Most Popular
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Ador CEO denies allegations, accuses Hybe of mistreating NewJeans
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Korea’s homegrown nanosatellite successfully launches into space
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[Herald Interview] 'Amid aging population, Korea to invite more young professionals from overseas'
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Nicaragua shuts down Seoul embassy
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Medical reform committee kicks off despite boycott from doctors
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Hybe's multilabel system tested amid conflict with Ador
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SNU profs to suspend treatment for one day
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Rocket engine expert, ex-NASA exec to lead Korea's new space agency
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SK hynix pledges W20tr to ramp up DRAM production at home
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10-man S. Korea lose to Indonesia to miss out on Paris Olympic football qualification
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Kirk confident of September passage of FTAs
The top U.S. trade official predicted confidently Tuesday that Congress will pass free trade agreements (FTAs) with South Korea, Colombia and Panama in September.In a speech at a Bretton Woods Committee meeting, U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk said a "framework" for a deal on the controversial Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) is already in place.President Barack Obama is pushing to renew the w
July 27, 2011
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S. Korean economy grows 0.8 pct on-quarter in Q2
The South Korean economy grew at the slowest pace in six months in the second quarter as export gains sharply eased amid global economic uncertainty, the central bank said Wednesday.Asia's fourth-largest economy grew 0.8 percent in the April-June period, down from a 1.3 percent on-quarter expansion tallied in the first quarter, according to an advance estimate of the Bank of Korea (BOK). The count
July 27, 2011
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U.S. unlikely to pass Korea FTA in August: minister
The Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement is unlikely to be passed by the U.S. Congress in August, Korean Trade Minister Kim Jong-hoon said Monday.Kim said that the negotiations for raising the U.S. government debt-ceiling, and difficulties surrounding the process, have taken center stage making it unlikely that the trade pact with Korea will be processed within the next month. Korean Trade Minister Kim
July 26, 2011
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Record cattle numbers to keep beef prices stable
The number of cattle in South Korea hit a record high in June and is expected to grow further for a couple of years, helping stabilize beef prices, the government said Tuesday. The Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said that the country had 3.05 million heads of hanwoo beef cows as of last month, up 4.5 percent from a year earlier and the largest ever. Despite 110,883 heads of
July 26, 2011
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Korea to make foot-and-mouth vaccine
South Korea will produce vaccines for foot-and-mouth disease next year to protect livestock after the country suffered the worst outbreak of the disease earlier this year, a government agency said Tuesday.The Animal, Plant and Fisheries Quarantine and Inspection Agency said it plans to import FMD antigens from foreign vaccine manufacturers and get local companies to learn production knowhow so the
July 26, 2011
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S. Korea to hike electricity prices by 4.9 pct next month
South Korea will raise electricity prices by 4.9 percent starting next month as part of its efforts to reflect rising power production costs, the commerce ministry said Tuesday.Electricity bills for household consumption will grow 2 percent from August, while those for commercial and industrial use will increase 4.1 percent and 6.1 percent, respectively, according to the Ministry of Knowledge Econ
July 26, 2011
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Banks' loan default rate dips to 6-month low in June
South Korean banks' loan delinquency rate fell to the lowest level in six months in June due mainly to a decline in project financing loans, the financial watchdog said Tuesday.The average delinquency rate of bank loans to companies and households stood at 0.97 percent as of the end of June, down 0.33 percentage point from the previous month, according to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS).Th
July 26, 2011
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Korea to build Venetian-style floodgates
Korea plans to set up high-tech facilities to stave off flooding at the country’s seaports, including flap gates similar to those being built in Italy’s Venice, the government said Monday.The Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs unveiled a package of measures to minimize the impact of natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods, typhoons and tidal waves, which are increasingly freque
July 25, 2011
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People in 40s hop on smartphone bandwagon: report
The average age of new smartphone owners has risen, according to a recent report.A report entitled “Mobile divide in the smartphone era,” recently announced by KT’s DigiEco and the office of research affairs at Yonsei University, said that the portion of new smartphone users in their 40s has jumped to 24.7 percent in November last year, from 11.6 percent earlier in May.The percentage is higher tha
