SPOTLIGHT

• K-pop

  

  ‘Virtual Play’: Genie Music VR service lets you see Mamamoo up-close

  Streaming service Genie Music launched a new virtual reality-powered video service on Tuesday with girl group Mamamoo’s ultra-high resolution performances as the platform’s first project.The Korean streaming giant’s new platform, dubbed “Virtual Play,” uses all the latest VR technology to present a 360-degree, 3D, 8K ultrahigh resolution experience.  Speaking at a press conference in Seoul, Cho Hoon, CEO of Genie Music, explained the name was inspired by the co

• Culture

  

  Exhibition reveals imperial life of Qing Dynasty

  The National Palace Museum of Korea is holding the exhibition “Treasures from the Shenyang Palace Museum,” featuring national treasures and relics from the Chinese museum in Shenyang. The Shenyang Imperial Palace was the official residence of Nurhaci and Hong Taiji, the founder of the Later Jin Dynasty and Nurhaci’s son, who built the Qing Dynasty (1644 to 1911). After the capital was relocated from Shenyang to Beijing, the Shenyang Imperial Palace remained a secondary capital.

• Film

  

  With Golden Globe nominations under its belt, ‘Parasite’ eyeing more

  It was recently announced that Bong Joon-ho’s Palme d’Or-winning “Parasite” was nominated for the upcoming 77th Golden Globe Awards, vying for best motion picture screenplay, best foreign-language motion picture and best director of a motion picture. As this is the first time a South Korean film has been nominated for one of the most prestigious film awards in the US, local fans are wondering how deep a mark the satirical black comedy will make in cinematic history, and i

• Music

  

  U2’s 1st outing in Seoul a gift after long wait

  As incredible as it sounds, U2 -- one of biggest names in rock history -- has never had a huge following in Korea. The disparity between the band’s international fame and popularity in Korea, among other things, has prevented U2 fans in the country from enjoying the group’s music live. That was until the Seoul leg of the Joshua Tree Tour 2019 in Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on Sunday, held in commemoration of the 30th anniversary of one of their best-received albums, “The Joshua T

LATEST NEWS

• 

  Politics

  National Assembly passes 512.3 tln-won budget bill

  The National Assembly on Tuesday passed next year's budget bill, worth 512.3 trillion won (US$ 429.9 billion), after fierce partisan strife.The government had proposed a 2020 budget worth 513.5 trillion won, but the ruling Democratic Party put forward the revision bill after consultations with four minor opposition parties.  The national budget for 2020 would increase 9.1 percent from this year.The main opposition Liberty Korea Party presented its own revision bill worth 499.2 trillion won

• 

  Soccer

  S. Korea draw 0-0 with China in Bell's coaching debut at East Asian women's football tourney

  South Korea played China to a scoreless draw to open an East Asian women's football tournament at home on Tuesday, unable to deliver a win in Englishman Colin Bell's coaching debut with the Taeguk Ladies.The two Asian sides had few serious chances to kick off with a win at the women's competition of the East Asian Football Federation (EAFF) E-1 Football Championship at Busan Gudeok Stadium in Busan, 450 kilometers southeast of Seoul. South Korea, world No. 20, now have four wins, six draws and 2

• 

  Sports

  S. Korean football champions to face Japanese, Australian league winners at AFC Champions League

  Reigning South Korean professional football champions Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors will face league winners from Japan and Australia at a continental club tournament next year.The draw for the 2020 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League took place in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday, and Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, the 2019 K League 1 champions, were placed in Group H with Yokohama F. Marinos and Sydney FC. The one remaining spot in the group will be filled by a playoff winner. Yokohama won their four

• 

  Technology

  Samsung's foundry biz to grow 19 pct on-year in Q4: report

  Samsung Electronics is expected to see 19 percent on-year growth in its foundry business in the fourth quarter of the year, a market report showed Tuesday, though the performance will not be enough to narrow the market share gap with industry leader Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC).  Samsung's foundry business was projected to log US$3.4 billion in revenue in the October-December period, up 19.3 percent from a year earlier, according to market tracker TrendForce. 

