The Constitutional Court urged President Park Geun-hye on Monday to decide whether she will attend her final impeachment hearing, indicating it won't accept attempts to delay the trial.Acting Chief Justice Lee Jung-mi issued the call during the 15th hearing that was held in Park's absence, saying her lawyers should stop stalling and respond by Wednesday whether the president plans to attend the final session or not.This image shows President Park Geun-hye with the National Assembly on the left a

Politics Feb. 20, 2017

Malaysia could unveil the results of an autopsy on North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's half brother this week, a foreign news report showed Monday.Malaysia's health minister told reporters that the autopsy results for Kim Jong-nam could be ready as early as Wednesday, based on the normal period to complete the post-mortem, according to Reuters.Malaysia's deputy national police chief Noor Rashid Ibrahim (L) speaks in the press conference. (AP-Yonhap)Kim Jong-nam, the eldest son of late former leade

Social Affairs Feb. 20, 2017

Acting President and Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn on Monday renewed his commitment to promoting startups by expanding financial support, removing onerous regulations and facilitating their entry into overseas markets.Hwang also reiterated that the government will establish a 3.5 trillion-won ($3.05 billion) fund this year to nurture startups as part of efforts to secure future growth engines and inject fresh life into the sluggish economy. Acting President and Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn speaks

Industry Feb. 20, 2017

A group of South Korean medical scientists has discovered a retina cell that responds to light, the science ministry said Monday, a finding that could potentially help the sight of people suffering from severe sensitivity to light.The team led by Kim Jin-woo from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology discovered that visual responses are sensitive to the overall composition of retinal interneurons called amacrine cells, the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning said. (Mini

Technology Feb. 20, 2017

Rep. Yoo Seong-min, a potential presidential candidate from the Bareun Party, on Monday criticized Moon Jae-in, a front-runner hopeful, for joining a weekly anti-government rally and hinting that he will protest the Constitutional Court if it delivers an unfavorable ruling.Protesters have been staging weekly rallies in central Seoul every Saturday since late 2016, amid the corruption scandal surrounding President Park Geun-hye and her confidante Choi Soon-sil.  Rep. Yoo Seong-min of the Bareun P

Politics Feb. 20, 2017

Members of a group promoting South Korea's sovereignty over South Korea's easternmost islets of Dokdo will make a visit to Japan this week to protest against an annual ceremony stressing Tokyo's claim to the islets, the group said Monday.In a rally in front of the Japanese Embassy in Seoul, the group said a five-person delegation will leave for Japan the same day before taking part in the "Takeshima Day" ceremony in Matsue, Japan's Shimane Prefecture, as protesters.This file photo, dated Feb. 22

Social Affairs Feb. 20, 2017

South Korea's military is staying on high alert to counter any provocations by North Korea following the murder of the estranged half brother of the North's leader Kim Jong-un a week ago, the defense ministry said Monday."The North Korean military is conducting its regular winter drills and there is no unusual movement in the North. But because there can be a provocation at any time, we are fully prepared against all contingencies," Roh Jae-cheon, a spokesman for Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff, s

Defense Feb. 20, 2017

Large companies in South Korea cut back on their workers last year, government data showed Monday, battered by an industrial downturn in the midst of ongoing restructuring in the manufacturing sector. Firms with over 300 employees hired a total of 2.41 million staff as of January, down by 46,000 compared with the previous year, according to the latest data by Statistics Korea.  (Yonhap)The reduction of workers is the largest since September 2010, when the number of workers at such companies redu

Industry Feb. 20, 2017

More than half of exporters in South Korea are against a proposed revision to the commercial law aimed at limiting the power of large shareholders in their respective firms that often comes at the expense of smaller shareholders, a survey showed Monday.In a recent survey conducted by the Korea International Trade Association, 50.5 percent of heads of 791 local export companies said they were against the revision currently sought by opposition parties. Rep. Jeong Kap-yoon (third from R, independe

Industry Feb. 20, 2017

South Korea's top Internet portal operator Naver on Monday became the last to join a race here for the development of self-driving cars after gaining government permission for a road test of its autonomous vehicle.The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said it has issued a license for the driving test of a new self-driving car from Naver Labs, the research and development arm of Naver. The photo, taken on Feb. 13, 2017, shows a self-driving car developed by South Korean carmaker Hyun

Mobility Feb. 20, 2017

Samsung Electronics Co. was ranked fourth in research and development spending by chipmakers last year, according to market data on Monday. Samsung spent $2.88 billion in R&D activities in 2016, up 11 percent from 2015, the data by market researcher IC Insights showed.  (Yonhap)Intel Corp. came first with R&D expenditures of $12.7 billion, followed by Qualcomm Inc. with $5.1 billion and Broadcom Ltd. with $3.1 billion. Intel's R&D spending accounted for 22.4 percent of its total sales last year,

Technology Feb. 20, 2017

Business performance of Doosan Group stood out last year as most of its affiliates closed in the black under the fourth-generation CEO of the group's founding family, market watchers said Monday.Park Jeong-won, the great grandson of Park Seung-jik who founded the imported fabric shop that now has become Doosan Group, took office as the chairman of the conglomerate in March last year. Park Jeong-won, chairman of Doosan Group (Yonhap)He has continued intensive restructuring that began in 2014 whil

Industry Feb. 20, 2017

Nearly seven in 10 listed South Korean companies failed to meet market expectations in their fourth-quarter operating profits last year, data showed Monday.FnGuide, a financial information provider here, released the dismal report after analyzing the short-term performances of 195 listed firms with earnings estimates by local brokerages available. An image of South Korea's share prices and office buildings (Yonhap)Among them, 132 companies, or 67.7 percent, recorded lower operating profits than

Industry Feb. 20, 2017

South Korea's ruling Liberty Korea Party said Monday that it plans to pick its presidential candidate within 20 days if the Constitutional Court approves the ouster of the president."We can only begin the process to pick the candidate if the earlier-than-expected election is confirmed," an official from the ruling party said. "If that happens, we will select the candidate 40 days before the election." The logo of South Korea's ruling Liberty Korea Party (Yonhap)President Park Geun-hye was impeac

Politics Feb. 20, 2017

The killing of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's half brother is a terrorist act that revealed Pyongyang's brutality, South Korea's unification ministry said Monday."We could clearly understand the latest incident reaffirmed the unpredictability and brutality of the North Korean regime," Jeong Joon-hee, a ministry spokesman, told a press briefing. Unification Ministry spokesman Jeong Joon-hee (Yonhap)On Sunday, the ministry said that it believes the North Korean regime is behind the murder of Ki

North Korea Feb. 20, 2017