Most Popular
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‘Korea crossed the line too far’ disgraced singer’s lawyer cries foul after 3rd visa denial
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Opposition mulls delay of financial investment income tax
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Immigration policy must go beyond labor supply: experts
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Psy's touch or new trend in music? P Nation’s solo stars lose their shine
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S. Korea to showcase Hyunmoo-5 ballistic missile on Armed Forces Day ceremony for 1st time
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Park Zi-a, the actor who played 'The Glory' heroine's mother, dies
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Nasrallah's killing reveals depth of Israel's Hezbollah penetration
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Korean American documentary ‘Free Chol Soo Lee' wins Emmy
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Seoul to hold grand military parade on Tuesday, disrupting major city routes
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KMA chief under pressure after surveyed doctors refuse to back him
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Hidden gem restaurant
Over Lunar New Year, Seollal, there are some traditional foods that herald in the festivities. One of them is Tteokguk, or rice cake soup. It is the first meal one should eat in the new year, as it represents hope and is symbolic of another year lived, or as it is properly known here, the Korean age of reckoning. After finishing the bowl of soup, a person’s age goes up by a year. Manduguk, or dumpling soup, is a North Korean variation of the traditional soup eaten during Seollal, and often both
FoodFeb. 5, 2016
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Studying is the key to owning your life
Kim Chung-woon, formerly a psychology professor and who now calls himself a “creator,” is perfectly at home in his basement office in Nonhyeon-dong, Seoul. It is an entirely appropriate title, he claims, as he now writes and paints. Kim’s office is a veritable man cave, that any man -- or woman, for that matter -- would dream of having: Walls lined with massive bookshelves holding volumes and volumes of books; a long desk from Japan that is crafted out of a very old tree trunk; a little nook wit
PeopleFeb. 5, 2016
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Celebrate Lunar New Year with tradition
The Lunar New Year holiday is a chance for Koreans, expats and tourists to enjoy a variety of traditional Korean activities. The five-day holiday will be full of cultural programs and hands-on experiences, offered at public museums and royal palaces. Here is a guide to various holiday programs in major cities. Palaces and folk games Visitors participate in the kite-making session at the National Folk Museum of Korea in Seoul. (The National Folk Museum of Korea)Major royal palaces in Seoul, incl
CultureFeb. 5, 2016
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Changing face of Lunar New Year holiday in Korea
A mass migration is underway this weekend as tens of thousands of Koreans travel home for the Lunar New Year, Seollal. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport estimates that a total of 36 million will be on the move, about 70 percent of the total population. Early in the morning on Monday, Lunar New Year’s Day, families will dress in traditional hanbok for the ancestral rite, charye, during which they will pay respect to their late ancestors. Dozens of dishes will be laid out on the c
CultureFeb. 5, 2016
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Chemical castration ordered to punish sex convict in South Korea
A district court ordered chemical castration to punish a sex convict for the first time in the country since the Constitutional Court upheld the law authorizing drug treatment for sex offenders last year. The punishment was first implemented in 2011 to introduce stronger measures against sexual assault crimes in the country. In 2013, the Daejeon District Court filed a request for constitutional review of the legislation, claiming it violates basic human rights. In a 6-3 vote, the Constitutiona
Social AffairsFeb. 5, 2016
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South Korean college students now allowed to get pregnant
South Korea’s education law has been revised to allow all undergraduate students to continue their studies and to take semesters off if they are married or become pregnant while at school, the Education Ministry announced Friday. Up until now, each university in the country had had different rules regarding marriages and pregnancies. Some universities had previously banned students from marrying and becoming pregnant while working on their degrees. Some schools would expel those who broke these
Social AffairsFeb. 5, 2016
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[Herald Interview] ‘Reply 1988’ leaves mark on Park Bo-gum
Actor Park Bo-gum poses for a picture before an interview at a Seoul cafe on Thursday. (Yoon Byung-chan/The Korea Herald)Park Bo-gum spoke slowly, his words interspersed with child-like smiles. It was as if Park’s “Reply 1988” character Choi Taek had jumped off screen into real life. “I realized that I’m similar to my ‘Reply 1988’ character in real life. I’m like an iron fist in a velvet glove, just like Choi Taek in the TV series,” the 22-year-old told The Korea Herald in Seoul last Thursday.“I
TelevisionFeb. 5, 2016
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Hanwha chairman meets ex-Heritage Foundation chief
Hanwha Group chairman Kim Seung-youn discussed Korea-U.S. economic relations and the conglomerate’s core businesses with former Heritage Foundation chief Edwin J. Feulner, group officials said Friday.The meeting took place at Kim’s office in Seoul and topics also included the coming U.S. presidential election and security on the Korean Peninsula, according to the officials.They said Feulner, who currently heads a research center on Asia under the Heritage Foundation, expressed particular attenti
IndustryFeb. 5, 2016
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[Jean Pisani-Ferry] The politics of young and old
If one considers some of today’s main challenges – including climate change, pensions, public debt, and the labor market – an obvious conclusion emerges: It is relatively much worse to be young today than it was a quarter-century ago. Yet in most countries, the generational dimension is remarkably absent from the political debate. Fifty years ago, people spoke often, and loudly, of a “generation gap.” Today, that gap has become invisible. This is bad for the young, for democracy, and for social