• 

  Social affairs

  [News Brief] Assault case involving S. Korean and Chinese students ends without prosecution

  The South Korean and Chinese students booked for hitting each other were released without prosecution, the Seodaemun Police Station said Tuesday. Neither student sought punishment of the other.The police said they closed the assault case last month.On Nov. 19, the two Myeongji University students were reported to the police for getting into a physical fight over putting up posters concerning pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong. The Korean student had tried to stop the Chinese student from coveri

• 

  Social affairs

  Ultrafine dust chokes Korea, cold spell expected late Wednesday

  South Korea was blanketed by a high level of particulate pollution Tuesday, prompting emergency dust reduction measures for the first time this winter and an ultrafine dust advisory issued in the afternoon. The implementation of emergency measures was extended into Wednesday with the high level of PM 2.5 -- ultrafine particles less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter -- expected to continue across the country due to the stagnant air over the peninsula and the inflow of particles from abroad.Se

• 

  Business

  [Graphic News] 5G subscribers in S. Korea near 4 million in October

  　Almost 4 million South Koreans are subscribed to 5G mobile network as of October, with the number expected to breach the 5 million mark by the end of this year, government data showed.　The number of 5G users in the nation reached 3.98 million as of the end of October, adding 516,000 from a month ago, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Science and ICT. (Yonhap)

• 

  Finance

  KRX vows to tighten regulations on algorithmic trading

  South Korea’s bourse operator, the Korea Exchange, said Tuesday that it will establish a clear definition of algorithmic trading and adopt various risk management systems next year to prevent destabilization of the local stock market. “As our task for 2020, we will adopt a management system for algorithmic trading, which has become a regularized practice,” KRX Chairman Jung Ji-won said at an end-of-year press briefing. “By establishing a clear definition of algorithmic tr

• 

  Finance

  Mirae Asset Daewoo wins presidential award at 26th Corporate Innovation Awards

  South Korean brokerage Mirae Asset Daewoo said Tuesday that it received a presidential award at the 26th Corporate Innovation Awards for its efforts to create new markets through innovation and change, while boosting venture capital investment.The Corporate Innovation Awards, co-hosted by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, recognize local firms in various sectors that have proven successful in areas related to corporate innovation.  Ac

• 

  Foreign Affairs

  Moon to hold trilateral meeting with Chinese, Japanese leaders

  President Moon Jae-in will make a two-day trip to China later this month for a Korea-China-Japan trilateral summit, Cheong Wa Dae said Tuesday. According to the presidential office, Seoul is also in talks with Beijing and Tokyo to arrange bilateral summits during the visit.  The trip is scheduled for Dec. 23 and 24, with the trilateral summit to be held on the second day in Chengdu, Sichuan province. “President Moon will discuss practical cooperation among the three countries, and pol

GRAPHIC NEWS

OPINION

• Viewpoints

  

  Why does socialism persist in capitalist S. Korea?

  Many foreigners wonder why socialism and Marxism persist and even remain popular in such an affluent capitalist country as South Korea. Perhaps the reason dates back to Korea’s liberation from Japanese rule in 1945. Historians argue that at the time, the resistance leaders in the Korean Provisional Government located in China needed a counterideology to fight Japanese right-wing military imperialism. Left-wing ideologies such as socialism and Marxism, which flourished in China at that time

• Viewpoints

  

  India’s problems bigger than Modi

  A new narrative about India is suddenly emerging. Until very recently, India appeared to be a great democracy as well as a rising economic power, a potential partner of the West in its policy of containing China. Writing in Time magazine in 2015, no less a moral and political authority than Barack Obama hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi as India’s “reformer-in-chief” who “reflects the dynamism and potential of India’s rise.”However, the latest, radically dif

THE INVESTOR

• Mobile & Internet

  

  Korean investors turn to real estate, less interested in stock market

  Korean investors have been turning their attention toward the real estate market, reflected in an increase in mortgage lending, while cash flows in the equity market have been overall stagnant, recent data showed. According to data released by the Bank of Korea last month, the outstanding balance of mortgage loans held by banks and other financial institutions here came to a combined 830.3 trillion won ($700.5 billion) as of September. The latest data is a noteworthy jump from the corresponding

• Startups & Investors

  

  Techstars Korea to accept applications for 1st batch through March 2020

  Global startup accelerator Techstars said it would accept applications for its first South Korea-focused accelerator program through March 1, 2020 to tap into the tech-savvy nation’s large pool of talents in a landscape firmly supported by the government. The first phase of the accelerator program, co-hosted by Techstars and Hillstone Partners, will select 10 startups mainly dedicated to three categories -- enterprise technology, human-device interaction and lifestyle tech -- said Lee Eun-

