Most Popular
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Ex-presidential official’s leaked phone call rattles conservative bloc
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Man escapes DUI charges by downing bottle of soju while pulled over
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Pay debate plagues foreign nanny pilot
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K-pop star lip-syncing controversy flares up again
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35% of S. Koreans view unification 'unnecessary'
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Pianist Lim Yunchan double winner at Gramophone Awards
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Slew of top K-pop stars ready to return from military
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[Reporter’s Notebook] Was Netflix film opening BIFF really a bad thing?
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S. Korea, US clinch 2026-30 defense cost-sharing deal in pre-election push
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N. Korean leader's sister derides Seoul's Hyunmoo-5 missile as 'useless'
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[Graphic News] Childbirths rebound in Korea
The number of babies born in South Korea dipped in 2014, but rose for the fourth straight month in June this year, a government report showed on Wednesday.According to the report by Statistics Korea, some 435,400 babies were born last year, down around 1,000, or 0.2 percent, from a year earlier. But some 35,500 babies were born here in June, up 3.8 percent from the same month last year. The annual increase follows a 2.5 percent on-year rise in the previous month. The figure gained 2.4 percent on
Aug. 27, 2015
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N. Korea committed to improving ties with South: N.K. official
A senior North Korean official said Thursday his country will work "actively" to improve relations with South Korea based on the spirit of a recent landmark agreement between the two sides.Kim Yang-gon, Pyongyang's top official handling inter-Korean ties, also called on the two sides to move in a constructive direction toward the reunification of the Korean Peninsula."Based on the spirit of the urgent high-level contact between the North and South, we will work actively to improve North-South re
North KoreaAug. 27, 2015
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Prosecution indicts Egyptian refugee broker
Prosecutors on Thursday indicted an Egyptian broker who illegally helped other Egyptians enter South Korea as false refugees. The Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office indicted the 29-year-old suspect, whose identification was withheld, on charges of allegedly providing fake immigration documents to 12 job-seeking Egyptians and supporting them to enter fraudulently as refugees. He and his Korean accomplice were found to have received up to $10,000 per person in return, they added. Of the 12
Social AffairsAug. 27, 2015
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S. Korea dismisses criticism over Park's plan to join China's military parade
President Park Geun-hye took into account the characteristics of China's upcoming World War II anniversary event in deciding to join it, the Foreign Ministry said Thursday.Park plans to attend a massive military parade in Beijing next week as the neighboring country commemorates the "Chinese People's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War."Her decision was apparently based on her resolve to maintain good ties between South Korea and China amid regional secur
Foreign AffairsAug. 27, 2015
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Seoul shares up for 3rd day on hopes of delay in U.S. rate hike
South Korean stocks rallied for the third session in a row to regain the 1,900-point threshold on Thursday on growing expectations that a U.S. interest rate hike could come later than expected, analysts said. The local currency gained ground against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index jumped 13.91 points, or 0.73 percent, to 1,908, extending its winning streak to a third straight session. Trading volume was moderate at 476.2 million shares worth 6.6 trillion won ($5.5
Aug. 27, 2015
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[Photo News] Renault Samsung to tap LPG-powered sedan market with SM7 Nova LPe
Renault Samsung Motors launched LPG-powered large sedan SM7 Nova LPe to revive sagging gas-powered car market at the Namsan J-Gran House, Seoul, Thursday. The new sedan will compete with market-dominant models of Hyundai and Kia in the segment, armed with better fuel efficiency and donut-shaped fuel tank to offer bigger trunk space than its competitors. RSM
MobilityAug. 27, 2015
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Finance minister dismisses concern over capital flight
South Korea is not faced with a capital flight situation stemming from increased external volatility despite lingering global economic uncertainties, the top economic policymaker said Thursday.Delivering a keynote speech at the Korea Treasury Bonds International Conference in Seoul, Finance Minister Choi Kyung-hwan expressed confidence that Asia's fourth-largest economy is not being confronted with a capital outflow problem. Finance Minister Choi Kyung-hwan (Yonhap)"Despite less money being inve
Aug. 27, 2015
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S. Korean economy 'gradually' recovering from MERS fallout: BOK
The South Korean economy seems to be gradually recovering from the fallout of MERS that dealt a huge blow to domestic demand over the past months, a central bank report showed Thursday.The MERS outbreak, the second-largest infection outside Saudi Arabia, claimed 36 lives here. South Korea declared a de facto end to the MERS outbreak on July 28, about two months after it reported its first case on May 20.The fatal respiratory illness sapped private spending by making locals refrain from outside a
Aug. 27, 2015
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Soprano Sumi Jo drops first K-pop album
Legendary Korean soprano Sumi Jo released her first K-pop album in her 30-year career on Thursday, a record label said.The album titled "Geu.Ri.Da.," in Korean, has Jo's reinterpretation of seven of her favorite domestic songs from the 90s such as Lee So-ra's "The wind blows," Yang Hee-eun's "Love on its solitude" and Chung Hoon-hi's "At a Flower Garden," Decca Records, a leading label for classical music, said in a release. The label is a subsidiary of Universal Music Group.For the album, the s
CultureAug. 27, 2015
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Samsung's gap with Intel falls to record low in Q2 chip market