July 25, 2011
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Clinton calls Korea-U.S. FTA ‘model agreement’
HONG KONG (Yonhap News) ― U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Monday that the country’s free trade deal with South Korea is a “model agreement” for the world’s largest economy.The Korea-U.S. FTA, known as KORUS FTA, was signed in 2007 and supplemented last December. It has been awaiting approval from the legislatures of both countries. “We consider KORUS a model agreement,” Clinton said i
July 25, 2011
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Major employers hire more high school graduates
Banks, major firms expand hiring of high school graduatesAll eyes are now trained on the corporate sector amid high expectations that South Korean companies at large would hire more high school graduates following an unprecedented move in the banking sector. Last week, Korea’s 18 banks said they would double their hiring quota for high school graduates, largely prompted by the government’s policy
July 24, 2011
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TV stations to talk with cable networks
The conflict between terrestrial and cable television operators over broadcast rights is expected to take a new turn as chiefs of terrestrial TV stations agreed to form a negotiation panel last Friday.In a meeting organized by Choi See-joong last week, chairman of the state media regulator, representative of five major broadcast stations ― SBS, KBS, MBC, EBS and OBS ― said a panel must be formed t
July 24, 2011
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S. Korea's GNI forecast to jump to $30,000 by 2014: finance minister
JEJU ISLAND, South Korea, July 23 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's gross national income (GNI) is forecast to grow to $30,000 per capita by 2014 before increasing by an additional $10,000 in the four years that follow, the finance minister said on Saturday."Our country's gross national income may exceed $30,000 in the first quarter of 2014 and $40,000 in 2018," Finance Minister Bahk Jae-wan said in a for
July 23, 2011
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Seoul to end antidumping tariffs on Chinese pigments
South Korea may end its six-year antidumping measures against Chinese pigments as their prices have risen enough to pose little threat to local competitors, Seoul's trade commission said Thursday.The decision to end the antidumping tariffs on Chinese anatase titanium dioxide used in paint and plastic goods was reached at a meeting of the Korea Trade Commission (KTC) on Wednesday.South Korea began
July 21, 2011
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S. Korea in dilemma over U.S. stalemate in FTA ratification
With skepticism spreading about the possibility of the U.S. government securing ratification of a free trade pact with South Korea this summer, South Korean officials expressed concern Wednesday over major diplomatic and political fallout at home.The Lee Myung-bak administration has eagerly awaited the passage of the free trade agreement (FTA) bill before the U.S. Congress goes into recess on Aug.
July 21, 2011
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Bahk promotes wet markets to spur domestic demand
Finance Minister Bahk Jae-wan on Wednesday visited a wet market with representatives of business groups, making a timely move to coordinate with the private sector to revive sagging domestic demand. The visit to Sooyu Traditional Market in northern Seoul, along with ruling Grand National Party leader Hong Jun-pyo and Huh Chang-soo, chairman of the Federation of Korean Industries, is aimed at promo
July 20, 2011
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Companies to sue Seoul over ...N.K. sanctions
About 10 South Korean companies are preparing to file a suit against the government over economic losses caused by Seoul’s sanctions on Pyongyang, a businessman said Wednesday.South Korea imposed sanctions on the North last year in retaliation to the communist country’s two deadly attacks on the South that killed 50 South Koreans.The punitive measures suspended all trade and exchange programs with
July 20, 2011
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Young women overtake men in job market
Overall job market still dominated by men, especially for workers in their 40s and 50sKorea’s overall job market is still dominated by male workers. But when it comes to new jobs for Koreans in their 20s, the opposite is true.The employment rate among women in their 20s hit 59.2 percent in the April-June period this year, slightly above men’s 58.5 percent, Statistics Korea said Wednesday. The late
July 20, 2011
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Banks’ foreign exchange deposits rise in first half
Korean banks’ foreign currency deposits rose in the first half on solid exports and prospects that the local currency’s sharp ascent may ease soon, industry data showed Wednesday.Foreign currency-denominated deposits at five major banks amounted to $14.56 billion as of end-June, up $2.27 billion from the end of last year, according to industry data.The rise came even as the local currency apprecia
July 20, 2011
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Sound savings banks allowed to offer consumer finance
South Korea plans to permit healthy savings banks to engage in consumer finance in a bid to help them secure stable sources of income, the financial watchdog said Wednesday.The Financial Services Commission (FSC) said consumer finance loans will be allowed for savings banks with more than 10 percent capital adequacy ratio and less than 8 percent sub-standard loan ratio. Consumer finance refers to
July 20, 2011