• Bio & Medicine

  

  Celltrion presents Truxima’s results of phase 3 clinical trials in US forum

  Celltrion announced on Dec. 9 that it has disclosed its biosimilar Truxima’s results of phase 3 clinical trial at the 2019 annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology last week.“The clinical trials were conducted among patients in European countries including Germany, Spain and Russia as well as Asian countries like Japan for 40 months,” a Celltrion official said in a statement. More than 17,000 experts of blood diseases from over 100 countries attended the meetin

• LG

  

  LG Chem, GM deal ups ante in EV battery competition

  The recent announcement for a joint venture between South Korean battery maker LG Chem and US carmaker General Motors has upped the ante in the global competition to secure lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles, according to industry sources on Dec.8. The 2.7 trillion won ($2.3 billion) joint venture for an EV battery factory with production capacity of over 30 gigawatt hours per year in Lordstown, Ohio, was clinched amid GM’s ongoing transition from combustion engine cars to electri

K-POP

• 

  Big Hit denies report it is in profit dispute with BTS

• 

  ‘Virtual Play’: Genie Music VR service lets you see Mamamoo up-close

• 

  BTS performs at 2019 Jingle Ball

HERALD INTERVIEW

• Industry

  

  Electricity market competition, price hike needed for green energy expansion

• People

  

  Women’s colleges relevant in world where men enjoy privileges

• Industry

  

  China’s No. 1 aesthetic laser firm sees Korea as bridge to Asian markets

• Defense

  

  ‘We will support conscientious objectors in fulfilling alternative service’

PHOTO NEWS

• Travel

  

  Once a ghetto, now tourist hot spot

  Gamcheon Culture Village, a hilltop village in Busan’s Saha district, is a tourist hot spot, drawing an increasing number of visitors.Camera-toting tourists from Korea and elsewhere explore terraced rows of small houses, painted in pastel colors, and labyrinth-like alleys, with some so narrow only one person can pass at a time. The town has hidden gems as well -- murals, sculptures, installation art, galleries and eateries.Among its recent visitors was Indonesian President Joko Widodo, who

VIDEO

• Diplomatic Circuit

  

  Paris looks to Korea’s technology, startups for cooperation: French ambassador

• Film

  

  Ryan Reynolds says ‘6 Undergrounds’ shows how times are changing

• Travel

  

  While in Busan, don’t miss 2 things: Excitement and adventure

• Automode

  

  The New Grandeur gains a bold, younger and sportier look

FEATURES

• People

  

  Frank penguin becomes new star of year, breaks stereotype of EBS characters

  A 210-centimeter-tall penguin walks into a room for an audition at Educational Broadcasting System, insisting he wants to be a star creator. The penguin, who has a strand of seaweed and a seashell on its head, explains that he swam all the way from the South Pole. The 10-year-old’s ultimate goal is to become as popular as BTS.Speaking in a cute -- sometimes husky -- voice, Pengsoo raps, breakdances and even yodels -- a skill he picked up in Switzerland on his way to Korea. When the judges

• Social affairs

  

  Number of Seoulites residing alone up 300,000 in 10 years

  SEJONG -- The number of residents in Seoul stood at 9.73 million as of November 2019, according to the Ministry of Interior and Safety. This is estimated to be the lowest figure in more than 30 years.Given unofficial statistics showing that Seoul was home to 9.2 million in 1983 and 10.28 million in 1988, the current population level is assumed to be similar to that seen in the years between 1984 and 1987.Compared to the figure of 10.21 million in November 2009, the population of the capital of S

• Technology

  

  LG Chem, GM deal ups ante in EV battery competition

  The Friday announcement for a joint venture between South Korean battery maker LG Chem and US carmaker General Motors has upped the ante in the global competition to secure lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles, according to industry sources on Sunday. The 2.7 trillion won ($2.3 billion) joint venture for an EV battery factory with production capacity of over 30 gigawatt hours per year in Lordstown, Ohio, was clinched amid GM’s ongoing transition from combustion engine cars to electr

• Finance

  

  Unlisted stock market gains momentum with attention to startups

  Interest in unlisted stocks is projected to further grow as there are no other alternatives to Kosdaq and Konex