The ruling party and government will announce a comprehensive set of measures to cope with the overheated real estate market this week, a party official said Tuesday, warning against any illegal speculative practices.Kim Tae-nyeon, the policy chief of the Democratic Party, said that after a party-government meeting Wednesday, the measures will be announced, including "strong" steps to deal with multiple-house owners involved in real estate speculation. This photo, taken on July 28, 2017, shows K

Politics Aug. 1, 2017

A total of 800 tons of flour donated by Russia arrived at a North Korean port this week to help meet the North's food shortages, Radio Free Asia reported Tuesday.Citing the Facebook page of the Russian Embassy in Pyongyang, the Washington-based RFA said a Russian ship carrying the wheat flour, provided as humanitarian aid through the World Food Program, docked Monday in the North's northeastern port city of Chongjin. This photo, taken from the Facebook page of the Russian Embassy in Pyongyang on

North Korea Aug. 1, 2017

The number of South Korean business groups' affiliates under tight restrictions on mutual investment and loan guarantees rose in July from a month earlier, the corporate watchdog said Tuesday.The Fair Trade Commission said 1,277 firms were on its monthly watch list as of end-July, up nine from the previous month. (Yonhap)They are owned by the country's 31 largest business groups, including Samsung Group and Hyundai Motor Group, with assets of 10 trillion won ($8.5 billion) or more.Eight groups,

Industry Aug. 1, 2017

China's foreign ministry recently called in South Korea's ambassador to Beijing in protest of Seoul's decision to deploy more interceptor missile launchers of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system, a local newspaper reported Tuesday.Kong Xuanyou, assistant minister at the Chinese foreign ministry, brought in Ambassador Kim Jang-soo on Saturday, right after President Moon Jae-in ordered the deployment of an additional four THAAD launchers in response to North Korea's latest missile provo

Foreign Affairs Aug. 1, 2017

South Korean stocks opened lower early Tuesday due to losses by technology companies, such as market kingpin Samsung Electronics, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 4.89 points, or 0.18 percent, to 2,398.32 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Tech shares mostly lost ground, with Samsung Electronics moving down 1.2 percent and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix shedding 1.36 percent. LG Display also surrendered 0.79 percent. Auto shares, meanwhile, were in positive terrain,

Market Aug. 1, 2017

The Internet-only Kakao Bank has succeeded in starting big, gaining over 1 million clients in just five days following its launch, but how the initial clients are using the service suggests there is room for improvement, industry watchers said Tuesday.Kakao Bank outdid four-months-old K-Bank, the country's first Internet-only lender, in terms of the number of subscribers. K-bank had gained 100,000 accounts in three days.However, 67 percent of Kakao Bank clients asked for debit cards, an indicati

Technology Aug. 1, 2017

British investors were most active stock traders among foreigners in South Korea in June, with Americans holding the largest amount of local shares, the financial watchdog said Tuesday.The value of local stocks traded by offshore investors came to slightly upwards of 78 trillion won ($69.7 billion) in June, accounting for nearly 30 percent of the total market turnover, according to data by the Financial Supervisory Service.Turnover by British investors stood at 25.8 trillion won that month, taki

Market Aug. 1, 2017

One South Korean man climbing the highest mountain in the Alps went missing and his fellow climber was rescued after a distress call, the South Korean Embassy in France said Tuesday.A search for the missing 34-year-old man, only identified by his last name Lee, has been under way in the alpine zone near Chamonix-Mont-Blanc, a resort area in Haute-Savoie in southeast France bordering Switzerland and Italy, according to the embassy. The other South Korean man also surnamed Lee, 44, was rescued Mon

Social Affairs Aug. 1, 2017

The average sales price of Samsung Electronics Co.'s handsets rose in the second quarter to the highest level in three years, data showed Tuesday, helped by the robust shipment of the Galaxy S8 flagship.According to the data compiled by Strategy Analytics, the average sales price of Samsung handsets came to $235 over the April-June period, marking the highest figure over the past three years.The average price has been falling as Samsung continued to roll out various budget models to tap deeper i

Technology Aug. 1, 2017

South Korean institutional investors loaded up on stocks in the final sessions of July, helping the local stock market keep its bullish run, data showed Tuesday.In a turnaround from their net selling position, local institutions turned net buyers in the final four days of last month, purchasing a net 1.78 trillion won ($1.59 billion) for all of the month, according to the data by the bourse operator Korea Exchange.Institutional investors had been net sellers till last Tuesday.In contrast, foreig

Market Aug. 1, 2017

MOSCOW -- Russia condemned North Korea's recent missile provocation on Monday, saying it is in violation of UN Security Council resolutions, but still called on relevant countries to refrain from action that could further escalate tensions in the region. The North launched what it claimed to be a second and improved intercontinental ballistic missile late Friday night, which flew more than 1,000 kilometers at the maximum altitude of around 3,700 km before landing in waters between Korea and Japa

North Korea Aug. 1, 2017

WASHINGTON -- The United States is ready to deploy the remaining parts of an advanced missile defense system to South Korea, the Pentagon said Monday with tensions rising over North Korea's latest missile test.The remark by Pentagon spokesman Navy Capt. Jeff Davis comes three days after North Korea test-fired a second intercontinental ballistic missile, marking a significant step forward in its pursuit of a nuclear-tipped ballistic missile capable of hitting the continental US. Shortly after the

Defense Aug. 1, 2017

US President Donald Trump said Monday that his administration will "handle" North Korea following its test of a second intercontinental ballistic missile last week.Trump made the remark at a Cabinet meeting in response to a reporter's question about what he can do about the North."We'll handle North Korea. We'll be able to handle North Korea," he said, according to a pool report. "It will be handled. We handle everything."The president did not elaborate further, leaving some to wonder what he me

North Korea Aug. 1, 2017

South Korea and the United States are seeking to hold a meeting of their defense ministers at an early date to discuss North Korea's evolving missile threats, government officials said Monday.The two sides are pushing for the first meeting between Defense Minister Song Myoung-moo and his US counterpart Jim Mattis before the allies' annual Security Consultative Meeting slated for October, Seoul's defense ministry said.Song, a former Navy chief of staff, took office this month as South Korea's def

Defense July 31, 2017

President Moon Jae-in appointed the new head of the top regulator for broadcasters on Monday by signing an electronic document for the appointment during his summer vacation.Lee Hyo-seong, a former professor of Seoul's Sungkyunkwan University, was appointed the new chairman of the Korea Communications Commission. Lee's appointment came after the opposition-led parliament failed to issue a report on the outcome of Lee's confirmation hearing held earlier in the month.The president asked the parlia

Politics July 31, 2017