Moon Jae-in of the liberal Democratic Party maintained his lead as the presidential front-runner, while a longtime rival nearly doubled his approval rating to come in second, a poll showed Friday.Moon, a former leader of the largest party in parliament, garnered 31 percent in the survey conducted from Tuesday to Thursday, posting the same figure as the previous week, according to Gallup Korea. Moon Jae-in of the liberal Democratic Party (Yonhap)Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo of the centrist People's Party,

Politics March 31, 2017

Mercedes-Benz, Maserati and Peugeot have been ordered to recall faulty parts in some of their models, South Korea's transport ministry said Friday. This is part of a broader recall order recently delivered by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport in the South Korean automobile market. (Yonhap)Local customers increasingly choose imported brands over homegrown ones, such as Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Motors Corp., due to declining prices and difference in performance and quality.Merced

Mobility March 31, 2017

Samsung Electronics Co., set to announce its first-quarter earnings guidance next week, may report forecast-beating performance results largely backed by its chip business, industry sources said Friday.Although the tech giant announces detailed figures of each business later in the month, Samsung's chip business is presumed to be the top contributor for its stellar performance. they said.(Yonhap)Some brokerage houses here expect Samsung's first-quarter operating profit to hover above its previou

Industry March 31, 2017

Creditors of cash-strapped Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. have asked the shipyard's labor union to submit a written pledge not to launch any strikes in protest over bold restructuring moves, industry sources said Friday.The creditors, led by the state-run Korea Development Bank, demanded that the union present the written pledge by the end of next week, which they see as leverage to pressure corporate bondholders and commercial lenders to join a 6.7 trillion won ($5.98 billion) res

Industry March 31, 2017

Samsung Electronics Co. started a full-fledged marketing drive for its latest flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S8, in South Korea, industry watchers said Friday, ahead of the official release slated for April 21.Samsung already started displaying the Galaxy S8 and the Galaxy S8 Plus at its main shop located in southern Seoul on Thursday, allowing visitors to experience firsthand the top-notch features and cutting-edge design that has received positive initial reviews from home and abroad.(Yonhap)

Industry March 31, 2017

South Korea on Friday strongly denounced Japan's renewed claim to Korea's easternmost islets in its latest education guidelines and demanded their immediate withdrawal.The Japanese government earlier decided to approve the revised guidelines that call for teaching students in elementary and middle schools that Dokdo belongs to Japan.(Yonhap)The guidelines, which also serve as a basis for writing textbooks, have been posted online for public viewing since mid-February. They will be added to the e

Social Affairs March 31, 2017

The South Korean government said Friday it will publish the latest defense white paper in six foreign languages as part of efforts to publicize the nation's policy worldwide.The 2016 edition of the comprehensive document, issued in January, will be summarized and translated into English, Japanese, Chinese, Russian, Spanish and Arabic, according to the Ministry of National Defense. A file photo of the Defense White Paper (Yonhap)It marks the first time for the ministry to issue the dossier in suc

Defense March 31, 2017

About a quarter of South Koreans think they can neither afford to enjoy cultural activities nor have the wherewithal to provide for an uncertain future, a poll showed Friday.According to the survey of 3,669 South Koreans aged 19 to 57 taken last year, some 26 percent of the respondents answered they can't afford a family trip twice or more per year.(Yonhap)Another 26.7 percent replied they can't enjoy hobbies and cultural activities with family members on a regular basis, according to the poll t

Social Affairs March 31, 2017

South Korea and the United States have staged a two-week naval exercise focusing on combined diving and salvage operations, the US Pacific Command announced Friday.During the Salvage Exercise Korea 2017 training, which began on March 21, US Navy divers assigned to the Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit 1 used South Korea's 3,500-ton salvage and rescue ship, named the Tongyeong, alongside their local counterparts.  South Korean and US naval divers hold a joint rescue and salvage exercise. (US Pacific

Defense March 31, 2017

WASHINGTON -- Next week's summit between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping is a key test of whether the US will stand up for South Korea against a series of Chinese retaliatory measures over Seoul's hosting of the US THAAD missile defense system, the Washington Post said.Trump is scheduled to hold his first meetings with Xi at his Mar-a-Lago resort on April 6-7.  (Yonhap)"The United States' allies in Northeast Asia will be watching closely to see if the Trump administrat

Foreign Affairs March 31, 2017

The liberal Democratic Party will hold its third primary election in the southern port city of Busan on Friday, three days before it will name its candidate for the upcoming presidential election.Voting will commence at 2 p.m., involving several thousand party members from the port city, located some 450 kilometers south of Seoul, and North and South Gyeongsang provinces. The three presidential contenders of the liberal Democratic Party wave to their supporters and party members at a party prima

Politics March 31, 2017

The conservative Liberty Korea Party will pick its presidential nominee Friday for the May 9 election largely seen more favorable to the liberal bloc in the wake of a corruption scandal involving ousted President Park Geun-hye.The former ruling party will select its flag-bearer during a national convention in Seoul based on a vote by full-time party members and the opinion poll, with each weighted 50 percent. The presidential hopefuls of the conservative Liberty Korea Party (from L to R) -- Rep.

Politics March 31, 2017

The prosecution is expected to speed up a corruption probe into ousted President Park Geun-hye's former aide and major conglomerates after she was arrested early Friday. The former leader was put into a detention center on charges of bribery, abuse of power, coercion and leaking government secrets, after a marathon hearing the previous day.Former President Park Geun-hye leaves the Seoul Central District Court in the capital on March 30, 2017, after a hearing on a warrant to arrest her. The court

Social Affairs March 31, 2017

WASHINGTON -- Activity at North Korea's nuclear test site has significantly decreased, a move that could mean either test preparations are complete or Pyongyang had pretended a test was on the way, a website monitoring the North said Thursday.According to 38 North, commercial satellite imagery of the North's Punggye-ri nuclear test site shows "considerably less" activity on Wednesday, compared with a day earlier when up to 100 people were seen gathered at the site while the pumping of water out

North Korea March 31, 2017

Malaysia released the body of the slain half brother of North Korea's leader to the North, ending a diplomatic row between the two countries over Kim Jong-nam's death."Malaysia agreed to facilitate the transfer of the body to the family of the deceased in North Korea," according to a joint statement between North Korea and Malaysia carried by the Korean Central News Agency. Kim Jong-nam, the eldest son of late leader Kim Jong-il (Yonhap)The deceased refers to Kim Jong-nam, who was killed last mo

Foreign Affairs March 31, 2017