The highway toll charges for electric and hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles will halve from September, the transport ministry said Tuesday. The government plans to temporarily operate the discount program for environment-friendly vehicles by 2020, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation said in a statement. Depending on the operation results, it will decide on whether to continue the program or not, it said. In this photo taken on July 7, 2017, Transport Minister Kim Hyun-mee answers q

Mobility July 11, 2017

President Moon Jae-in has appointed two new ministers, the presidential office said Tuesday, but without a formal ceremony amid an opposition protest against some of his other picks for new ministers.The president electronically approved the appointment of the new minister of science, ICT and future planning, Yoo Young-min, and new minister of gender equality, Chung Hyun-back, according to the presidential office, Cheong Wa Dae.(Yonhap)It marked the first time since Moon took office May 10 that

Politics July 11, 2017

President Moon Jae-in has decided to delay his appointment of two ministers opposed by opposition parties for last-minute efforts to win their support and also help normalize the parliament crippled partly by the proposed appointments, the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae said Tuesday.The decision followed a request from the ruling Democratic Party, whose floor leader Woo Won-shik stressed the importance of the opposition's support for many pending issues, including the government-requested sup

Politics July 11, 2017

Russia's oil exports to North Korea sharply increased in the first four months of the year amid the international community's sanctions on the country, a US broadcaster said Tuesday. Russia shipped $2.3 million worth of oil products to North Korea between January and April, up more than 200 percent on-year, Voice of America said, citing Russian customs data.The amount of the oil shipments posted about 4,100 tons during the period, up 150 percent from a year before, the broadcaster said, adding t

North Korea July 11, 2017

WASHINGTON -- North Korea's recently tested intercontinental ballistic missile, if fully developed, would be able to strike the US naval base at San Diego with a nuclear warhead and multiple decoys designed to penetrate missile defenses, a top American missile expert said Monday.John Schilling, an aerospace engineer with expertise on North Korean missiles, presented the analysis in an article to the 38 North website, noting that the North's Hwasong-14 ICBM could fly as far as 9,700 kilometers wi

North Korea July 11, 2017

WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump failed to use last week's G20 summit to enlist support from world leaders for his efforts to pressure China to rein in North Korea, a US senator said Monday.Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) made the remark in an interview with MSNBC after a declaration of the G20 summit made no mention of the North. He criticized that Trump's "America First" foreign policy is "increasingly turning out to mean America alone.""I'll remind you that President Trump's strategy for how t

North Korea July 11, 2017

The head of South Korean retail giant Lotte vowed on Monday to boost the group's transparent management as it attempts to tide over a string of troubles through a governance shakeup. During an IR session held in Tokyo, Lotte Group chairman Shin Dong-bin said his group will be able to better adapt to changing market circumstances with transparent management once the revamp plan for its management structure is completed this year. "Lotte Group will continue with its growth as a trusted company by

Companies July 10, 2017

Talks are underway between South Korea and the United States on possibly using a "secondary boycott" aimed at toughening sanctions against North Korea's evolving missile and nuclear programs, Seoul's top diplomat said Monday.Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha made the remarks during a parliamentary committee session in response to a question about what measures are being considered in the wake of the North's recent missile provocation.  (Yonhap)"Talks are underway even on the option of (using) a se

North Korea July 10, 2017

State-run Korea Development Bank said Monday it has begun preparatory work to sell its controlling stake at Daewoo Engineering & Construction Co.KDB plans to pick an investment bank, a law firm and an accounting firm during next month to arrange the planned sale of its 50.75-percent stake in Daewoo Engineering that has been valued at 1.65 trillion won ($1.42 billion) as of Monday closing price.  (Yonhap)KDB will announce the sale of the Daewoo Engineering stake by the end of this year after cond

Companies July 10, 2017

Drivers who are less at fault for a car accident, will pay lower auto insurance premiums in a change from the current system, the financial regulator said Monday. The change, which will go into effect from September, is aimed at adjusting the degree of balance between at-fault drivers and those who are much less responsible for an accident after reporting the case to an insurance firm to get compensation. Currently, if a driver is 80 percent responsible for an accident with the other driver bein

Economy July 10, 2017

South Korea's Gender Equality Minister Chung Huyn-back said Monday the government plans to set up a museum for Korean victims of Japan's wartime sexual slavery in Seoul, in an apparent show of the new Moon Jae-in government's resolve to sternly deal with Japan's wartime human rights violation."The government plans to build the museum for the comfort women in a place easily accessible so that it can play a role as a mecca for people to remember and recall the human rights violations that the war

Social Affairs July 10, 2017

The parliamentary budget committee on Monday tabled a 11.2 trillion-won ($9.74 billion) extra budget bill for a long-delayed review despite opposition parties' objections.Ruling Democratic Party members pressed ahead with the submission of the bill, aimed mainly at creating jobs in the public sector, while the main opposition Liberty Korea Party, People's Party and Bareun Party refused to attend the committee session.The submission of the bill, which the government sent to parliament more than a

Politics July 10, 2017

South Korea's unification ministry said Monday it will seek inter-Korean talks after gauging North Korea's reaction to President Moon Jae-in's latest proposal to bring peace to the divided peninsula.Moon unveiled his broad vision for improving inter-Korean relations during his speech in Berlin last Thursday, two days after North Korea test-fired its first intercontinental ballistic missile.Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon told lawmakers that South Korea will explore ways to restore disconnec

North Korea July 10, 2017

President Moon Jae-in's policy advisory panel will report to him its 100 selected government priority tasks this week, which will include job creation, tax reform and work-family balance, its chief said Monday.Kim Jin-pyo, the head of the State Affairs Planning Advisory Committee, said that the briefing will be given to the president Thursday, noting that it has compressed Moon's 201 election campaign pledges into 100 tasks.The tasks are set to be unveiled to the public next Wednesday, a source

Politics July 10, 2017

Nearly 50 countries and global organizations have publicly condemned or objected to North Korea's latest missile provocation, pointing to globally shared concerns over Pyongyang's persistent advancement of its nuclear and missile programs, the foreign ministry said Monday.On Tuesday, the North claimed that it successfully test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile in defiance of multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions. (Yonhap)In a report submitted to the National Assembly, th

North Korea July 10, 2017