South Korea's top tech giant Samsung Electronics Co. saw its gap with U.S. rival Intel Corp. shrink to the narrowest margin in the global chip market in the second quarter, industry data showed on Thursday.Samsung Electronics saw its chip sales reach $10.3 billion in the April-June period to account for 12 percent of the global market, while Intel's shipments stood at $11.7 billion with a 13.6-percent share, according to the data compiled by industry tracker IHS.It is the first time that Samsung
TechnologyAug. 27, 2015
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Former exec of Goldman Sachs arrested over alleged stock price manipulation
A former executive director of Goldman Sachs and three others have been arrested for allegedly manipulating stock prices, prosecutors said Thursday. The 49-year-old Korean-American, surnamed Kim, is suspected of helping brokers, including a 54-year-old surnamed Choi, find institutional investors to buy manipulated stocks in 2011, the prosecutors at the Southern District Prosecutors' Office said.Choi and his accomplices allegedly received 600 million won ($500,000) to find investors. Prosecutors
InternationalAug. 27, 2015
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'Korean Wave' expo opens in Shanghai
South Korea opened a three-day exhibition of the "Korean Wave" of pop culture and products on Thursday in the Chinese city of Shanghai. More than 100 Korean firms came up with their products to attract Chinese middle class consumers, whose disposable income is growing, by capitalizing on the rising popularity of Korean TV dramas and pop music.The exhibition in Shanghai is also aimed at commemorating the 70th anniversary of the Korean Peninsula's liberation from Japan's colonial rule, organizers
CultureAug. 27, 2015
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Trade commission recommends anti-dumping duties on Indonesian ethyl acetate
South Korea's trade commission said Thursday that it has recommended imposing punitive duties on ethyl acetate imports from Indonesia while also advising the finance ministry to extend the country's existing anti-dumping duties on imports from three other countries, including China.Following its five-month investigation, the commission decided that price-cutting by Indonesian manufacturers of ethyl acetate has caused damage to the local industry.The commission's recommendation is to impose punit
IndustryAug. 27, 2015
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ODIGAMOM, online retailer behind luxury baby bottle MAMACHI
MAMACHI, known as the “Chanel” or “Gangnam-style” of baby bottles, is a must-have item among expecting mothers.The bottle first found fame in their Los Angeles store before making its way to Korea. “The bottles first became a hit overseas, then we started selling them in duty-free shops, main department stores and within very short time, mommies have become very interested in our baby bottles,” said Kim Do-hwan, senior manager of ODIGAMOM (www.odigamom.com), the official website of MAMACHI bottl
IndustryAug. 27, 2015
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Bank lending rates down for 2nd month in July
Bank lending rates for new loans in South Korea continued to fall in July as market rates remained low amid a record-low policy rate, central bank data showed Thursday.The average rate for new loans to households, companies and other organizations came in at 3.43 percent last month, down 0.06 percentage point from June, according to the data compiled by the Bank of Korea.By category, the average lending rate for household loans dipped 0.05 percentage point on-month to 3.17 percent, while that fo
Aug. 27, 2015
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Conglomerates' internal trades edge down in 2015
Transactions among affiliates of South Korea's large conglomerates edged down in 2015 as they heeded growing criticism over unfair business practices, the antitrust watchdog said Thursday.According to the Fair Trade Commission, cross-affiliate deals accounted for 12.4 percent of all business contracts inked by South Korea's 48 largest conglomerates this year. The value of the deals totaled 181.1 trillion won ($153.1 billion), down 400 billion won from the year before."The numbers are still high,
Aug. 27, 2015
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S. Korea checking reports of N. Korea's flood damage
South Korea is not yet considering any humanitarian aid for North Korea, which was reportedly hit by a severe flood in its northeastern region, an official said Thursday.Pyongyang's state media said more than 40 people were killed and many houses destroyed in the border town of Rason, home to a special economic zone, during last weekend's heavy rain caused by Typhoon Goni.The South's Korea Meteorological Administration and other relevant authorities are trying to confirm the damage in the secret
North KoreaAug. 27, 2015
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S. Korea holds security meeting on recent inter-Korean deal
South Korea held a National Security Council session to discuss follow-up measures on a recent inter-Korean deal that defused military tension and paved the way for reconciliation projects, Cheong Wa Dae said Thursday.Participants discussed on how to proceed with the planned reunions of families separated since the 1950-53 Korean War, presidential spokesman Min Kyung-wook told reporters, without elaborating.The comments came two days after the two Koreas agreed to hold Red Cross talks early next
PoliticsAug. 27, 2015
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S. Korea, U.S. sign upgraded war plan focused on dismantling N. Korean WMDs
South Korea and the United States have signed an upgraded operational plan that puts a fresh focus on removing North Korea's weapons of mass destruction, a military official said Thursday.In June, the allies signed OPLAN 2015, which will be put into action in case a war breaks out on the Korean Peninsula, according to the official."The militaries of both countries drew up OPLAN 2015, which replaces OPLAN 5027, with their Joint Chiefs of Staff chairmen signing it in June," the official noted. For
DefenseAug. 27, 2015
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Inter-Korean family reunion expected in October
South Korea is still reviewing whether to propose a date for talks on a family reunion to North Korea or wait for Pyongyang's offer, a government official said Thursday."We are reviewing the timing and related content," the Unification Ministry official said. A priority is to implement the agreement reached at the high-level negotiations between the two Koreas earlier this week, he added.The two sides agreed to hold a Red Cross working-level meeting in early September to arrange the reunion of f
North KoreaAug. 27, 2015