and experience. With the topic of energy efficiency system for buildings, Korea is sharing green bu

IndustryJune 18, 2019

With upgraded QM6, Renault Samsung hopes to cement top spot in midsized SUV market

Just days after a dramatic consensus with its labor union ended a year of confrontation and strikes, Renault Samsung unveiled a facelifted version of the QM6, the automaker’s most popular midsized sport utility vehicle, in Seoul on Tuesday.The QM6 is the automaker’s most trusted model, accounting for 61.2 percent of the country’s midsized gasoline SUV sales from September of 2017 to April this year, selling 41,191 vehicles.With the upgraded model, which is also the country&rsqu

MobilityJune 18, 2019

Korea’s nuclear reactor technologies allegedly leaked to UAE, US

The South Korean government is reportedly looking into allegations of leaks of key nuclear reactor technologies to other countries. According to multiple local news reports Tuesday, the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission and the National Intelligence Service are verifying the authenticity of a tipoff delivered to the NSSC through a nuclear safety ombudsman system. Based on the tipoff, one retiree from state-run nuclear operator Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power has allegedly leaked &ldquo

IndustryJune 18, 2019

SK’s US subsidiary Ampac opens 180,000-liter capacity CDMO facility

SK Holdings’ US subsidiary Ampac Fine Chemicals celebrated the opening of its contract development and manufacturing facility with production capacity of 180,000 liters in Petersburg, Virginia, on Sunday. SK Holdings acquired AFC in July 2018, marking the first global acquisition by a Korean pharmaceutical firm. At the time, industry insiders reportedly viewed the acquisition as a milestone for a Korean pharma firm to acquire a 100 percent stake in AFC, a contract development and manu

IndustryJune 18, 2019

Korean commercial bank apps struggle to stave off competition

Almost two years after South Korea’s leading commercial banks launched mobile apps to attract new customers and keep existing ones, the focus is now on whether their quality matches the prestige of the banks they are attached to.To compete against fast-paced and innovative internet-only banks Kakao Bank and K-Bank, the big four -- Shinhan, KB Kookmin, KEB Hana and Woori -- have been providing low-cost services, merging separate apps into one, and even hiring K-pop celebrities as brand amba

MarketJune 18, 2019

Porsche Korea opens world’s 8th studio in Gangnam

Porsche Korea, local unit of the German luxury carmaker, opened a new studio in Gangnam, southern Seoul, on Tuesday, in a bid to appeal better to younger customers.The new retail format introduced by the carmaker is the eight of its kind in the world and has been opened to provide a wide-ranging brand experience, from cars to custom-made accessories. “Porsche Korea will position ‘Porsche Studio Cheongdam’ as a cultural space where existing customers as well as potential cl

MobilityJune 18, 2019

Partisan tensions weigh on National Assembly over June extra session

Partisan tensions over the normalization of parliament lingered Tuesday as the main opposition party vowed to protest against its rival parties' joint decision to open an extra session for June without its participation.The ruling Democratic Party and three minor parties jointly submitted a request to convene the June session Monday in an effort to handle an extra budget bill and other proposals on people's livelihoods.The June session is scheduled to open Thursday following more than a two-mont

PoliticsJune 18, 2019

Egypt's ousted president Morsi dies in court during trial

CAIRO — Egypt’s first democratically elected president, Islamist leader Mohammed Morsi who was ousted by the military in 2013 after a year in office, collapsed in court while on trial Monday and died, state TV and his family said.The 67-year-old Morsi had just addressed the court, speaking from the glass cage he is kept in during sessions and warning that he had “many secrets” he could reveal, a judicial official said. A few minutes afterward, he collapsed in the cage, th

World NewsJune 18, 2019

Cheong Wa Dae says inter-Korean summit is not a must before G-20

South Korea's presidential office publicly toned down its expectations for another inter-Korean summit Tuesday, a day after Beijing and Pyongyang announced this week's bilateral summit.Attending the Oslo Forum in the Norwegian capital last week, President Moon Jae-in expressed his desire to meet again with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un before US President Donald Trump visits South Korea at the end of June. Trump is due in Northeast Asia to attend the Group of 20 summit to take place in Osaka,

