Korea’s auto workers, represented by some of the country’s most powerful labor unions, are putting in hours beyond legal limits, the Labor Ministry said Sunday. The ministry’s on-the-spot checks found that all five carmakers operating in Korea, including the largest Hyundai Motor, had their employees work in excess of the 12 hours of weekly overtime that the law permits. Their working hours per...

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade appointed it’s first female vice spokesperson as part of its efforts to enhance communication with the public, officials said Saturday. Former journalist Han Hye-jin, 49, was selected through a competitive hiring process in which 10 people including some from outside the ministry like Han applied, officials said. “She is well versed in journalism, publi...

The ASEAN-Korea Centre will showcase food and beverages from 29 companies of 10 ASEAN countries during the Korea Food Expo. Amid growing interest in ASEAN food and beverage products in the Korean market, the Centre intends to further promote products from members of the Southeast Asian bloc by displaying and introducing a wide selection of goods including frozen seafood, confectionery, dried fru...

The Luxembourg Trade and Investment Office is holding a seminar regarding the European country’s information communication technology industry during the G-Star Trade and Game Show in Busan. Luxembourg is one of the leading ICT industry countries in Europe hosting several international recognized companies such as eBay, Amazon, Skype and PayPal. The seminar will be held on Nov. 10 from 4:30-6 p...

An Irish-Korean Essay Competition for university students is being held for the first time. Organized by the Irish Embassy and the Irish Association of Korea, the competition seeks to raise awareness of the connections between both countries. The competition will allow contestants to compete for an opportunity to experience Ireland from an educational, cultural, and academic perspective, by off...

The El Salvador Embassy is accepting donations to help the country recover from the devastating tropical depression that hit the country and region last month. Strong storms hit Central America and southern Mexico for nearly two weeks in mid-October. In El Salvador, the hardest hit country, 1 million people have been affected, at least 34 people have lost their lives and almost 56,000 have been...

Applying for a visa to visit India has been made easier with the reopening of the Indian Visa Application Center. From now on, the center will handle all visa related matters, types and categories for Korean and foreign nationals wishing to visit India. The Center is located at the Hyundai Liberty House, 258 Hannam-dong, Yongsan-gu. The office of the Indian Visa Application Center will operate...

Most of resources to come from budget cuts in construction projects The Seoul city administration’s welfare budget for next year is expected to increase by 300 billion won ($254 million) to 3.2 trillion won, city officials said Sunday. According to the municipal government, new mayor Park Won-soon directed a readjustment of the minimum cost of living. Once the cost is readjusted, an additional ...

North Korea's mineral exports to China have tripled this year compared to a year ago, a study showed Sunday. A joint study of Chinese data by Yonhap News Agency and Seoul-based IBK Economic Research Institute showed that China imported 8.42 million tons of minerals from North Korea from January to September this year, worth US$852 million. Over the first nine months of last year, China brought ...