The international community needs to exert all-out pressure on North Korea at present but also should not rule out an option for engagement with Pyongyang over the long haul, an ex-Korean point man on unification said Monday.Former Unification Minister Ryoo Kihl-Jae said dialogue with North Korea needs to be considered in the long term as the effect of sanctions will better materialize if there is some sort of parallel engagement policy."For now, an all-out pressure on North Korea is inevitable

North Korea Nov. 14, 2016

South Korea and the United States met in Seoul on Monday to discuss ways to improve human rights conditions in North Korea and other pending issues, the foreign ministry said.The North Korea human rights consultative meeting was attended by Kim Yong-hyon, director-general of the Korean Peninsula peace regime bureau, and Ambassador Robert King, Washington's special envoy for North Korean human rights issues, according to the ministry.The meeting marked the second of its kind following their first

North Korea Nov. 14, 2016

Apartment supply hit a record high this year in the month of October, but the sum of "collective lending," a system in which financial institutions lend money to home buyers in groups, fell as the government took the reins to control spiking household debt, the latest tally showed Monday.Figures collected and released by financial authorities said the country's four leading commercial banks approved 2.53 trillion won ($2.17 billion) in collective loans in October, the second-lowest sum this year

Nov. 14, 2016

President Park Geun-hye on Monday accepted a proposal by the main opposition party leader for bilateral talks, her office Cheong Wa Dae said, raising hopes for the easing of a political crisis sparked by a corruption scandal involving her close confidante.Park will hold bilateral talks with Choo Mi-ae, the leader of the Democratic Party, on Tuesday.Early in the morning, Choo made an overture to Han Gwang-ok, the presidential chief of staff, to hold talks over the ongoing political deadlock.The p

Politics Nov. 14, 2016

South Korea's highest income tax rate for high-income earners is already higher than the average of OECD states, a report said Monday, opposing a move by opposition lawmakers to further raise the rate for the highest income earners.The report from the Korea Economic Research Institute (KERI) noted the country's highest possible income tax rate currently stands at 38 percent, compared with the average 35.9 percent of all member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Developmen

Nov. 14, 2016

The number of people preparing to seek jobs, a group that some economists see as the same as unemployed, increased to a record level for the month of October, according to Statistics Korea on Monday.The would-be job seekers are different from the unemployed in that they are not yet actively looking for work but studying and getting ready to apply for jobs. Their number in October reached 650,000, the highest since record keeping began in 2003 by the state statistical office. The latest figure is

Nov. 14, 2016

South Korean shares opened slightly lower Monday amid uncertainties triggered by Donald Trump's unexpected win in the US presidential election.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index lost 2.47 points, or 0.13 percent, to 1,986.95 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Most large-cap stocks were mixed across the board.Market bellwether Samsung Electronics fell 1.44 percent while No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix was up 0.50 percent. Top automaker Hyundai Motor advanced 0.38 percent and its auto parts

Nov. 14, 2016

Minors of conglomerates' owner families hold over 100 billion won (US$85.88 million) worth of stocks in affiliate companies, a report provided Monday by the Fair Trade Commission showed, a business practice that is legal but denounced nonetheless as a means of dodging taxes and retaining management control.According to the report submitted to the parliamentary committee on finance, 43 underage family members at 16 large business groups held stocks in 37 affiliates as of April 1 this year. The va

Nov. 14, 2016

Rep. Choo Mi-ae, leader of the main opposition Democratic Party, on Monday proposed talks with President Park Geun-hye to discuss a way to address a political impasse sparked by a corruption scandal involving the president's longtime confidante.Her party officials said Choo made the overture for dialogue to Han Gwang-ok, Park's chief of staff, early this morning.The proposal followed the weekend's massive rally in downtown Seoul, which called for Park's resignation. The Democratic Party, along w

Politics Nov. 14, 2016

South Korea face Uzbekistan this week in a crucial match on their road to the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.South Korea will be the host at Seoul World Cup Stadium at 8 p.m. Tuesday. The two countries will play their fifth match in the final Asian qualifying round for the World Cup.Both South Korea and Uzbekistan are in Group A, where they also compete against Iran, Qatar, Syria and China.South Korea, 44th in the latest FIFA rankings, boast a dominant head-to-head record against No. 48 Uzbekista

Soccer Nov. 14, 2016

US President-elect Donald Trump on Sunday named Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus to be his first White House chief of staff.Trump also named his campaign CEO Steve Bannon to serve as his chief strategist."I am thrilled to have my very successful team continue with me in leading our country," Trump said in a statement. "Steve and Reince are highly qualified leaders who worked well together on our campaign and led us to a historic victory. Now I will have them both with me in

World News Nov. 14, 2016