North KoreaJune 18, 2019

Average spending by foreign tourists to Korea tumbles in Q1

Average spending by foreign tourists visiting South Korea has decreased to a level last seen 10 years ago, data showed Tuesday.According to the data from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization, foreign tourists coming to South Korea spent an average of $1,268 per person per trip in the first quarter of this year.  The figure is down 12.1 percent from $1,442 a year ago and marks the fourth quarterly decrease in a row.Average spending hovered around $1,

EconomyJune 18, 2019

Seoul to spend big on renovating public infrastructure

South Korea plans to spend 32 trillion won ($27 billion) over the next four years to renovate old public infrastructure and carry out extensive safety inspections on them, the industry ministry said Tuesday.Under the project that will run from 2020 to 2023, the government plans to draw up comprehensive safety guidelines and renovate outdated infrastructure, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.  The move came as South Korea's social infrastructure facilities have deterior

Social AffairsJune 18, 2019

Corporate revenue, profit down in Q1 on sluggish exports

South Korean companies suffered a heavy loss in their sales and profits in the first quarter, central bank data showed Tuesday, apparently due to a sharp drop in exports and tepid local consumption.In the first three months of the year, the average sales of local businesses declined 2.4 percent from the same period last year, according to the data from the Bank of Korea. The figure follows a 6 percent on-year growth in their sales during the fourth quarter of last year. The country's exports dip

EconomyJune 18, 2019

FM says she believes there are 'good signs' for resuming NK nuclear talks

INCHEON -- Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said Tuesday there are "good signs" pointing to a resumption of denuclearization talks between the United States and North Korea. "I think there are good signs," she told reporters at the airport upon returning from Moscow, when asked if there are any fresh moves to restart the stalled nuclear talks. She didn't elaborate on what those good signs are.Kang returned from a two-day trip to Russia, where she held talks with her counterpar

North KoreaJune 18, 2019

Earthquake in southern China kills 11 people, injures 122

BEIJING — A strong earthquake that hit Sichuan province in southern China late Monday night killed 11 people and injured 122, the local government said.The Yibin city government posted the casualty toll on its social media accounts Tuesday morning. Xinhua news agency said rescue efforts were underway in the stricken area. The magnitude 6.0 earthquake collapsed a hotel in Changning county and damaged some roads, Xinhua said. Heavy rains were falling Tuesday morning.The Ministry of Emergency

WorldJune 18, 2019

Police open probe into YG founder, B.I in suspected drug scandal

SUWON -- Police on Monday opened an investigation into allegations that Yang Hyun-suk, founder of entertainment powerhouse YG Entertainment, attempted to cover up drug charges involving one of YG’s artists years ago.Yang resigned as CEO and chief producer of YG Entertainment on Friday after an informant claimed he attempted to deter a police probe into a suspected drug purchase by B.I, the songwriting leader of K-pop boy band iKON, in 2016.　　The Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency said

Social AffairsJune 18, 2019

2 NK fishermen express desire to defect, 2 others sent back

Two of the four North Korean fishermen rescued from the East Sea last week expressed a desire to defect to South Korea, while the two others were sent back to the North according to their wishes, the unification ministry said Tuesday.South Korea returned the two crew members at the border village of Panmunjom earlier in the day after notifying the North of the incident via their joint liaison office in Kaesong on Monday, a ministry official said. "Based on their free will, two have clearly

North KoreaJune 18, 2019

S. Korean nuclear envoy heads to US amid renewed hopes for dialogue with NK

South Korea's top nuclear envoy left for the United States on Tuesday for talks with his counterpart amid growing hopes for a restart of denuclearization talks between Washington and Pyongyang.During his four-day trip to Washington, Lee Do-hoon, special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs, is scheduled to meet US Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun, the foreign ministry said.  "I believe various forms of contact are being made (between the N

North KoreaJune 18, 2019

Samsung, SK Telecom join hands for 6G R&D

Samsung Electronics Co. and SK Telecom Co. said Tuesday they have agreed to work together to upgrade the performance of the commercial 5G network and develop technologies related to 6G.Samsung, which provides end-to-end 5G solutions ranging from modems and chipsets to smartphones, has been providing its equipment to South Korea's leading mobile carrier for the commercial rollout.  As SK Telecom is currently building additional base stations to expand nationwide coverage, the two companies f

TechnologyJune 18, 2019