ViewpointsFeb. 5, 2016
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[Kim Ji-hyun] ‘Geunhyenomics,’ or the lack thereof
The eponymous “Abenomics,” a set of reform plans named after Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, frequently turns up in the world’s media. But nobody ever refers to “Geunhyenomics” for South Korean President Park Geun-hye, and it’s not just because it’s hard to pronounce. It’s because nothing has changed from the ancient government policies of the 20th century despite almost every aspect of the economy changing.Consequently, companies are faltering, foreign reserves are down, stock markets are o
ViewpointsFeb. 5, 2016
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Samsung, LG switch strategies to take on smartphone rivals
Caught between decreasing earnings and challenges posed by Chinese competitors, Korea’s tech giants Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics aim to create new growth momentum with their upcoming flagship smartphones, the Galaxy S7 and G5, respectively.As announced by both firms in January, they will be unveiling their marquee handsets, on Feb. 21, a day before the beginning of the Mobile World Congress trade show in Barcelona from Feb. 22 to 25. Shin Jong-kyun, the head of Samsung Electronics’ IT
TechnologyFeb. 5, 2016
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Syria and neighbors need peace talks to work
Most of the world has a stake in the success of the talks on Syria which have begun in Geneva, Switzerland, weak though their prospects for success may appear to be. First of all has to be the importance of the matter for the Syrians themselves. An estimated 320,000 of them have died so far in the nearly five years of war. The country itself has been torn into fragments, nearly all of which are dominated by an armed group fueled by hatred of other Syrian groups. As many as 11 million Syrians hav
ViewpointsFeb. 5, 2016
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[Editorial] Vacation risks
Lunar New Year vacation will be from Saturday to Wednesday for most Korean citizens, a large portion of whom will meet with family and relatives. Some Koreans will make trips abroad while there is also an expected influx of inbound tourists to Korea, in particular from China. Economic policymakers are pinning high hopes on a rapid rebound in sales in some industries, such as tourism, air carriers, cosmetics, hotels and other consumer segments. Despite the potential positive impact on the econo
EditorialFeb. 5, 2016
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[Editorial] TPP pressure
Some trade-related agencies and businesses in South Korea seem to be ill at ease over the nation’s absence from talks for the Obama administration-initiated Trans-Pacific Partnership, a kind of regional economic bloc. Concerns are being raised after 12 potential members — including Japan, Vietnam, Australia and the U.S. — on Thursday signed a deal to launch the TPP. Officials from some local agencies cited research predicting that Korea will see its exports and gross domestic product decline 1
EditorialFeb. 5, 2016
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New law expected to spark flurry of M&As
A law that passed the National Assembly on Thursday may spark a flurry of mergers and acquisitions, leading to consolidation in some oversupplied industries such as shipbuilding, construction and metals, experts said Friday. Dubbed the “one shot act,” the special law envisions that three-year regulatory relief be granted to companies pushing for business realignment in industries judged by the government as suffering from oversupply. It would clear legal barriers associated with tax codes, comme
Feb. 5, 2016
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Choi to take up World Bank executive directorship
A Finance Ministry director will fill the World Bank executive director’s office, vacated by Eun Sun-soo, the ministry said Friday. Eun quit last month to run Korea’s sovereign fund Korea Investment Corp.“World Bank on Feb. 3 appointed Choi Hee-nam as one of its executive directors,” the ministry said in a press statement. Choi was previously the head of the Finance Ministry’s international finance bureau. He will serve out the remaining term of Eun, until Oct. 31. Choi Hee-nam (Yonhap News)Wo
Feb. 5, 2016
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Firms vie for control of Tongyang
Shareholders of Tongyang Inc. are in a battle for control of the firm which recently graduated from a 28-month court receivership. According to a filing on Thursday, Eugene Corp., the country’s largest ready-mixed concrete maker, has increased its stake in the firm by 0.45 percentage point to 9.31 percent, rising again to the position of largest shareholder. It also made clear that the purpose of its equity investment was “management participation.”It is just one month after Pinetree Asset Manag
Feb. 5, 2016
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Koreans learn how to entertain for work
A 40-year-old man enters a hall full of graffiti and loud music. People in vibrant tracksuits throw curious glances at him. He strolls past and opens a door to his left -- where his crew awaits. When he greets them, they immediately stop and bow -- he is their boss.This is not a scene from a gangster flick. They belong to a financial company in Seoul, and they gather every weekend for a month each year to learn to dance, all in the name of team spirit. More Koreans have begun to learn entertainm
Social AffairsFeb. 5, 2016
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Tokyo stocks open sharply lower on stronger yen
Tokyo stocks opened sharply lower on Friday as a stronger yen hit exporters, despite modest gains on financial markets in Europe and on Wall Street.European and US shares mostly firmed Thursday despite another drop in oil prices ahead of an eagerly awaited US jobs report for January later on Friday.US stocks advanced despite veering into negative territory a couple of times in a choppy session, as oil prices closed lower and US data showed a drop in fourth-quarter productivity and a rise in week
Feb. 5, 2016
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Korea logs budget surplus in 2015
South Korea posted a budget surplus in fiscal 2015 for the first time in four years as its tax revenue edged up due to increased real estate transactions, the finance ministry said Friday.The gross revenue that the government brought in last year came to 328.1 trillion won ($273.8 billion), while its expenditure totaled 319.4 trillion won, according to the Ministry of Strategy and Finance after closing its books for the fiscal year 2015.As a result, its surplus reached 8.7 trillion won last year
Feb. 5, 2016