South Korea's foreign minister is pushing to meet with her Chinese and Japanese counterparts on the sidelines of ASEAN-related conferences scheduled for early next month, officials said Tuesday.Kang Kyung-wha is to attend meetings of foreign ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to be held in Manila, the Philippines, from Aug. 6-8. They include the ASEAN Regional Forum, which is known for being a rare international event annually joined by North Korea.This file photo taken on

Foreign Affairs July 18, 2017

The approved minimum wage increase next year will incur 1.75 trillion won ($1.55 billion) in additional pay for small and medium-sized enterprises that hire foreign workers, a local business association said Tuesday.Some 269,000 foreigners were working an average of 209 hours per month at local companies as of May this year. The hike in minimum wage will raise their monthly pay by 332,891 won, which covers basic pay, overtime and employee insurance, according to the Korea Federation of SMEs.&nbs

Economy July 18, 2017

Samsung Heavy Industries Co. is seeking to cut its workforce and have employees return part of their salaries in order to cut costs, industry sources said Tuesday.Last year, the major South Korean shipyard unveiled a self-restructuring program that centers on cutting the workforce and having executives return part of their salaries, in order to tide over a protracted slump in the shipbuilding sector.Samsung Heavy was forced to reduce its workforce by 1,500 in 2016 through an early retirement sch

Companies July 18, 2017

The presidential office will expand its release of information, including the outcome of meetings of its officials that may affect the daily lives of the people, the office, Cheong Wa Dae, said Tuesday.The decision came at a committee meeting on the release of information held Friday."At the meeting, the participants agreed to hold face-to-face meetings and also enhance the transparency of their own meetings," Cheong Wa Dae (Yonhap)Cheong Wa Dae said in a press release.The committee reviews publ

Politics July 18, 2017

South Korea's foreign ministry has launched an internal online "platform" where its workers can suggest diverse reform measures for its organization, a ministry official said Tuesday.The platform was launched Friday on its intranet through which the ministry will collect opinions from its employees on how to reform itself, the official told Yonhap. It will remain in place until late September with people sending opinions anonymously. The move came after the ministry formed a task force early las

Foreign Affairs July 18, 2017

The European Union said Monday it is considering imposing tougher sanctions on North Korea over its latest test of an intercontinental ballistic missile.The Council of the EU strongly condemned North Korea's missile test as it poses a serious threat to international peace and security, it said in a statement.It said it will "consider further appropriate responses" to the North's action in close consultation with key partners and in line with United Nations Security Council sanctions. (Yonhap)On

North Korea July 18, 2017

Unionized workers at Kia Motors Corp. will vote on whether to stage a walkout as they press for more wages and benefits, the company's union said Monday. The vote scheduled from Monday through Tuesday comes as Kia's wage talks with the management recently broke up and it struggles with slowing sales in major markets such as China and the United States.  (Yonhap)Members of Kia's 30,000-strong union will cast their votes by 1 p.m. Tuesday, with the results to be made available at around 6 p.m. The

Mobility July 17, 2017

The presidential office Cheong Wa Dae has discovered additional documents from the former administration that potentially incriminate the ousted former President Park Geun-hye and her top aides, a Cheong Wa Dae official said Monday.The additional documents were found in a file cabinet located in the office of the presidential secretary for political affairs, according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Park Soo-hyun. Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Park Soo-hyun (Yonhap)The announcement came three days after th

Politics July 17, 2017

Coca-Cola and KT have been named the first sustainability partners for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics, the event's organizers said Monday.The PyeongChang 2018 organizing committee noted that Coca-Cola is undertaking a water quality project in the PyeongChang area, and that KT, PyeongChang's local telecommunications partner, is seeking to provide IT services throughout Gangwon Province, where PyeongChang is situated."The environment and sustainability have been two key issues at the heart o

Social Affairs July 17, 2017

South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha met with the United Nations' Special Rapporteur on human rights in North Korea, Tomas Ojea Quintana, Monday to discuss policies on dealing with the abject human rights situation in the reclusive state. At the start of the meeting, Kang said that human rights in North Korea remains to be a "matter of great concern" to the South Korean government under President Moon Jae-in and the stance will remain in its discussion at the UN going forward.Quintana is

Foreign Affairs July 17, 2017

South Korean stocks ended at a fresh record high Monday taking a cue from gains on Wall Street last week. The won rose against the US dollar.  The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 10.47 points, or 0.43 percent, to close at a record high of 2,425.10. Trade volume was moderate at 252.17 million shares worth 4.82 trillion won ($4.27 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 526 to 279.Institutional investors bought a net 110.77 billion won worth of stocks on expectations that

Market July 17, 2017

Jeju Air Co., South Korea's leading budget carrier, said Monday it has obtained approval from the Chinese authorities to fly two chartered flights to the neighboring country next week. "Jeju Air is the first Korean passenger carrier, which has received such an approval since January when China stopped allowing Korean chartered planes to fly between the two countries," a company spokeswoman said.Two chartered flights are scheduled to deliver a combined 360 passengers to the famous tourism site of

Companies July 17, 2017

Prosecutors said Monday they have launched an investigation into documents purportedly written by the previous Park Geun-hye government regarding the leadership succession of Samsung in connection with the bribery scandal that removed Park from office.On Friday, the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae, led by the liberal Moon Jae-in administration, revealed what it claimed to be a lengthy paper trail from its predecessor that possibly suggests backdoor support for a controversial merger of two Sam

Social Affairs July 17, 2017

South Korean teenagers ranked sixth in an international chemistry competition for youth, winning two gold and two silver medals, the government said Monday.The Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning said the achievement was made during the 49th International Chemistry Olympiad held in Nakhon Pathom, Thailand, from July 6-15. This photo provided by the Korea Foundation for the Advancement of Science & Creativity shows student representatives posing for a photo at its building in Gwacheon, 1

Technology July 17, 2017

South Korea's defense chief on Monday reaffirmed his push for a sweeping reform of the country's armed forces for a "new war paradigm."Inspecting the operation of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Defense Minister Song Young-moo cited grave security conditions on the peninsula."The current security situation on the Korean Peninsula is serious enough to be called 'the worst security crisis' since the (1950-53) Korean War," he told JCS service members. Defense Minister Song Young-moo visits the headquart

Defense July 17, 2017