The Korea Herald

Prosecutors raid 8 construction material firms over price-rigging

Korean prosecutors on Tuesday raided the offices of eight local firms that manufacture construction materials to determine if they rigged prices of their products.The move aims to determine if companies deliberately fixed prices that distorted the free market and hurt other firms and consumers that used their products.Investigators raided offices of the firms and homes of senior executives, and confiscated documents and other materials, which they think will help determine the validity of the pr

Social Affairs May 24, 2016

Korean street dancer snatches ticket to 'World of Dance' competition

Korean singer and contemporary dancer Nam Hyun-joon, better known by his stage name Poppin' Hyun Joon, has secured a ticket to a global dancing competition in the United States, his agency said on Tuesday.The 37-year-old dancer, famous for his popping techniques, and his teammates won second place in the preliminary competition in Korea on Saturday, according to his management company Happy Face Entertainment.In Korea, Nam is considered to be one of the first-generation K-pop street dancers, alo

People May 24, 2016

PM returns from overseas trip

Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn returned from his overseas trip to Uzbekistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey on Tuesday, after expanding Seoul's diplomatic ties and fostering business opportunities for local firms.During his trip, Hwang met Uzbekistan Prime Minister Shavkat Mirziyoyev and agreed to expand economic cooperation between Seoul and Tashkent. It marked the first time in eight years for a Korean prime minister to visit the Central Asian country. He also visited Saudi Arabia in an apparent bid t

Diplomatic Circuit May 24, 2016

Hyundai pushes to extend Ioniq Electric's range to 400 km by 2020

Hyundai Motor Co., Korea's top automaker, has been stepping up collaboration with leading battery makers to extend its electric vehicle's driving range to 400 kilometers on a single charge by 2020, company officials said Tuesday. Hyundai is set to officially launch the Ioniq Electric next month, which topped the nation's fuel economy test with a 191 km range on a single charge earlier in the day. Hyundai Motor's new electric vehicle model, the Ioniq Electric (Yonhap)Its range was evaluated at 20

Industry May 24, 2016

Hyundai pushes to extend Ioniq Electric's range to 400 km by 2020

N. Korea uses women on TV to push forward anti-smoking campaign

North Korea has cast women in a TV program to push forward an anti-smoking campaign, Pyongyang observers here said Tuesday.North Korea's Central TV Station aired a 40-minute-long public service announcement program on Friday titled "The Extra Quality Favorite Item Threatening Life," North Korea watchers said.In the video, a narrator from the TV station explained about the dangers of smoking, saying, "Today, our North Korean women do not smoke at all, so we have met many women to hear various opi

North Korea May 24, 2016

Korean envoy receives award from Rome

Korean Ambassador to Italy Lee Yong-joon on Monday received a Premio Simpatia 2016 award from the Rome city government for his contributions to disseminating Korean culture in the European country.Lee is the first Korean diplomat to receive the award in the ceremony held at the city hall. He was honored for his contributions to spreading Korean culture among Italians since his appointment as ambassador to Rome in May last year.Lee successfully operated the Korean Pavilion at the 2015 Milan Expo,

Diplomatic Circuit May 24, 2016

Seoul shares dip to 3-month low on looming Fed rate hike

Korean stocks closed 0.9 percent lower Tuesday as concerns about a potential U.S. rate hike weighed on market sentiment here. The local currency sharply fell against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) dropped 17.57 points to 1,937.68, the lowest since late February. A total of 511 million shares were traded, worth 4.9 trillion won ($4.2 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 582 to 247. (Yonhap)Foreigners and institutional investors sold a net 120 billion

May 24, 2016

Seoul shares dip to 3-month low on looming Fed rate hike

Pangyo Techno Valley posts over 70 trillion won in sales in 2015

The Korean version of Silicon Valley crossed the 70 trillion won ($59 billion) line in gross sales for the first time last year, a report from a think tank of the Gyeonggi provincial government said Tuesday.The number of companies operating at Pangyo Techno Valley, just south of Seoul, reached 1,121 as of the end of last year, up 119 firms or 11.9 percent on-year. Their total sales recorded 70.27 trillion won, also up 1.3 percent from a year before, according to the Gyeonggi Institute of Science

