Most Popular
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‘Gimflation’ in S. Korea as dried seaweed prices grow on rising global demand
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S. Korea's gender pay gap worst in OECD
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Yoon to resume diplomatic activity via 3-way summit with Japan, China
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SM, YG Entertainment’s K-pop groups benefit from troubles at Hybe
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South Korea unveils W26tr support program for chip industry
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S. Korea to hold rotating presidency of UN Security Council next month
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Yoon rejects Lee's proposal for pension reform talks
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Student nabbed for biking naked 'due to stress'
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Police arrest mastermind behind last year's palace vandalism
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BOK holds rate at 3.5%, ups growth outlook
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Seoul city govt. tests soil, water near US base for contamination
The Seoul city government conducted its own survey on soil and water near the US base in the central part of the capital for possible contamination with toxic chemicals on Wednesday, amid growing calls for the disclosure of pollution levels in the area. Officials from the Seoul Metropolitan Government visited the outer areas of the US military base in Yongsan to examine the soil and groundwater, according to the city government.They selected six spots outside the fenced-off military camps to ext
Aug. 9, 2017
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Korean top diplomat meets with chief of UN Environment Programme
Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha discussed ways to improve South Korea's collaboration with the United Nations Environment Programme during her meeting with the chief of the UN group on Wednesday, her ministry said. Kang called on UNEP Executive-General Erik Solheim to pay more interest to helping resolve trans-boundary air pollution in Northeast Asia, including the fine dust problem, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. She also committed South Korea's efforts to implement the Paris Agreement o
Aug. 9, 2017
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‘Drone voyeur’ arrested for filming naked bathers in Jeju
A man in his 30s faces voyeurism charges for filming women at an open-air bath near Gwakji Gwamul Beach in Jeju Island.The police made the discovery early last month when one of the victims reported a drone floating near the open-air bath where people take a dip in the nude. (Yonhap)There have been 14 cases of “drone voyeur” filming reported to the police so far, all of which happened in 2017. The voyeur drones have been spotted infringing on private spaces, including a changing room and a pool
Aug. 9, 2017
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Rumors of Aug. 14 holiday false, say officials
Rumors of a state plan to temporarily designate Aug. 14 as a holiday is false, according to government officials. Being the day before the National Liberation Day, which falls on Tuesday, if Monday was made a temporary holiday that would yield a four-day weekend. Social media users have been abuzz with wishful predictions of an extra vacation. (The Korea Herald)The previous Park Geun-hye administration had sometimes given out extra days off to boost lackluster consumer sentiments and to attract
Aug. 9, 2017
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Govt. begins running aid fund for humidifier disinfectant victims
The government said Wednesday it has started to run a relief fund for victims of a toxic humidifier disinfectant, as part of its compensation measure after the scandal resulted in some 70 deaths amid intense public scrutiny. The Ministry of Environment said its committee handling the management of the relief fund decided to charge 18 firms that had produced the deadly product a total of 125 billion won ($110 million) to share the expenses for the relief fund. The move comes after the parliament
Aug. 9, 2017
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Head of Gangnam district office to face trial for slandering Moon
Prosecutors said Wednesday it indicted the head of Seoul's Gangnam District Office without detention on charges of slandering President Moon Jae-in when he was a presidential candidate earlier this year. Shin Yeon-hee, a member of the conservative Liberty Korea Party, is accused of illegal electioneering and defaming Moon by spreading false information about him via mobile messenger Kakao Talk on more than 200 occasions from December last year to March, according to the Seoul Central District Pr
Aug. 9, 2017
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Policeman who had sex with teenager given 18-month suspended sentence
The Busan District Court on Wednesday handed down a suspended jail term of 1 1/2 years to a police officer who had sex with a female high school student he was supposed to offer guidance to.The 34-year-old was a policeman dispatched to a school to help tackle school violence. He was charged with violation of the Children’s Welfare Law for groping and having a sexual relationship with a student he was assigned to help.The defendant had argued the sex was consensual, but the Busan court ruled agai
Aug. 9, 2017
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Korean Education Center opens new branch in Atlanta
The Korean Education Center, a Ministry of Education-affiliated agency in charge of teaching Korean to overseas Koreans and foreigners, will open its 42nd offshore branch in Atlanta in the US state of Georgia this week, the ministry said Wednesday.South Korea opened the first Korean Education Center in Japan in 1963, and there are currently 41 Korean Education Centers in operation in 18 countries worldwide.In the United States, the center opened in Washington, DC and Los Angeles, both in 1980, a
Aug. 9, 2017
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Chief prosecutor apologizes for past wrongdoings
South Korea’s top prosecutor apologized Tuesday for the prosecution’s failure to abide by the law and protect human rights in investigating political cases in the past, vowing to make the law enforcement body politically neutral and transparent. At the press briefing held at the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office, Prosecutor-General Moon Moo-il issued the apology for prosecutors’ past wrongdoings for the first time as an incumbent chief prosecutor and laid out plans to reform the prosecution. “I apolog
Aug. 8, 2017
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Heat wave claims six lives so far
At least six people have died and over 2 million livestock were killed due to the heat wave sweeping South Korea this summer, the government said Tuesday. Electrics fans are in full motion inside a pig farm in the southern city of Ulsan on Tuesday, as a heat wave continues to engulf Korea. (Yonhap)According to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a total of 1,284 people have fallen ill due to heat-related illnesses as of Tuesday, while six have lost their lives.A woman in her 60
Aug. 8, 2017
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Korea to toughen air pollution measurement standard
South Korea is moving to raise standards for airborne pollutants to international levels, as part of its ongoing efforts to fight air pollution. On the left is the Air Visual's air pollution ranking as of Tuesday 2:30 p.m. On the right shows Korea's air quality map at the same time.Currently, the country classifies air quality into four categories -- good, normal, bad and very bad -- based on a set of criteria, which includes daily average concentrations of PM 10 and PM 2.5. PM 2.5 are ultrafine
Aug. 8, 2017
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[Feature] Splash parks a hit in summer, but is the water clean?
