SEOUL, Sept. 19 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's individual retirement pension market will likely reach 82 trillion won (US$72.4 billion) in 2030, an industry report showed on Monday.The country's financial regulator is planning to introduce the individual retirement pension scheme in July next year, under

Sept. 19, 2011

BEIJING, Sept. 19 (Yonhap) -- North Korea's top nuclear envoy on Monday called for resuming the stalled six-party disarmament talks on its nuclear weapons programs without preconditions, reiterating a stance that dims prospects of reviving the multilateral dialogue. Ri Yong-ho repeated the call at a

North Korea Sept. 19, 2011

SEOUL, Sept. 19 (Yonhap) -- Taxes levied on gasoline sold at local pumps accounted for 54.7 percent of consumer prices, a government report said Monday, fueling public demand for lowering oil taxes on petroleum products that have risen in recent months.According to the report submitted to the annual

Sept. 19, 2011

SEOUL, Sept. 19 (Yonhap) -- Kim Jong-un, the third son of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il and his heir apparent, has been actively participating in the communist regime's politics and policymaking process, the defense ministry here said Monday.Addressing North Korean affairs during the annual parlia

North Korea Sept. 19, 2011

SEOUL, Sept. 19 (Yonhap) -- South Korean savings banks were discovered to have extended illegal loans to their major shareholders, financial regulators said Monday, angering depositors and fueling anxiety following the suspension of seven local savings banks.The data comes a day after the Financial

Sept. 19, 2011

SEOUL, Sept. 19 (Yonhap) -- Hana SK Card Co., a South Korean credit card firm, said Monday that some 200 customers' personal information has been leaked, the latest in a series of security breaches that are spurring concern about private data protection. The card firm, a joint venture between Hana F

Sept. 19, 2011

SEOUL, Sept. 19 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's telecom titan KT Corp. said Monday that it will roll out a new service for Apple Inc.'s iPhone, which will turn the smartphone into a mobile wallet for wireless financial transactions. The country's second-largest mobile operator plans to introduce a new sma

Technology Sept. 19, 2011

SEOUL, Sept. 19 (Yonhap) - Parliament on Monday accused the government for false reports about the electricity reserve level that caused the recent nationwide blackouts that inconvenienced many businesses and private citizens, and its slow response to contain the fallouts.South Korea reported massiv

Politics Sept. 19, 2011

SEOUL, Sept. 19 (Yonhap) -- Prosecutors said Monday they plan to summon a former senior presidential aide this week on suspicions of receiving money in a corruption scandal involving a suspended savings bank. The Supreme Prosecutors' Office is scheduled to call Kim Du-woo, the former senior presiden

Social Affairs Sept. 19, 2011

SEOUL, Sept. 19 (Yonhap) -- South Korean workers' monthly wages grew at a faster pace than other major economies last year, but inflation-adjusted income growth was behind other countries due to rising prices, a report showed Monday.South Korean workers' nominal wages came to 2.02 million won ($1,81

Sept. 19, 2011

SEOUL, Sept. 19 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's embassies, consulates and missions remain vulnerable to terrorist attacks because they have failed to meet security standards or be properly equipped with anti-terror devices, a lawmaker said Monday. In particular, none of the 53 diplomatic missions in Africa, the Middle East and Europe, which are considered to have higher terrorism risks than other posts, has been fully equipped to identify threats and prevent attacks, said Rep. Jungwook Hong of the rul

Politics Sept. 19, 2011

SEOUL, Sept. 19 (Yonhap) -- North Korea’s imports of luxury goods for its ruling elites have surged in recent years even as its people suffered from severe food shortages, a South Korean lawmaker said Monday.North Korea spent roughly US$1.04 billion (1.12 trillion won) on bringing in foreign luxury

North Korea Sept. 19, 2011

SEOUL, Sept. 19 (Yonhap) -- The number of reported rapists nationwide jumped more than 33 percent over the past three years, though the country moves toward harsher punishment for the crime, a report showed Monday.A total of 21,116 rapists were reported to the country‘s prosecution offices last year

Social Affairs Sept. 19, 2011

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) _ A man who disguised himself as an airline pilot tried to enter a restricted area of Auckland Airport and then escaped after he was challenged.New Zealand Police say they are looking for a man who on Saturday entered the airport dressed in a white shirt with epaulets on

Podcast Sept. 19, 2011