Industry May 24, 2016

Pangyo Techno Valley posts over 70 trillion won in sales in 2015

Korean designers to open pop-up store in Paris

Ten Korean designers will open a pop-up store at a renowned concept store in Paris next month, a local design foundation said Tuesday.The Seoul Design Foundation said the store, named "Seoul's 10Soul," will open at L'eclaireur in Paris on June 22 and run for three weeks.The designers include those who participated in Seoul Fashion Week, including D. Gnak, Heich es Heich, Nohke and Moohong. "We created the opportunity for the designers' clothes to be actually sold to customers," said Jung Ku-ho w

Arts & Design May 24, 2016

Korea's Cabinet passes anti-terrorism bill

Korea's Cabinet on Tuesday approved a package of new bills, including the country's first comprehensive anti-terrorism bill that the government stresses is critical for safeguarding the country from acts of violence spreading across the globe.The bill approved in the Cabinet meeting, chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Yoo Il-ho, provides the National Intelligence Service with access to personal information, including financial transactions of terrorism suspects.It also includes plans on establishi

Politics May 24, 2016

Single stock account to be available for foreigners

Korea will introduce a single account system in a pilot program to make it more convenient for foreign investors to trade stock here, the financial regulator said Tuesday. Under the "omnibus account" system, offshore institutional investors can open a single account at a local securities company to handle stock trading of their clients in Korea.Under the new system, they receive trading orders for Korean stocks from their clients and place the orders with the securities company where they have a

May 24, 2016

Single stock account to be available for foreigners

Korea to launch FTA negotiations with Israel next month

Korea said Tuesday that it has come to an agreement with Israel to begin negotiations next month on a free trade deal that could further boost bilateral trade.The first round of negotiations is set for June 27 in Seoul.The decision was reached in a meeting between South Korea's vice trade minister Woo Tae-hee and a senior Israeli official in Jerusalem, according to South Korea.Korea and Israel began talks on a free trade deal in 2009, but progress has been slow amid Seoul's efforts to seal free

May 24, 2016

Korea to launch FTA negotiations with Israel next month

[생활꼼수] 콘돔, 이렇게 써보라

국내외를 막론하고 ‘알뜰족’을 중심으로 생활 꿀팁 정보들이 빠르게 퍼져 나가고 있다.해외에서는 ‘lifehack’이라 불리며 많은 관심을 받는 생활 팁, 알뜰족을 위한, 알뜰족에 의한 ‘생활꼼수’ 총정리!생활꼼수 첫 번째로, 해외 온라인매체 ‘That Viral Feed’가 지난 20일 전한 콘돔의 색다른 사용법을 소개한다.피임기구인 콘돔을 이용해 열리지 않는 병뚜껑 열기 등 일상생활에서 맞닥뜨리는 문제 해결에 쓰는 것인데, 알고 있다면 유용하게 쓰일 수 있는 ‘꼼수’다. 　1. 병뚜껑 열기돌려서 개봉하는 병뚜껑이 너무 꽉 조여져 애먹은 경험은 누구나 있을 텐데, 콘돔을 이용하면 간단하게 해결된다고 한다. 방법은 간단하다. 윤활제가 없는 콘돔을 병뚜껑에 씌우고 돌리기만 하면 끝. 설명에 따르면, 콘돔을 사용해 손과 병뚜껑이 직접 닿는 것을 막아 피부의 수분 때문에 손이 미끄러지는 것을 방지하고, 마찰을 높여 손쉽게 뚜껑을 개봉할 수 있다고 한다. 　2. 임시 방수반창고 이것 또한 매

한국어판 May 24, 2016

Internet banking users, transactions rise in Q1

Korea's Internet banking service industry continued to rise at a fast clip in the first quarter with both the number of users and daily transactions reaching record highs, central bank data showed Tuesday.In the three months ended March 31, the number of Internet and mobile banking service users came to 119.8 million, up 2.5 percent from the previous quarter, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK).The number is the sum of all registered users of 17 Internet and mobile banking service

May 24, 2016

Internet banking users, transactions rise in Q1

KDI cuts 2016 growth outlook to 2.6 pct

Korea's top state-run think tank revised down its growth outlook for the local economy Tuesday, citing a continued slump in exports and sluggish demand at home and abroad.The Korea Development Institute (KDI) said Asia's fourth-largest economy was expected to expand 2.6 percent this year, down from 3 percent forecast six months earlier.The latest projection is the most pessimistic outlook yet offered by a local institute. Bank of Korea (Yonhap)The Bank of Korea predicted 2.8 percent growth in it

May 24, 2016

Articles by 최희석