Five vehicle models produced by South Korean automaker Hyundai Motor Co. and its smaller affiliate Kia Motors Corp. have been named best cars by U.S. consumers, the automakers said Thursday.In a survey conducted by J.D. Power and Associates, a U.S. marketing information service firm, the Hyundai Tucson was named the best small SUV, beating the Volkswagen Tiguan and all other competitors in the segment, according to Hyundai.The survey was conducted on those who purchased a new car between Novembe

Mobility July 28, 2016

Police said Thursday they are investigating scores of Kim Jong-il badges found at a hotel near Incheon International Airport, South Korea's main gateway.Grand Hyatt Incheon, located right next to the airport, reported to police at around 6:25 a.m. that the coin-sized lapel pins were found in front of the hotel. There were a total of 196 badges, according to police.The production and distribution of lapel pins bearing the images of North Korea's two late leaders, Kim Il-sung and his son, Kim Jong

North Korea July 28, 2016

South Korean firms sharply reduced bond issuance in the first half of 2016, yet another sign of their worsening financial health amid a drawn-out economic slump, a government tally showed Thursday.The value of ordinary corporate bonds issued in the six months totaled 18.9 trillion won ($16.7 billion), down 18.9 percent from a year earlier, according to the Financial Supervisory Service.They preferred gilt-edged bonds. Among non-guaranteed corporate bonds issued during the period, worth 18.87 tri

July 28, 2016

Naver Corp., South Korea's largest internet portal, said Thursday its second-quarter net profit jumped 71.8 percent from a year earlier, thanks to a solid gain in mobile ad revenue. Naver reported a net profit of 213.2 billion won ($189.2 million) for the April-June quarter, compared with a profit of 124 billion won for the same period last year. Second-quarter operating profit rose 44 percent on year to 272.6 billion won. Sales gained 26.3 percent to 987.2 billion won, the company said in a reg

July 28, 2016

A Japanese government-funded private foundation was launched in South Korea on Thursday to compensate women who were sexually enslaved by Japan more than seven decades ago, a move aimed at ending one of the neighbors' long-running diplomatic feuds stemming from Tokyo's past colonization of the Korean Peninsula.The formation of the Reconciliation and Healing Foundation is the result of the landmark deal reached on Dec. 28 to once and for all end the row over the sexually enslaved women, euphemist

Social Affairs July 28, 2016

Samsung Electronics Co. reported its biggest quarterly operating profit in more than two years Thursday, boosted by robust sales of its latest premium smartphone and cost-cutting efforts. The world's largest maker of smartphones and semiconductors earned 8.14 trillion won ($7.19 billion) in the April-June period, up 18.06 percent from the same period the year before. Second-quarter net profit rose 1.65 percent on year to 5.84 trillion won. Sales gained 4.94 percent to 50.9 trillion won, Samsung

July 28, 2016

Exports of South Korea-made cars sank 13.1 percent in the second quarter from a year earlier due mainly to contracted demand from emerging countries and intensified market competition, customs data showed Thursday.The total value of car exports reached $9.6 billion over the April-June period, down 13.1 from $11.1 billion tallied a year earlier, according to the data by the Korea Customs Service.Meanwhile, that of imports jumped 21.5 percent on-year to $3 billion from $2.4 billion over the cited

Mobility July 28, 2016

Three North Koreans who worked in the European Union country of Malta but were forced out defected to South Korea last summer, sources familiar with the matter said Thursday.Two North Korean restaurant workers disappeared last summer and one North Korean construction worker went missing in the first half of this year. They are presumed to have defected to the South, according to local residents of the island nation and the intelligence community. The defection, if true, may indicate that a growi

North Korea July 28, 2016

Ssangyong Motor Co., the South Korean unit of Indian carmaker Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., will recall over 2,600 units of its flagship Korando C sport utility vehicle sold here for faulty seatbelts that may be too loose to keep passengers safe, the transportation ministry said Thursday.The car is one of six vehicle models, including two types of two-wheeled vehicles and a commercial truck, from five separate manufacturers that failed government tests, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastruct

Mobility July 28, 2016

Samsung C&T Corp., the largest builder in South Korea in terms of sales, has been named the best builder in terms of building capacity, the government said Thursday.The construction unit of the country's top conglomerate Samsung was ranked top among 56,067 local construction firms evaluated, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.Those evaluated account for about 90 percent of 62,533 construction firms here.Samsung C&T took the top position for the third consecutive year

Industry July 28, 2016

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump vowed again Wednesday to renegotiate trade and defense deals the U.S. has with other countries."I would renegotiate so much of everything. I'm going to renegotiate our trade deals where we're losing with everybody," Trump said at a news conference in Florida. "I'm going to renegotiate our military deals where we're protecting countries and they're not living up to the bargain."Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. (Yonhap)Renegotiating existin

International July 28, 2016

U.S. National Security Adviser Susan Rice clearly explained to Chinese officials that the THAAD missile defense system the U.S. plans to deploy in South Korea won't hurt China's security interests, and both sides achieved "a certain amount of clarity on that," a senior official said.The official, speaking during a background briefing in Beijing, said that Chinese officials did raise their concerns about the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system during Rice's trip to Beijing that included me

Defense July 28, 2016

South Korea and the United States agreed Wednesday to make intensive efforts in the coming months to cut off cash flows into North Korea so as to limit Pyongyang's ability to develop nuclear weapons, a top South Korean official said.The agreement was reached when South Korea's deputy national security advisor, Cho Tae-yong, and U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Tony Blinken held the third round of high-level strategic consultations on North Korea policy in Washington."We agreed on the need to furth

North Korea July 28, 2016