South Korean stocks opened a tad lower Tuesday as investors took to the sidelines in the absence of major events related to the US Federal Reserve's timeline for tapering its stimulus. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) fell 1.82 points, or 0.06 percent, to 3,201.51 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, the US stock exchanges were closed for a holiday. In Seoul, top cap Samsung Electronics lost 0.91 percent, and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix retreated 0.47 perc

Market Sept. 7, 2021

An ex-convict accused of killing two women before and after cutting off his location-tracking device appeared in public on Tuesday for the first time after his identity was made public last week. Kang Yoon-seong was escorted out of a police station where he was under police arrest before being taken to the prosecution. In a brief appearance before media, Kang said, "I apologize to the victims and their families." He also said he murdered them "for money, not sexual reasons,&qu

Social Affairs Sept. 7, 2021

North Korea's military chief, Pak Jong-chon, has been elected a member of the Presidium of the ruling Workers' Party, state media reported Tuesday, in a comeback after he was demoted earlier this year for a lapse in anti-coronavirus efforts. "The Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the WPK elected Pak Jong-chon as a member of the Presidium of the Political Bureau of the WPK Central Committee and secretary of the WPK Central Committee," according to the Korean Central News Age

North Korea Sept. 7, 2021

Loans extended by insurance companies in South Korea rose 8 percent on-year in the second quarter, led by gains in home-backed lending and corporate loans, the financial watchdog said Tuesday. Insurers' outstanding loans totaled 260.3 trillion won ($225 billion) as of end-June, compared with 240.9 trillion won the previous year, according to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). Their loans to households rose 6.5 trillion won on-year to 126.6 trillion won as of end-June as the extension of

Economy Sept. 7, 2021

South Korean stocks edged up after choppy trading Monday as investors seek to digest weaker-than-expected August jobs data in the United States. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 2.27 points, or 0.07 percent, to close at 3,203.33 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 716 million shares worth some 12.1 trillion won ($10.5 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 427 to 412. Foreigners bought a net 64 billion won,

Market Sept. 6, 2021

The defense ministry on Monday eased monthslong restrictions on service members' vacation and off-installation activities as the military has a high COVID-19 vaccination rate of about 94 percent, officials said. Under the fresh regulations effective on Monday, up to 20 percent of service members can go on vacation at the same time per unit, and fully vaccinated troops are allowed to meet visitors who have also received vaccines, according to the ministry. Previous regulations had banned soldie

Defense Sept. 6, 2021

Rep. Hong Joon-pyo of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) climbed to third place among contenders vying for next year's presidential election, a poll showed Monday. In the two-day poll on 1,003 voters nationwide conducted by the Korea Society Opinion Institute from Friday, Hong garnered approval of 13.6 percent, up 4.2 percentage points from a week ago. Hong, widely considered an underdog contender, managed to overtake Rep. Lee Nak-yon, the former head of the ruling Democratic Party (

Politics Sept. 6, 2021

Samsung Heavy Industries Co. said Monday it has succeeded in demonstrating a ship collision avoidance system. The shipbuilder's remote autonomous navigation system, known as Samsung Autonomous Ship (SAS), helped two autonomous ships travelling their trajectories avoid by detecting each other in seas off the southwestern island of Gageo, Samsung Heavy said. Samsung Heavy said the demonstration on the sea is the first of its kind in the world. A 9,200-ton ship of Mokpo National Maritime Univers

Industry Sept. 6, 2021

South Korea's trade ministry said Monday it seeks to launch negotiations for a free trade agreement (FTA) with Egypt, which would mark the first of its kind with an African nation. Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo plans to meet his Egyptian counterpart Nevin Gamea virtually later in the day to discuss ways to bolster bilateral economic ties, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. "The potential FTA will help South Korean firms penetrate deeper into the Egyptian market, further

Economy Sept. 6, 2021

South Korea's trade ministry said Monday it aims to resume talks for a new free trade agreement with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) to forge deeper economic ties with the Middle East after a hiatus of more than 10 years. Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo plans to meet his UAE counterpart Thani Al Zeyoudi virtually later in the day and propose resuming talks for the South Korea-GCC FTA, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Asia's No. 4 economy and the GCC agreed to launch negot

Economy Sept. 6, 2021

Chinese subsidiaries of South Korean firms saw their sales sink nearly 7 percent in 2020 from four years earlier due to their dropping market share in the world's second-largest economy, data showed Monday. Combined Chinese sales of 30 out of South Korea's top 100 companies came to 117.1 trillion won ($101 billion) last year, down 6.9 percent from 2016, according to the data from the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI), the lobby for the country's family-controlled conglomerates known as chae

Economy Sept. 6, 2021

The arms procurement agency has allocated 1.485 trillion won ($1.3 billion) for defense technology research and development (R&D) next year in a budget request submitted to the parliament, it said Monday. Last week, the defense ministry requested a defense budget of 55.23 trillion won for 2022, up from this year's 52.84 trillion won. Of the total, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration's R&D budget rose 76 percent on-year to surpass the 1 trillion won mark for the first time, i

Defense Sept. 6, 2021

North Korea's official newspaper stressed Monday that effective land management should be a top priority in the country's economic policy, calling for thorough preventive measures against flooding and other natural disasters. "Work on land management is a task where we can protect a hundred and earn a thousand by investing ten," the Rodong Sinmun, the organ of the ruling Workers' Party, said. "If we want to realize fast and sustainable development, we need complete preparations t

North Korea Sept. 6, 2021

South Korean stocks opened nearly flat Monday as investors seek to digest weaker-than-expected August jobs data in the United States. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 0.98 points, or 0.03 percent, to 3,200.08 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. The US jobs increase came to a seven-month low in August amid the spread of variant cases, raising expectations that the Federal Reserve would not rush in tapering its asset buying plans in the September meeting. Fi

Market Sept. 6, 2021

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases fell back to the 1,300s on Monday due to fewer tests over the weekend, while health authorities extended the tough virus curbs ahead of a major national holiday. The country added 1,375 more COVID-19 cases, including 1,351 local infections, raising the total caseload to 261,778, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). The daily caseload fell to a five-week low for any Monday, when new cases usually remain lower than other w

Social Affairs Sept. 6, 2021