The presidential office Cheong Wa Dae on Thursday urged parliament to promptly carry out cross-party negotiations to decide when and how President Park Geun-hye will resign over a high-profile corruption scandal involving herself and her longtime friend.Earlier this week, the embattled leader pledged to bow out in accordance with a timetable and procedures which she asked the National Assembly to set up in a way that minimizes any vacuum in state affairs. (Yonhap)"We hope the National Assembly w

Politics Dec. 1, 2016

South Korea posted a current account surplus for the 56th straight month in October but suffered a decline due to sluggish outbound shipments, central bank data showed Thursday.The current account surplus reached $8.72 billion in October, compared with a $9.58 billion surplus a year earlier, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK).But the October figure marks a rise from $8.07 billion in September. The current account is the biggest measure of cross-border trade.It said th

Dec. 1, 2016

The number of one-man operations in South Korea swung to an upturn in the third quarter of this year, government data showed Thursday, apparently as more people set up shop for "non-voluntary" reasons amid a prolonged economic slump.The country's mom-and-pop businesses, which don't hire workers, numbered 4.09 million as of the end of September, up 1.3 percent from a year earlier, according to the data by Statistics Korea. This photo, taken on Aug. 4, 2016, shows a group of self-employed people h

Dec. 1, 2016

South Korea's consumer prices gained more than 1 percent for the third month in a row in November on high prices of fresh groceries, government data showed Thursday.The country's consumer price index rose 1.3 percent last month from a year earlier, unchanging from the previous month's 1.3 percent gain, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. Flower vending machine (Photo courtesy of the Korea Agro-Fisheries and Food Trade Corporation)The inflation has stayed over the 1 percent level

Dec. 1, 2016

Ssangyong Motor Co., the local unit of Indian automaker Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., is recalling some 5,200 vehicles sold here for issues related to the car's front bumper shock absorbers, the transportation ministry said Thursday.According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the shock absorber may break due to a manufacturing defect, upsetting the balance of the car should part of the absorber also become detached. The 2017 Korando Turismo (Photo courtesy of Ssangyong Motor)The

Mobility Dec. 1, 2016

President Park Geun-hye on Wednesday appointed former chief of the Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office Park Young-soo as the independent counsel to probe into her alleged involvement in the influence-peddling of her confidante Choi Soon-sil.The independent counsel, which is to substitute the ongoing prosecutorial investigation, is to go through preparatory procedures for the next 20 days, after which it will carry out an in-depth probe for 70 days, or 100 days upon the president’s approval for an ext

Politics Nov. 30, 2016

The net asset of South Korea's overseas investment funds last week hit a record high of 88.2 trillion won ($75.4 billion) in nearly nine years, government data showed Wednesday.It marked the highest since Dec. 6, 2007, when the corresponding figure came to 87.8 trillion won, according to data compiled by the Korea Financial Investment Association. This photo, taken on Aug. 4, 2016, shows a group of self-employed people holding a press conference in front of the National Assembly in Seoul to call

Nov. 30, 2016

Foreign shippers have increased their market shares in major global shipping routes following the bankruptcy of Hanjin Shipping Co., defying expectations that its Korean peer Hyundai Merchant Marine Co. would secure a chunk of Hanjin's share, data showed Wednesday. Hanjin accounted for 7.78 percent of the Asia-US shipping route in October last year, but its share plunged to 1.1 percent in October this year, according to the data by the Busan Port Authority. The data showed the vacuum created fro

Industry Nov. 30, 2016

South Korea's state financial watchdog said Wednesday it has established a consolidated monitoring system for the nation's credit unions and other financial cooperatives.There have been difficulties in regulating the industry vulnerable to financial accidents and breaches, with 2,263 firms, mostly small, operating nationwide, according to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). A file photo of the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives' building. (Yonhap)The FSS launched the Advanced Det

Nov. 30, 2016

South Korea's net external assets in debt instruments hit a record high of $383.5 billion in the third quarter, data showed Wednesday.The figure represents an increase of $25.7 billion from the previous quarter, according to the data by the Bank of Korea.The nation's total external liability reached $400.4 billion in the third quarter, up $8.6 billion from a quarter earlier.Among them, the country's short-term external debt, with a maturity of one year or less, totaled $111.8 billion as of the e

Nov. 30, 2016