South Korea's main bourse said on Sunday it has asked 175 of listed companies to disclose key management decisions and other information in English starting this week, a move meant to boost foreign shareholders' value.The 175 firms, or about 23 percent, of all 769 companies listed on the main stock exchange are also asked to release earnings results, forecasts and investment decisions in English from Monday in its own KIND regulatory filing system, the Korea Exchange said in a statement."There h

May 8, 2016

Debts owed by South Korea's three major shipbuilders more than doubled over a period of five years ending in 2015 due to disadvantageous contract terms, according to their business reports Sunday.The combined borrowings by Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Samsung Heavy Industries Co., and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. jumped to 23.9 trillion won ($20.68 billion) at the end of 2015 from 10 trillion won at end-2010, the data showed.Industry analysts said a sharp increase in the so-call

May 8, 2016

South Korea's automobile exports extended their losing streak to six straight months in April due mainly to shrinking demand from emerging markets, the government said Sunday.Outbound shipments of vehicles came to 228,502 units last month, down 19 percent from 282,044 units tallied a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.The April figure widened from a 5.1 percent on-year drop in March and an 8.4 percent fall in February.From a month earlier, it also fell 12.8 per

Industry May 8, 2016

Tourist arrivals here from Japan rose for the second consecutive month in March, industry data showed Sunday.According to the data released by the Korea Tourism Organization, a total of 224,328 Japanese tourists visited South Korea in March, marking a rise of 55.3 percent over the previous month and a year-on-year increase of 2.5 percent from 218,932 in the same month of 2015.In February, 144,493 Japanese came to visit South Korea, rising 1.3 percent from 142,587 recorded a year earlier.Before F

May 8, 2016

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has vowed not to use nuclear weapons first unless the country's sovereignty is violated at the North's key party congress, the country's state-run media said Sunday.At the ongoing party congress of the Workers' Party of Korea, the North's leader also said that Pyongyang will seek to "improve and normalize" its relations with countries that will ditch their hostile policy toward it. (Yonhap)"As a responsible nuclear weapons state, our republic will not use a nuclea

North Korea May 8, 2016

A woman who discarded her newborn baby in a plastic bag was sentenced to 1 1/2 years in prison suspended for three years Wednesday by the Suwon District Court.  (Yonhap)The 26-year-old woman surnamed Hong was indicted in August 2015 for discarding her baby girl in a black plastic bag in the veranda of her apartment. She had given birth in the bathroom of her residence in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province. The baby was rescued by a passerby who heard her wail and reported Hong to the authorities. The Suw

Social Affairs May 4, 2016

The murder victim whose dismembered body was found in Gyeonggi Province’s Daebudo Island is a 40-year-old Korean, according to the police who confirmed the victim’s identity through his fingerprints. The Ansan Danwon police, who is in charge of the case, will keep the rest of the victim’s personal information confidential until the case is closed. (Yonhap)According to the police, the victim was yet to be reported missing, which led the police to assume he had no family or had separated.The Natio

Social Affairs May 4, 2016

A Korean man was arrested along with four Thai females for brokering sex trade on Wednesday. The 31-year-old man surnamed Park had used a smartphone chatting application to arrange paid sex between the Thai women and Korean men since February. (123RF)The Mokpo Police said Park had used a suggestive profile photos to attract male customers. Each meeting cost 100,000 won ($86) to 150,000 won at motels and rented flats in Mokpo, South Jeolla Province. The Thai women were turned over to the Korea Im

Social Affairs May 4, 2016

A new suspect for the Jejudo Korean-Chinese murder case has surfaced from surveillance camera records shared by the victim’s Chinese bank on Wednesday. The police are trying to confirm the identity of the man who was photographed using the victim’s debit card at an ATM.  (Yonhap)The Jeju Seogwipo police said they found a photo of a man withdrawing 2 million won ($1,730) from an ATM with the victim’s debit card, around the end of last year when the victim went missing. The man in the photo wore a

Social Affairs May 4, 2016

South Korea plans to sell 3 trillion won ($2.6 billion) worth of Treasury bills this month to help stabilize the money market and cover government expenses, the finance ministry said Wednesday.The bills will have a maturity of 63 days and will be sold in three separate auctions throughout the month, it added.Treasury bills are designed to raise money to cover short-term financial shortfalls, and thus are generally sold with a maturity of less than a year.Following the planned sales of additional

May 4, 2016

The number of visitors allowed for the nighttime stroll at Changdeokgung Palace in Seoul will increase from the original 100 to 150 per session, the Cultural Heritage Administration announced Wednesday. Additional 700 tickets for the increased spots in May and June will go on sale from Friday at 1 p.m. at Interpark, the online shopping mall for event tickets. (http://ticket.interpark.com/Ticket/Goods/GoodsInfo.asp?GoodsCode=16001708)Each ticket is priced 30,000 won ($26).  (Cultural Heritage Adm

Expat Living May 4, 2016

A five-day outdoor beer festival took off Wednesday at Coex Mall, Gangnam, heralding the beginning of a rare long-weekend holiday in Korea. At the Great Korean Beer Festival 2016, homegrown craft beer brands introduced their own specialty brews enriched with hints of coconut, chocolate and raspberries. Beer of all types -- IPAs, lager, ale and stout -- are available at individual brewery booths for purchase. (Great Korean Beer Festival)Food that goes well with the beers -- like sausages and frie

Expat Living May 4, 2016

A majority of companies estimate increased corporate taxes this year from last year and expect to pay more when new tax codes become effective in 2017, a survey said Wednesday.Responses drawn by the Federation of Korean Industries, in its survey of 200 company officials in charge of tax filings, said 61.5 percent reported higher corporate taxes this year than last. Another 67 percent said they see taxes rising next year under new codes that reduced allowed write-offs for carryover business losse

May 4, 2016