Most Popular
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Russia sent more than 165,000 barrels of refined petroleum to N. Korea in March: White House
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Key suspects grilled over alleged abuse of power in Marine death inquiry
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S. Korean children, teens grow taller, mature faster than before: study
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[Graphic News] Number of coffee franchises in S. Korea rises 13%
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Army takes group action against Hybe for neglecting BTS
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Some junior doctors are returning: Health Ministry
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Marine Corps commander summoned by CIO for questioning on alleged influence-peddling case
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[Robert J. Fouser] AI changes rationale for learning languages
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Ador CEO's request for exclusive right to terminate NewJeans' contract with Hybe refused in February
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Woman dangling from power lines rescued by residents holding blanket
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Fitch downgrades five eurozone countries
FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) ― U.S. ratings agency Fitch says it is downgrading the credit ratings of five countries that use the euro, including economic heavyweights Italy and Spain.The downgraded countries ― also including Belgium, Cyprus, and Slovenia ― faced financial and economic difficulites due to the eurozone’s debt crisis that could make it harder for them to repay their debts, Fitch said Friday after financial markets closed in Europe.The move by Fitch was largely expected, as the agency h
World BusinessJan. 29, 2012
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Facebook IPO could value it among top companies
LOS ANGELES (AP) ― When Facebook makes its long-expected debut as a public company this spring, the social-networking company will likely vault into the ranks of the largest public companies in the world, alongside McDonald’s, Amazon.com and Bank of America. The Wall Street Journal reported Friday that Facebook is preparing to file initial paperwork for an offering that could raise as much as $10 billion and value the company at $75 billion to $100 billion. The filing with the Securities and Exc
World BusinessJan. 29, 2012
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Twitter’s censorship plan rouses global furor
Company to block dissenting tweets in specific countriesNEW YORK (AP) ― Twitter, a tool of choice for dissidents and activists around the world, found itself the target of global outrage Friday after unveiling plans to allow country-specific censorship of tweets that might break local laws.It was a stunning role reversal for a youthful company that prides itself in promoting unfettered expression, 140 characters at a time. Twitter insisted its commitment to free speech remains firm, and sought t
World BusinessJan. 29, 2012
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Obama expands aid for mortgage delinquents
The Obama administration, seeking to help more homeowners lower their interest rates and shed mortgage debt, will relax the rules on a federal loan-modification program and triple its incentives to banks. The revised Home Affordable Modification Program, or HAMP, also would pay Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to forgive debt on homes that have lost value. The government-owned companies, citing cost, don’t reduce principal, a policy that has limited HAMP’s reach because they own or guarantee nearly ha
World BusinessJan. 29, 2012
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China, India urged to boost safety net to dodge debt trap
Emerging giants China and India must invest in pensions and healthcare systems now for their populations if they want to avoid falling into the West’s debt trap, experts said on Saturday.“There is a critical opportunity for India right now to look at its policy on pensions and healthcare,” Douglas Peterson, president of ratings agency Standard and Poor’s, told the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting.Over half of India’s population are under 35 years old at the moment, and while the young workf
World BusinessJan. 29, 2012
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Roubini warns of tough times ahead
DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) ― Economist Nouriel Roubini, nicknamed “Dr. Doom” for his gloomy predictions in the run-up to the financial meltdown four years ago, says the fallout from that crisis could last the rest of this decade.Roubini, widely acknowledged to have predicted the crash of 2008, sees tough times ahead for the global economy and is warning that without major policy changes things can still get much worse.Until Europe radically reforms itself and the U.S. gets serious about its own deb
World BusinessJan. 29, 2012
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‘Beijing should punish Manila over U.S. offer’
BEIJING (AFP) ― China should impose “sanctions” against the Philippines after it offered to allow more U.S. troops on its soil, state media said Sunday, amid growing tensions over disputed waters in the South China Sea.Manila said Friday it planned to hold more joint exercises and to let more U.S. troops rotate through the Southeast Asian country ― an offer welcomed by the United States as it seeks to expand its military power in Asia.China has not yet officially responded to the announcement, w
World NewsJan. 29, 2012
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Tibetans live in fear as China cracks down on protests
CHENGDU, China (AFP) -- Sitting in a teahouse in Chengdu’s Tibetan quarter, a nervous young monk spoke of how police arrests of innocent people were adding to the climate of fear in China’s Tibetan-inhabited regions.The Lama temple where the monk lives is a 15-hour drive away, high up on the Tibetan plateau in the southwestern province of Sichuan where rights groups say police have fired on demonstrators three times in the past week, killing at least three and leaving dozens wounded.The 28-year-
World NewsJan. 29, 2012
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Early French exit a mistake: Afghans
