Former South Korean international football player Cha Du-ri has stepped down as the advance scout for the men's national football team, the sport's national federation said Friday.The Korea Football Association (KFA) said Cha expressed his intention to resign a month ago after South Korea suffered a 1-0 loss to China and collected a 1-0 nail-biting win over Syria at home in the final Asian qualifying round for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. In this file photo, taken on March 28, 2017, Cha Du-ri (left)

Soccer April 28, 2017

Centrist presidential candidate Ahn Cheol-soo on Friday announced his vision for a new government marked by transparent policies and a cooperative relationship with parliament in running state affairs.In a press conference at his party's headquarters, the nominee of the center-left People's Party unveiled his plan to build a coalition government if elected on May 9. Centrist presidential candidate Ahn Cheol-soo (Yonhap)"I will change this country by joining forces with all rational and reformist

Politics April 28, 2017

An appellate court on Friday overturned a lower court's decision and acquitted a professor of manipulating a report in favor of Oxy Reckitt Benckiser in a high-profile toxic humidifier disinfectant case.The professor at Seoul National University, identified only by his last name Cho, was indicted in May 2016 on charges of writing a report between 2011 and 2012 that said there was no clear relationship between the substances in Oxy's products and lung damage. (Yonhap)The humidifier disinfectant c

Social Affairs April 28, 2017

South Korea's unification ministry urged North Korea Friday not to use South Korean vehicles parked at the now-shuttered joint industrial park without permission as the move infringes on local firms' property rights.NK News reported on Thursday that satellite imagery showed more than 100 South Korean vehicles parked at the Kaesong Industrial Complex had recently disappeared, raising the possibility that North Korea may have transported them somewhere. The file photo shows the now-shuttered Kaeso

North Korea April 28, 2017

South Korean stocks traded almost flat at their six-year highs Friday morning, with top market cap Samsung Electronics hitting a fresh record high.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 0.5 point, or 0.02 percent, to 2,208.96 as of 11:15 a.m.Market kingpin Samsung Electronics shot up 2.97 percent after reporting the biggest quarterly earnings in three years aided by robust chip sales.The world's largest manufacturer of smartphones also said it would buy back stocks worth 9.3 trilli

Market April 28, 2017

An American soldier indicted for smuggling a massive amount of methamphetamine from the US into South Korea has been given a suspended jail term, a court in Uijeongbu, north of Seoul, said Friday.The Uijeongbu District Court sentenced the 19-year-old soldier who belongs to the United States Forces Korea's 2nd Infantry Division to three years in prison, suspended for five years, on charges of smuggling 4 kg of methamphetamine via military mail from California in October last year. Methamphetamine

Diplomatic Circuit April 28, 2017

The country's top court on Friday dismissed a former parliamentary chief's appeal of a suspended six-month jail term for sexually harassing a golf caddie. This file photo taken on Jan. 20, 2016, shows former National Assembly Speaker Park Hee-tae arriving at the Chuncheon District Court to stand trial over sexual harassment allegations. (Yonhap)Former National Assembly Speaker Park Hee-tae was indicted in November 2014 for inappropriately touching a 23-year-old female worker several times at a g

Politics April 28, 2017

Hyundai Motor Group, South Korea's top automotive conglomerate, is betting that rising demand in emerging markets will offset sales declines in China amid a row over the deployment of an anti-missile system, corporate sources said Friday.Hyundai Motor Co. and its affiliate Kia Motors Corp. plan to launch new and localized models in emerging markets such as Russia, Brazil and the Middle East as they don't expect their vehicle sales in China to rebound anytime soon, insiders said.  (Yonhap)In the

Mobility April 28, 2017

US President Donald Trump said he wants South Korea to pay for the $1 billion deployment of the US Terminal High Altitude Area Defense battery, a missile defense system the allies are currently fielding here, he said in an interview with Reuters reported on Friday.Trump also said he will "renegotiate or terminate" the US free trade agreement with South Korea.Trump's remarks were reported after key elements of THAAD, the high-profile X-band radar and mobile launchers, were delivered to the host s

Diplomatic Circuit April 28, 2017

Sales of major South Korean retailers maintained their upward mode last month amid a recent recovery in consumer sentiment, government data showed Friday.The combined sales of department stores, large outlets and online shopping malls rose 6.9 percent in March from a year earlier, accelerating from a 0.1 percent gain the previous month, according to the data by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. (Yonhap)Thirteen Internet shopping malls and e-commerce sites including eBay Korea Co. saw t

Industry April 28, 2017

The United States plans to deploy its "strategic" weapons in South Korea on a regular basis in order to thwart North Korea's threats under an agreement between the allies, according to a joint statement.The two sides agreed to explore the "full range of available options, including strengthening the regular deployment of US strategic assets, to bolster the alliance's ability to deter and, where necessary, respond to North Korean nuclear, weapons of mass destruction, and ballistic missile use," t

Diplomatic Circuit April 28, 2017

South Korea will introduce a sanitation grading system for restaurants from next month, the food ministry said Friday.From May 19, restaurants can voluntarily apply to get hygiene ratings, the ministry of Food and Drug Safety said. The Korea Agency of HACCP Accreditation and Services will conduct on-site inspections of restaurants that request them and give grades of "good," "excellent" or "highly excellent" for those that score at least 85 points.  (Yonhap)A sanitation grading system is common

Industry April 28, 2017

The top military officers of South Korea and the United States agreed Friday to maintain full combat readiness based on the strong alliance against North Korean threats, defense authorities here said.In a 35 minute telephone conversation with Marine Corps Gen. Joseph F. Dunford, the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, his South Korean counterpart Army Gen. Lee Sun-jin stressed that the North's nuclear and missile development can never be tolerated, according to Lee's office. (Yonhap)He als

Diplomatic Circuit April 28, 2017

SsangYong Motor Co., a South Korean unit of Indian carmaker Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., shifted to a net loss in the first quarter from a year earlier due to hefty currency losses, the company said Friday.SsangYong Motor swung to a net loss of 13.9 billion won for the three months ending March 31, from a net profit of 2.3 billion won a year earlier, SsangYong said in a statement.  SsangYong Motor's G4 Rexton SUV (SsangYong Motor)"The won's strength against the dollar and increased costs cut into t

Mobility April 28, 2017

Presidential front-runner Moon Jae-in extended his lead over runner-up Ahn Cheol-soo in a new poll published Friday ahead of the May 9 vote.Moon of the liberal Democratic Party garnered 40 percent, while Ahn of the center-left People's Party trailed at 24 percent, according to the Gallup Korea survey conducted from Tuesday to Thursday. (Yonhap)Moon lost 1 point from last week, but Ahn tumbled 6 points. The centrist politician's fall follows a 7-point decline the previous week.Hong Joon-pyo of th

Politics April 28, 2017