Most Popular
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Over 80,000 millionaires, 20 billionaires in Seoul: report
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Korean battery makers heave sigh of relief over 2-year IRA reprieve
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Young Korean doctors seek plan B: cosmetic dermatology or overseas
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Yoon apologizes over first lady’s Dior bag scandal, but accuses special probe attempt as political maneuvering
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South Korea open to Indonesian proposal to cut KF-21 payments
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Police seek arrest warrant for med student who killed girlfriend
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Coupang earnings hit hard by losses from ailing Farfetch
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[K-pop’s dilemma] Time, profit pressures work against originality
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Girl hanging on bridge, police trying to rescue her both fall off; rescued immediately
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[K-pop's dilemma] Is Hybe-Ador conflict a case of growing pains?
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S. Korea culls 33 mln poultry amid worst bird flu outbreak
Facing its worst avian influenza outbreak, South Korea has culled more than 33 million poultry since the first reported case last November, officials said Saturday, while observers noted local resources to deal with the deadliest outbreak may have already been stretched too thin. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, the country has culled 33.12 million animals as of Friday. The number is already more than double the previous record of 13.96 million destroyed in a 2
Feb. 11, 2017
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S. Korea's wage income tax tops W30 tln in 2016
Tax collected on wage income came to more than 30 trillion won for the first time in the country's history last year, the government said Saturday, apparently indicating a growing tax burden on waged workers. In 2016, wage income tax came to 31 trillion won (US$26.96 billion), up 14.6 percent from a year earlier, according to the finance ministry. The rate of increase outpaced an 11.3-percent on-year rise in overall tax revenue, which came to 242.6 trillion win last year. The 2016 tally on
Feb. 11, 2017
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Education minister warns of legal measures over state history textbooks
The education minister warned Friday that the government could take legal action against civic groups that try to stop schools from adopting state-authored history textbooks.Lee Joon-sik made the remark in a public address at the government complex in Seoul following the Jan. 31 unveiling of the final version of the controversial textbooks for middle and high school students."The so-called Korean Teachers and Education Workers Union, and certain civic groups should immediately stop actions that
Feb. 10, 2017
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FMD outbreak leads to meat price hike
Meat prices in South Korea have risen nearly 10 percent since this year's first outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease and may skyrocket should the epidemic spread further, industry sources said Friday.The government confirmed the fourth outbreak at a cow farm Thursday after the first infection was reported last Sunday. It also raised the nation's FMD alert to the highest level and closed all livestock trading markets in a desperate bid to stem its spread.It is the first time in seven years that the
Feb. 10, 2017
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Seoul court upholds sales ban on Nissan Qashqai
A Seoul court on Thursday upheld the South Korean government's sales ban on a compact crossover utility vehicle sold by the local unit of Japanese carmaker Nissan Motor Co.The Seoul Administrative Court rejected the case filed by the carmaker in June 2016, seeking nullification of the government's decision.The Ministry of Environment slapped 340 million won($286,000) in fines on Nissan Korea earlier in the month and banned sales of its Qashqai CUV for manipulating emissions results. (Yonhap)The
Feb. 9, 2017
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[FROM THE SCENE] Justices irritated by ‘too many unnecessary’ questions
Justices overseeing President Park Geun-hye’s impeachment trial Thursday expressed irritation at “too many unnecessary questions” during witness questioning, amid the widespread public notion Park is employing delay tactics to boost the chances of a verdict favorable to her. During the 12th hearing of the historic trial, justices interrupted both sides --representatives of the impeached Park and the parliament -- several times to take issue with repetitive and unclear questions. “He already answ
Feb. 9, 2017
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Doctors to face penalty for taking selfie with corpse
Five doctors who took a photo with a cadaver may face serious consequences, after one posted the picture on his Instagram. The Ministry of Health and Welfare said Thursday that it is currently investigating the case and considering taking disciplinary steps against doctors. According to the Act on Dissection and Preservation of Corpse, those who conduct pathological or anatomical research on a corpse should exercise an appropriate demeanor. It is forbidden to share or post photos of cadavers if
Feb. 9, 2017
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Counsel cries foul over Park probe leak accusation
The special counsel team investigating the President Park Geun-hye scandal on Thursday cried foul over the Presidential Office’s unilateral cancellation of an interrogation of the president. “There has been no contact between the probe team and the Blue House (to reschedule the session) since the cancellation,” said Lee Kyu-chul, the counsel office’s spokesperson, at a press briefing.“Since we ruled out a forced investigation on the president, there is no possibility of a Park interview, if the
Feb. 9, 2017
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Park and former aides sued by ‘blacklisted’ artists
Over 400 artists allegedly blacklisted by the Park Geun-hye administration for their critical views of the government have filed a lawsuit against Park and her former top presidential aides, their lawyers said Thursday. According to Minbyun, or Lawyers for a Democratic Society, the group has so far recruited 461 artists and cultural figures as plaintiffs in a case against the government and individuals involved in drawing up a list of cultural figures deemed unfavorable to the Park administrati
Feb. 9, 2017
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S. Korea on highest alert for foot-and-mouth outbreak
The South Korean government Thursday raised the country’s foot-and-mouth disease watch level to “serious,” the highest in the country’s disease control system, after two different virus strains were confirmed. The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs issued a travel ban for all livestock in the country, while ordering tougher quarantine and sterilization measures. Eighty-six livestock markets across the nation will be closed while the ban is in place. It comes less than two days after
Feb. 9, 2017
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Korea confirmed to have 47,000 indigenous species of animals, plants
South Korea is confirmed to have more than 47,000 indigenous species of animals and plants for the first time in 20 years, with more than 100,000 native species presumed to exist on the entire Korean Peninsula, a state-run think tank said Thursday.The National Institute of Biological Resources, affiliated with the Environment Ministry, put the number of the country's indigenous biological species at 47,003 as of December last year, which it has listed as part of a project to establish a comprehe
Feb. 9, 2017
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Son of sunken ferry owner ordered to compensate govt.