KABUL (AP) ― France’s plans to withdraw its combat troops from Afghanistan a year early drew harsh words Saturday in the Afghan capital, with critics accusing French President Nicolas Sarkozy of putting domestic politics ahead of Afghans’ safety.A wider proposal by Sarkozy for NATO to hand over all security to Afghans by the end of next year also came under fire, with one Afghan lawmaker saying it would be “a big mistake” that would leave security forces unprepared to fight the Taliban insurgenc
World NewsJan. 29, 2012
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27 killed in fire at Peruvian rehab center
LIMA (AP) ― A fire swept through a two-story private rehabilitation center for addicts in a poor part of Peru’s capital Saturday, killing 27 people and critically injuring five as firefighters punched holes through walls to rescue residents locked inside.The “Christ is Love” center for drug and alcohol addicts was unlicensed and overcrowded and its residents were apparently kept inside “like prisoners,” Health Minister Alberto Tejada told the Associated Press.Authorities said 26 people died at t
World NewsJan. 29, 2012
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Cuba Communist Party holds key meeting
HAVANA (AP) ― Cuba’s Communist Party closed the first day of its national conference Saturday with declarations of support for the burgeoning private-sector class, tough talk on corruption and vows to be attentive to islanders’ complaints.But there were no concrete resolutions on President Raul Castro’s call for political term limits or word on leadership changes during the closed-door gathering, a two-day follow-up to last April’s historic party summit where delegates opened up long-shut doors
World NewsJan. 29, 2012
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Japan, Russia to boost ties despite islands row
TOKYO (AP) ― The foreign ministers of Japan and Russia agreed Saturday to strengthen economic and security cooperation but made no progress on resolving a long-standing territorial dispute that has kept the two nations from concluding a peace treaty.Foreign Minister Koichiro Gemba and visiting Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said the two countries need to address the row over islands off northeastern Japan in a calm manner. Gemba said resolving the dispute and forging a peace treaty offic
World NewsJan. 29, 2012
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How rich is Mitt Romney?
WASHINGTON (AP) ― Just how rich is Mitt Romney? Add up the wealth of the last eight presidents, from Richard Nixon to Barack Obama. Then double that number. Now you’re in Romney territory.He would be among the richest presidents in American history if elected ― probably in the top four.He couldn’t top George Washington who, with nearly 24,000 hectares and more than 300 slaves, is considered the big daddy of presidential wealth. After that, it gets complicated, depending on how you rate Thomas Je
World NewsJan. 29, 2012
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Secret Service probes Internet Obama photo
WASHINGTON (UPI) -- Federal agents say they are investigating a picture on the Internet allegedly showing Arizona men holding guns and a bullet-ridden image of President Obama.The picture allegedly displayed seven young men with four of them holding up two assault rifles, a revolver and a bolt-actio
Jan. 29, 2012
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Protesters strip down for Washington gala
WASHINGTON (AFP) -- Protesters from Occupy DC, facing a clampdown on their encampment Monday, stripped down for a topless street party Saturday outside a black-tie gala for Washington's biggest movers and shakers.President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle topped the guest list for the 99th ga
Jan. 29, 2012
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Twitter's new censorship plan rouses global furor
NEW YORK (AP) -- Twitter, a tool of choice for dissidents and activists around the world, found itself the target of global outrage Friday after unveiling plans to allow country-specific censorship of tweets that might break local laws.It was a stunning role reversal for a youthful company that prid
World NewsJan. 28, 2012
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Fitch downgrades 5 eurozone nations
FRANKFURT (AP) -- U.S. ratings agency Fitch says it is downgrading the credit ratings of five countries that use the euro, including economic heavyweights Italy and Spain. The downgraded countries _ also including Belgium, Cyprus, and Slovenia _ faced financial and economic
World BusinessJan. 28, 2012
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Syria troops storm town near capital
BEIRUT (AP) ― Syrian troops stormed a flashpoint suburb of Damascus on Thursday, rounding people up in house-to-house raids and clashing with army defectors, activists said, as the 10-month-old uprising inches ever closer to the capital.Even as the fighting raged in Douma, tens of thousands of backers of President Bashar Assad poured into the streets just 16 kilometers away in downtown Damascus in a show of support for his embattled regime.Similar pro-regime rallies were held in other cities Thu
World NewsJan. 27, 2012
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Clinton ‘ready for rest’
WASHINGTON (AP) ― Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton says she wants to step off the “high wire of American politics” after two decades and is again tamping down speculation that she might stay in government if President Barack Obama wins a second term.Clinton told State Department employees on Thursday that she is ready for a rest and is paying no attention to the Republican presidential candidate debates. She said she wants to find out just how tired she is after working flat out as firs
World NewsJan. 27, 2012
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Iran says ready to return to nuclear talks
Proposal comes upon strongest EU, U.S. sanctions yetTEHRAN (AP) ― Iran is ready to revive talks with the U.S. and other world powers, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Thursday, but suggested that Tehran’s foes will have to make compromises to prevent negotiations from again collapsing in stalemate.Iran’s insistence that it will never give up uranium enrichment ― the process that makes material for reactors as well as weapons ― scuttled negotiations a year ago and still looms as a potential dea
World NewsJan. 27, 2012