LG Electronics Co., a South Korean smartphone maker, on Thursday revealed its newest smartphone model, the G Pro 2, paving the way for the country's No. 2 tech giant to expand its share in the large display smartphone market.LG's phablet, a cross between a smartphone and tablet PC, boasts a 5.9-inch display, larger than its predecessor's 5.5-inch screen, and will compete with rival products such as the Galaxy Note series manufactured by Samsung Electronics Co., the world's largest maker of smart

Technology Feb. 13, 2014

South Korean girl group 2NE1 will release a new album this month, the group's management agency said Thursday."We will upload the group's second full-length album, 'Crush,' on major online music services at midnight on Feb. 24," Yang Hyun-suk, chief of YG Entertainment, said in a posting on the company's official blog. The album will hit the shelves of local record stores a week later, he added."2NE1 released its first full-length album in September 2010, made by simply adding a few new songs to

Feb. 13, 2014

South Korea's central bank froze the key interest rate for the ninth consecutive month on Thursday amid caution against emerging market unrest sparked by the U.S. monetary stimulus cut.Bank of Korea Gov. Kim Choong-soo and his six fellow policymakers held the benchmark seven-day repo rate, called the base rate, at 2.5 percent, as widely expected.The BOK said that it will pay close attention to developments in external risk factors such as shifts in major countries' monetary policies and market u

Feb. 13, 2014

South Korea's leading listed companies suffered bigger growth setbacks in 2013 compared to the post-global crisis year of 2009, a report compiled by conglomerates' lobbying group said Thursday.The report by the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI) said sales growth numbers for the 148 large listed companies were poorer than those for the 1,536 non-financial sector businesses traded on the country's main and secondary stock exchanges.Large companies refer to businesses with annual sales exceedin

Feb. 13, 2014

 U.S. President Barack Obama plans to visit South Korea in April for talks with President Park Geun-hye about the alliance between the two countries, North Korea's nuclear program and other issues, the White House said Wednesday.The visit is part of a four-nation trip that also includes stops in Japan, Malaysia and the Philippines, the White House said in a statement. With the full itinerary yet to be announced, he is expected to stay in South Korea for two days from April 23 following his trip

Foreign Affairs Feb. 13, 2014

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will seek to make sure that there is no disparity between Seoul and Washington on ways of dealing with North Korea, when he travels to Seoul this week, officials said Wednesday."The secretary's focus is on close coordination on North Korea, he will reaffirm our alliance commitments as well as our resolve to work closely together with the Republic of Korea to promote denuclearization and to maintain deterrence, " a senior U.S. government official told reporters

Foreign Affairs Feb. 13, 2014

It was another unproductive day at the Sochi Winter Olympics for South Korea as a speed skating medal hopeful struggled on ice and the women's curling team fell to the top-ranked opponent.Mo Tae-bum finished the men's 1,000 meters in 12th place in 1:09.37, nearly a full second worse than the champion, Stefan Groothuis of the Netherlands. Mo won the silver in the same event four years ago in Vancouver, but walked away without a medal this time.On Monday, he ended the 500ｍ in fourth place, failing

Olympic Games Feb. 13, 2014

Shim Suk-hee, a 17-year-old short track phenom, will try to win her first Olympic medal in the women's 500 meters on Thursday.Shim, Park Seung-hi and Kim A-lang have reached the quarterfinals in the 500ｍ. The quarters, the semis and the finals will all take place Thursday.Shim has mostly dominated the 1,000ｍ and the 1,500ｍ events this season, while struggling with her starts in the 500ｍ. However, she may have a shot at a medal in the short distance event, too, with Wang Meng of China, the reigni

Olympic Games Feb. 13, 2014

서울 방배경찰서는 12일 남편이 숨진 뒤 약 7년간 시신을 집안에 그대로 유기한 혐의(사체유기)로 A(47ㆍ여) 씨를 불구속입건했다고 12일 밝혔다.경찰에 따르면 약사인 A 씨는 남편의 시신을 수년간 서울 서초구 방배동의 집 안 거실에 보관한 혐의를 받고 있다. 경찰은 부검 결과 등을 토대로 남편이 2007년 초(당시 43) 간암으로 사망한 것으로 추정하고 있다.경찰이 남편의 시신을 발견했을 당시 거실 카펫 위에 이불을 덮고 누워 있었으며 A 씨가 주기적으로 옷을 갈아입힌 듯 깔끔한 옷차림이었다.시신은 다소 부패한 냄새가 나긴 했지만 7년간 보관된 시신이라고 보기 어려울 정도로 깨끗했던 것으로 전해졌다.경찰은 “A 씨가 시신을 방부처리한 것 아닌지 의심은 가지만 부검결과로는 방부 처리 여부를 알 수 없었고 본인이 부인하고 있어 좀 더 확인이 필요하다”고 말했다.A 씨는 10∼20대 자녀 3명, 시누이와 함께 살고 있었으며 가족들은 시신에 인사를 하는 등 평소와 다름 없이 생활했던 것

한국어판 Feb. 13, 2014

South Korea's jobless rate rose in January, but job creation accelerated sharply, indicating that more people came out to search for work amid signs that the economy is recovering, a government report showed Wednesday.According to the report by Statistics Korea, the jobless rate stood at 3.5 percent last month, up from 3 percent in December. The seasonally adjusted jobless rate also inched up from 3.1 percent to 3.2 percent.Job creation, however, quickened sharply. The number of employed people

Business Feb. 12, 2014

Speed skater Mo Tae-bum, who finished fourth in the men's 500 meters on Monday, will seek to redeem himself in the 1,000ｍ on Wednesday.He won the silver in the 1,000ｍ in Vancouver four years ago, behind the American star Shani Davis.Mo came up short in his Olympic title defense in the 500ｍ on Monday, as a trio of Dutch skaters swept the podium, led by the champ Michel Mulder.The women's curling team, making the Olympic debut, will play its third round robin match against Sweden. Cho Jung-myung a

Olympic Games Feb. 12, 2014