Splash pads and play fountains are popular hangout spots in summer among families with young children. But is it safe to play there? Does anyone mind the water quality? Children play in a floor fountain at Gwanghwamun Square, central Seoul, on Aug. 3. (Yonhap)“I think it is a great idea to build splash parks like this for kids to play with water in the middle of the city,” said a mother in her 30s, who brought her 7-year-old son to a splash park at Seoul Square last week, when the daytime high r
Aug. 8, 2017
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230-kph race to show off new Mercedes ends in triple crash
After a man suggested a race to show off his brand new Mercedes he had purchased the same day, his new ride was left irreparably damaged. Gangdong Police Station in Seoul said Tuesday that the driver of the Mercedes and his two friends had raced their cars on Olympic highway and were booked on speeding charges. (Yonhap) The three men raced their cars on Olympic highway near Amsa Bridge at speeds of 170 to
Aug. 8, 2017
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‘Korean Warren Buffett’ admits his stock success ‘fabricated’
Known as the “Korean Warren Buffett,” a college student who allegedly earned 40 billion won ($36 million) through stock trading admitted Tuesday he had inflated his investment returns.Park Chul-sang has drawn much media attention for earning a huge sum of money through investments at a young age, as well as donating a considerable portion of that money for social good.Park Chul-sang (Yonhap)However, Park admitted Tuesday that he exaggerated his investment returns, in response to suspicions raise
Aug. 8, 2017
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Korea steps up efforts to strengthen sovereignty over biological resources
South Korea has been making efforts to classify indigenous species of biological resources as the country joins the global fray to secure sovereignty over them, a state-run think tank said Tuesday.Classification on what kinds of animals and plants inhabit the country is a vital step toward its endeavor to keep its sovereignty over biological resources.The National Institute of Biological Resources, affiliated with the Environment Ministry, said it had nurtured a batch of 40 researchers, who have
Aug. 8, 2017
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Court rules Mitsubishi must pay compensation to forced labor victims
GWANGJU -- A South Korean court ruled Tuesday in favor of victims of Japanese forced labor during World War II, ordering the Japanese firm Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to pay compensation to an elderly surviving victim and a family member of a deceased victim.The Gwangju District Court ruled that the Japanese company must pay 120 million won ($106,572) in compensation to Kim Young-ok, 85, and 3.25 million won ($2,892) to a family member of late victim Choe Jeong-rye for their toiling labor.The pl
Aug. 8, 2017
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Korean man gets 3-year jail term for forcing foreign woman into prostitution
The Ulsan District Court has said that a male sex-trafficking broker who hijacked and assaulted a Kazakhstani woman was sentenced to three years in prison.His two accomplices, who operated the prostitution business, received an 8-month prison term with 2 years in probation, and 1 1/2 years in prison with 3 years in probation, respectively. (Yonhap)Last December, the broker and his accomplices attempted to force a Kazakhstani woman into prostitution.The woman ran away to Ulsan to avoid them, but
Aug. 7, 2017
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Invasive seaweed off Jeju originates from China: report
JEJU -- A highly invasive macroalgae species which has impacted the waters off South Korea's largest island of Jeju comes from an east Chinese archipelago, a local think tank said Monday.The South Korean resort island is plagued in spring and summer by inflows of the alien seaweed, known as Sargassum horneri, which smells bad and ruins the landscape.In a report, the Jeju Research Institute confirmed that the algae drifts into Jeju waters from the Zhoushan Islands, an archipelago in the east Chin
Aug. 7, 2017
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Korean court to rule on wartime ‘forced labor’ cases involving Japanese firm this week
A South Korean court is scheduled to deliver its verdicts this week in two separate suits that elderly Korean victims filed against Japanese firm Mitsubishi for compensation for their forced labor during World War II.On Tuesday, the Gwangju District Court plans to rule on a suit that forced labor victim Kim Young-ok, 85, and a family member of late victim Choe Jeong-rye, filed to demand that Mitsubishi Heavy Industries pay them 150 million won ($133,084) and 30 million won, respectively, for the
Aug. 7, 2017
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Scorching heat affects cities, seas, farms
A fire broke out Monday at noon in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, as an air conditioner’s outdoor fan overheated on the 12th floor of an apartment.The apartment was singed in a 12-square-meter area, resulting in estimated property damage of 4 million won ($3,550). However, the fire was extinguished within 10 minutes. There were no casualties. (Yonhap)Continuing summer heat across the peninsula is causing a series of mishaps, including power failures in areas of dense population.Some 1,200
Aug. 7, 2017