Candidate registration began Thursday in the race to select a new leader of the minor opposition People's Party, with former leader Ahn Cheol-soo seeking to regain the reins despite criticism it's too early for him to return, just a few months after his election defeat.It is expected to be a three-way race with Ahn and two other party heavyweights, Reps. Chung Dong-young and Chun Jung-bae. Ahn and Chung officially registered their bids, while Chun is expected to do so before registration closes

Politics Aug. 10, 2017

South Korean stocks ended slightly lower Thursday as foreign investors offloaded local stocks on profit-taking amid escalating tensions over North Korea's provocations. The Korean won fell against the US dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index lost 8.92 points, or 0.38 percent, to 2,359.47.Foreigners and retail investors offloaded shares worth more than 286 billion won ($250 million) and 168 billion won, respectively, while institutions scooped up more than 429 billion won, keepin

Market Aug. 10, 2017

South Korea's foreign ministry urged North Korea on Thursday to stop saber-rattling immediately and repeated the call for Pyongyang to respond to its dialogue offer aimed at easing tensions in the region."The North's recent threatening words have gone too much and run squarely against with the consensus contained in the statement issued after the ARF (ASEAN Regional Forum). It should stop them immediately," Cho June-hyuck, foreign ministry spokesman, said during a regular press briefing."The Nor

North Korea Aug. 10, 2017

CHEONGJU -- A hamburger from McDonald's was found to have an excessive level of a bacteria known to cause food poisoning, a local consumer agency said Thursday, as the US fast-food giant is facing troubles here with a series of complaints filed over its patties.After conducting a survey on the sanitary conditions of 38 hamburgers sold at five local convenience stores and six fast-food franchises, the Korea Consumer Agency said one burger from McDonald's contained three times the standard level o

Social Affairs Aug. 10, 2017

President Moon Jae-in's newly appointed senior science innovation official said Thursday that she will not step down from the post amid growing calls for her resignation due to her involvement in a stem cell research fraud scandal 11 years ago.Park Ky-young, a biology professor at Sunchon National University, served as a senior advisor to former President Roh Moo-hyun for some two years until 2006 when she resigned over a shocking revelation that Hwang Woo-suk, the country's leading stem cell sc

Technology Aug. 10, 2017

Marine Gen. Joseph Dunford, the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, will visit South Korea next week as part of his Northeast Asia tour, a defense source here said Thursday.He is scheduled to arrive on Sunday from Japan, the first leg of his upcoming tour, according to the source who requested anonymity as the Pentagon has yet to announce the schedule. Joseph Dunford (EPA-Yonhap)On Monday, Dunford is expected to pay a courtesy call on President Moon Jae-in and meet with top defense officia

Defense Aug. 10, 2017

South Korea's automakers on Thursday warned they may have to move their factories offshore pending an imminent court ruling that could increase the cost of salaries by trillions of won.The Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association, representing the country's five car producers, said in a joint statement that a ruling to include bonuses and other extra stipends as part of regular wages would be a "deadly blow" not only to themselves but to their chain of subcontractors."If the prospects of incre

Industry Aug. 10, 2017

South Korea on Thursday welcomed North Korea's release of an imprisoned Korean-Canadian pastor, urging the North to free the South Korean citizens still held in captivity."Our government welcomes the release of pastor Lim Hyeon-soo, who had been detained in North Korea," Cho June-hyuck, spokesman at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said in a press briefing. The spokesman said Canada has been in close communication with South Korea on Lim's captivity as it is a like-minded country that supports S

North Korea Aug. 10, 2017

Despite heightened military tensions on the Korean Peninsula, the US Navy has no plan yet to send another aircraft carrier here, informed sources said Thursday.They were responding to local news reports that the United States seems to be pushing for rare dual-carrier operations near Korea this month against the North's repeated intercontinental ballistic missile launches and war threats.The forward-deployed flattop, Ronald Reagan, has just returned to its home port in Yokosuka, Japan, from a thr

Defense Aug. 10, 2017

Two elderly South Korean victims of Japan's sexual slavery during World War II will attend an official government ceremony next week marking the country's liberation from the 1910-45 colonial rule, officials said Thursday.The Ministry of Interior and Safety said it will be the first time that the "comfort women" attend an official Liberation Day ceremony at the invitation of the government, though two victims attended a luncheon in 2010 after the main ceremony. (Yonhap)Liberation Day, which fall

Foreign Affairs Aug. 10, 2017

Asiana Airlines Inc. said Thursday its losses widened in the second quarter from a year earlier due to foreign currency-related losses.Net loss reached 74.7 billion won ($65.3 million) in the April-June period, compared to a loss of 26.7 billion won a year earlier, the company said in a statement. Operating income, on the other hand, surged 49 percent on-year to reach 42.8 billion won, with sales rising 8.5 percent to 1.49 trillion won over the cited period. The operating income and sales for th

Economy Aug. 10, 2017

Retail sales on the southern island of Jeju fell in the second quarter for the first time ever on a Sino-Korean row over the deployment of a US missile defense shield, government data showed Thursday.According to the data by Statistics Korea, retail sales on Jeju declined 3.2 percent in the April-June period from a year earlier.It represents the first on-year decline since the statistical agency started compiling related data in the first quarter of 2010.The agency attributed the decline to a pl

Economy Aug. 10, 2017

A group of celebrated Korean and international musicians will release a project song praying for the reunification of the Korean Peninsula, according to a record label Thursday.The song titled "Korean Dream" to be released on Liberation Day - Aug. 15 - involves Korea's Jung Dong-ha and Voisper, Korean-Australian singer Dami Im, American singers Peabo Bryson and Lauren Evans, and the Philippines' Sabrina and Zendee Rose Tenerefe, One K Media said.  This composite photo shows a group of internatio

Social Affairs Aug. 10, 2017

Uber Technologies Inc. launched its food delivery service in South Korea on Thursday, joining the country's heated delivery service app market.The mobile application UberEATS allows users to select food from registered restaurants and deliver the dishes by its delivery partners, its local unit Uber Korea said. "Food delivery is very advanced in Korea," said Allen Penn, Asia Pacific's head of UberEATS, during a press conference held in Seoul. "With that said, we still feel like we are at the very

Technology Aug. 10, 2017

Hanwha Chemical Corp., a major chemicals firm, said Thursday that its second-quarter earnings sank almost 20 percent from a year earlier, due to a one-off factor.Net profit reached a record 249 billion won ($218 million) in the April-June period, compared with a profit of 310 billion won a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing. Hanwha Chemical Corp.`s plant in Yeosu, South Korea. (Yonhap)Operating income also dipped 25 percent on-year to reach 219 billion won, while sales edged u

Industry Aug. 10, 2017