A Seoul court on Thursday ordered the eldest son of the late owner of a ferry, which sank in 2014 killing more than 300, to pay 75 million won ($65,000) in compensation to the government for its handling of the disaster.The ferry Sewol sank in waters off South Korea's southwestern coast on April 16, 2014.The government sued Yoo Dae-kyun, son of the ferry's late owner Yoo Byung-eun, for 3.54 billion won for the cost involved in handling the disaster, including compensation to the families of the
Feb. 9, 2017
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Husbands more satisfied with marriages than wives: survey
Husbands are more satisfied with their marriages than wives in South Korea, a survey showed Thursday, indicating that married men's involvement in household work is still insufficient. The survey of 476 married men and 576 married women, conducted between June and November last year, showed that 72.2 percent of the husbands described their marriages as "positive," compared with53.7 percent of the wives who said so. The survey was jointly conducted by the state-run Korea Institute for Health and
Feb. 9, 2017
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Park's confidante answers summons for questioning
Special prosecutors questioned the jailed friend of President Park Geun-hye on Thursday after she answered a summons in an unexpected move ahead of a face-to-face interrogation of the president. Choi Soon-sil, who is at the center of an influence-peddling scandal rocking the country, appeared before Independent Counsel Park Young-soo's team at its office in southern Seoul. It was the first time in weeks for her to comply with a summons voluntarily.Choi Soon-sil appears before the Independent Cou
Feb. 9, 2017
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Korea to build 900 kilometers in new roads in 2017
South Korea will extend national roads by over 900 kilometers this year, greatly improving the accessibility of the entire nation while also helping boost the local economy, the government said Thursday.Also, more than 60 percent of 7.3 trillion won ($6.37 billion) in government budget earmarked for the construction of new roads will be utilized in the first half of the year, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.In total, the ministry plans to build 918 kilometers of n
Feb. 9, 2017
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Doctors could face punishment for posting cadaver photo
The Ministry of Health and Welfare has begun to review whether to punish a group of doctors for publicly posting a photo of them posing with a cadaver during training for surgical techniques, ministry officials said Wednesday.The five medical professionals, including an orthopedic surgeon from an unspecified university hospital, posted the photograph on the Internet Tuesday after taking part in a cadaver dissection workshop at a Seoul hospital on Saturday, drawing flak from the general public.On
Feb. 8, 2017
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Quarantine agency to overhaul cow vaccination system
The state quarantine agency said Wednesday it will revise its livestock vaccination system after an animal disease outbreak revealed unrealistic sampling that allowed farm owners to disregard necessary prevention.Two cases of foot-and-mouth disease were confirmed at cattle farms in the southern part of the country this week, raising alarm against what could lead to mass culling if not contained quickly.The outbreak also raised questions after the government announced that very few of the cows at
Feb. 8, 2017
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Appeals court backs expulsion of Korean-American over pro-NK remarks
A Seoul appeals court on Wednesday rejected a suit filed by a Korean-American woman to nullify the government's expulsion of her for making pro-North Korea remarks during her talk shows in 2014.The Seoul High Court upheld last year's lower court ruling in favor of the government decision, citing concerns that she could harm the country's national interests. Shin Eun-mi was accused in late 2014 by conservative civic groups of violating the National Security Law by making comments sympathetic to t
Feb. 8, 2017
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Court ruling casts questions on South Korea's other aged nuclear reactors
A court ruling overturning a government decision to extend operation of a nuclear reactor has brought the country's other aged reactors back into the spotlight, about a third of them due to expire in lifespan within 10 years.South Korea has 25 reactors currently running as of Wednesday.According to the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission, eight of them have expiry dates in the years between 2023 and 2027. While most of the reactors were initially given 40 years of operational license, two wer
Feb. 8, 2017
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Gay rights groups call for LGBT-inclusive education at school
Civic groups in support of sexual minorities on Wednesday called for the abolishment of the Education Ministry’s sex education policy which excludes any mention of sexual minorities, calling it “discriminatory.”“The Education Ministry should discard the sex education guidelines which only promote discrimination and prejudice against sexual minorities and should opt to give LGBT-inclusive education,” they said during a press conference held in front of the government complex in central Seoul.The
Feb. 8, 2017