South Korea's current account surplus widened in September from the previous month as exports expanded at a faster rate than imports weathering the local currency's gain, the central bank said Tuesday.The current account surplus reached US$6.07 billion in September, up from a revised $2.5 billion in the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). The current account is the broadest measure of cross-border trade.The September figure was the largest monthly surplus since a record high of

Oct. 30, 2012

President Lee Myung-bak's eldest brother will be summoned this week for questioning in connection with a suspicious land deal for his brother's now-scrapped retirement home project, a special counsel investigating the case said Monday.Lee Sang-eun is suspected of having played a role in the alleged irregularities by loaning some 600 million won ($542,000) in cash to his nephew and President Lee's only son, Lee Si-hyung, for the purchase of the land in which critics argue taxpayer money was used.

Politics Oct. 29, 2012

Chicago rapper Lil Reese issued an apology via Twitter for a video posted online that showed him beating up a young woman.“Everybdy makes mistakes,” the tweet read. “I was out of charcter & ive grown sense then Dont judge me for my past i can admit my wrongs and I apologize.#3hunna.”The apology came days after the video was posted online, the Chicago Sun-Times reported Sunday.The video shows a young woman inquiring who let a group of young men into a home. She begins to argue with a young man, p

Performance Oct. 29, 2012

An earthquake off the west coast of Canada has triggered a tsunami that is headed toward the U.S. state of Hawaii, The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center announced early Sunday."A tsunami has been generated that could cause damage along the coastline of all islands in the state of Hawaii," the center warned.The center said "urgent action should be taken to protect lives and property."The expected arrival time of the tsunami is 10:28 p.m. local time Saturday (0828 GMT Sunday).The announcement came af

World News Oct. 28, 2012

In a show of rapid demographic changes, Seoul has seen a steady rise in one-person households and a fall in multi-member households, municipal government data showed Sunday.According to the data released by the Seoul Metropolitan Government, the number of one-person households in the capital city increased more than 9 percent between 2007 and 2011, whereas the number of households with more than four members decreased by nearly 4.5 percent in the same period.The number of one-person households i

Social Affairs Oct. 28, 2012

Another act of vandalism hit South Korea's consulate general in New York after two similar cases claiming Japan's ownership of the South Korean islets of Dokdo affected the diplomatic mission and a South Korean monument in New Jersey, consulate officials said Saturday.The South Korean consulate in Manhattan said its officials found a white wooden stake reading Dokdo "belongs to Japanese territory" at the entrance of its consular section office on Saturday. The consulate reported it to the police

Social Affairs Oct. 28, 2012

South Korea might need 10 more years to see its per-capita income exceed US$30,000 as an elongated low growth trend and other economic structural problems are dimming the overall outlooks, a private think tank said Sunday.South Korea's per-capita income seems to be "trapped" in the $20,000 range five years after it surpassed the mark for the first time in 2007, as the growth rate has remained stagnant over the past years, according to a report by the Hyundai Research Institute.From 2007 to 2011,

Oct. 28, 2012

Authorities in Florida said a 49-year-old homeless man allegedly cheated Disney out of more than $18,000 by using the same credit card scam at least 26 times.The Orange County Sheriff's Office said Jeffery Hawkins, 49 -- who was arrested Tuesday on charges of credit card fraud, trafficking in stolen credit cards and defrauding an innkeeper -- allegedly told deputies he has spent the past 10 years moving from hotel to hotel and booking rooms with stolen credit card numbers, the Orlando Sentinel r

Travel Oct. 28, 2012

Doctors in Germany said Friday they had removed a tumor weighing 28 kilogram’s (62 pounds) from a 60-year-old woman who had previously been diagnosed as obese.A spokesman from the university clinic in the eastern city of Dresden said the woman, Irmtraud Eichler, had made a full recovery after the seven-hour operation and was now able to walk again with crutches.The so-called "borderline" tumor, measuring 60 centimeters (24 inches) by 50 centimeters, attached itself to an ovary and Eichler began

Technology Oct. 28, 2012

A 2-inch chunk of a meteor that exploded dramatically over California struck the roof of the home of a minister, his wife said."It's wonderful. It's like the heavens coming down, and this thing probably came from an asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. I mean, how cool is that?" said Lisa Webber of the rock that bounced off the roof of her husband's study Thursday night and onto the lawn of their Novato, Calif., home.Peter Webber is pastor of Presbyterian Church of Novato, the San Francisco C

World News Oct. 25, 2012

Hyundai Motor Co. suffered a fall in third quarter profit versus the previous quarter after strikes dented vehicle production.South Korea's largest automaker said Thursday net profit fell 15 percent from the April-June quarter to 2.16 trillion won ($1.96 billion). It was Hyundai's first sequential drop in quarterly profit in a year.  The result, which matched forecasts, was still a 13 percent rise over a year earlier.  Its operating profit fell 18 percent from the second quarter to 2.05 trillion

Mobility Oct. 25, 2012