The government will selectively allow South Korean business professionals to visit North Korea for checks on their past investments there, an official said Wednesday, amid a prolonged suspension of trade with the communist state following its deadly attack on a Southern naval ship last year.For business purposes, these individuals will also be allowed to meet their North Korean counterparts in a t

North Korea June 29, 2011

PARIS (AP) -- Christine Lagarde has traveled tirelessly to save the euro and blazed a trail for women from Chicago to Paris in halls of power long dominated by men.The French finance minister with a broad grin and long stride now faces her toughest job yet: heading the International Monetary Fund. She takes over a post vacated by a man accused of attempting to rape a New York hotel maid just as th

World Business June 29, 2011

WASHINGTON (Yonhap News) -- U.S. President Barack Obama has reached a deal with congressional Republicans on the terms of the Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) program, clearing a major obstacle to the ratification of bilateral trade pacts with Korea, Colombia and Panama, the White House announced Tuesday."As a result of extensive negotiations, we now have an agreement on the underlying terms for

Politics June 29, 2011

WASHINGTON (Yonhap News)-- The incoming top American military commander in Korea said Tuesday that the United States and Korea should prepare for the possibility of a regime collapse in North Korea.In his Senate Armed Services Committee confirmation hearing, Gen. James Thurman, the nominee to lead 28,000 U.S. forces in Korea, raised doubts over the North's heir apparent, Kim Jong-un, who is said t

North Korea June 29, 2011

MOSCOW (Yonhap News) -- North Korea and Russia appear to have canceled their plan to hold talks between their leaders later this week, multiple sources here said Tuesday following a series of media reports of the possibility of a trip to Russia by the North's leader, Kim Jong-il."It's my understanding that a summit between Chairman Kim Jong-il and President Dmitry Mevedev was known to be scheduled

North Korea June 29, 2011

WASHINGTON (AFP) – Male mice who were exposed as babies to BPA, a chemical common in canned foods and plastic containers, act more like females and are seen as less desirable mates, a US study showed on Monday.The findings could have implications for how BPA, or Bisphenol A, may affect human development and behavior, said the study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences."

Technology June 28, 2011

WASHINGTON (Yonhap News) -- Despite North Korea's reported tightening of border security to block the defection of its hunger-stricken people, the communist nation has made no efforts to prevent human trafficking by screening migrants along its porous border with China and Russia, the U.S. said Monday.In its annual Global Trafficking in Persons report, the State Department ranked North Korea once

North Korea June 28, 2011

A 4-month-old toddler in Missouri, U.S., lost seven of his fingers to a hungry pet ferret while his parents were out.Doctors had to amputate his fingers as they were in critical condition, leaving only two thumbs and a pinky.The parents, who allegedly claimed that they woke up after hearing their child screaming, have been charged with first-degree child endangerment.Although Ryan Waldo and Carrie

June 19, 2011

Six out of 10 workers feel they are loners in the office, according to a survey.In research conducted by Saramin, a local online recruitment website, about 58.3 percent respondents experienced the feeling of being alone.They said they feel like "the odd one out" most when they don’t have colleagues they feel they can have in-depth talks with. Other answers included; “Nobody helps me with work,” “I

Social Affairs June 19, 2011

SAO PAULO (AFP) – There is danger the fragile global recovery could collapse unless Europe averts sovereign defaults, the United States gets its fiscal house in order and emerging economies prevent overheating, the IMF warned Friday. "There are very clear risks to the recovery," the International Monetary Fund's research director, Olivier Blanchard, said in Sao Paulo as he presented the Fund's lat

World Business June 18, 2011