Most Popular
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Tensions heighten ahead of first president-opposition chief meeting
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Seoul to provide housing subsidy to married couples with newborns
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[KH Explains] No more 'Michael' at Kakao Games
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Rapper jailed after public street fight with another rapper
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Woman gets suspended term for injuring boyfriend with knife
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Samsung chief bolsters ties with Germany’s Zeiss
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NewJeans pops out ‘Bubble Gum’ video amid troubles at agency
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Med schools expect 1,500+ new admission slots next year
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[Grace Kao] Hybe vs. Ador: Inspiration, imitation and plagiarism
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Nominee for chief of anti-corruption body pledges 'independence, effectiveness'
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Quarter of Korean salaried workers did not use vacation time: report
Nearly a quarter of salaried workers in South Korea did not use their vacation time from August 2015 through July of last year, a report by a local culture and tourism organization said Monday.The findings, based on a survey of 4,357 people nationwide by the Korea Culture and Tourism Institute, showed 23.9 percent of those checked said they did not use their vacation time. The lack of free time was reflected in South Koreans putting in some of the longest work hours in the world at the time the
Sept. 4, 2017
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Korea set to take immediate measures to stabilize financial markets
South Korea's finance minister pledged Monday to take immediate measures to stabilize the market, if the need arises, amid escalating tensions after North Korea conducted its sixth nuclear test."The North Korean issue is spreading across the world," Finance Minister Kim Dong-yeon said at a meeting with Bank of Korea Governor Lee Ju-yeol and Financial Services Commission Chairman Choi Jong-ku. "It may not only have a short-term impact on the financial and foreign exchange markets,
Sept. 4, 2017
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Number of temps at public agencies increase in Q2
The number of nonregular workers at South Korea's public institutions rose in the second quarter from three months ago despite the government's push to cut them, with over half of them posting gains, government data showed Monday. According to the government portal All Public Information in One, temporary employees at 355 public organizations stood at 39,681 as of the end of June, up 1,765 from the first quarter.Of the total, 180 institutions, or 50.7, hired more nonregulars during the three-mon
Sept. 4, 2017
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Financial regulator steps up monitoring of markets after N. Korea‘s 6th nuke test
South Korea's financial regulator said Monday it has begun monitoring markets around the clock and will swiftly act if necessary, after North Korea spiked tensions by conducting its sixth and most powerful nuclear test. Zhin Woong-seob, governor of the Financial Supervisory Service, held a meeting earlier in the day to review contingency measures. "It is difficult to predict the situation on the Korean Peninsula as North Korea went ahead with a nuclear test, despite intense sanctions by the
Sept. 4, 2017
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[News Focus] Economy beleaguered by nuke test, US trade tension
South Korea’s economy faced serious threats on two fronts Sunday, following North Korea’s strongest-ever nuclear test, as well as increased indications from the United States that their bilateral free trade deal was under threat.Such challenges, combined with the Korea-China tension over the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense and the prolonged slow growth trend, is likely to further weigh down on Asia’s fourth-largest economy.Deputy Prime Minister for economic affairs and Fina
Sept. 3, 2017
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[Newsmaker] Trump’s talk of scrapping FTA adds strain on Korea
Tension heightened between Seoul and Washington over the weekend, upon reports by the US media that said President Donald Trump is considering a possible withdrawal from the Korea-US Free Trade Agreement.With many viewing Trump’s gesture as an attempt to gain an upper hand in stalled renegotiations, a Seoul official with the Trade Ministry said that South Korea has no change in its policies on the FTA with the United States despite Trump’s hints.The US president on Saturday told repo
Sept. 3, 2017
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[Ask a Lawyer] What permanent establishment means to multinational companies
Q: Why does a multinational need to pay attention to permanent establishment issues?A: A permanent establishment is a fixed place of business through which the business of an enterprise is wholly or partly carried on. Korean tax laws state that the corporate tax should be imposed on a foreign entity that has a permanent establishment in Korea. Multinationals have reduced taxes by eroding their tax bases in countries with high tax rates by transferring profits earned there to subsidiaries in coun
Sept. 3, 2017
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[Newsmaker] Trump says to weigh withdrawal from S. Korea trade deal
US President Donald Trump said Saturday he would meet with his advisers next week to weigh a possible withdrawal from the US free trade agreement with South Korea.Trump made the remark to journalists during a trip to hurricane-hit Houston, Reuters said, shortly after the move was reported by the Washington Post. Citing multiple sources close to the process, the paper said Trump has instructed advisers to prepare for the withdrawal, but several White House officials are trying to stop him. &
Sept. 3, 2017
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Korea to reinforce manpower, organization ahead of FTA revision talks: trade minister
Trade Minister Kim Hyun-chong said Friday he will reinforce the manpower and conduct a reorganization of the Office of International Trade and Investment to effectively cope with possible revisions to the trade deal with the United States.Kim held a video conference with US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer last month to exchange views on Washington's request for revisions to the South Korea-US Free Trade Agreement.The conference was held as Lighthizer requested a meeting a month earlier to
Sept. 1, 2017
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BOK picks 4 more companies for project for coinless society
South Korea's central bank said Friday that it has picked four more companies for its coinless society project in the latest move aimed at enhancing convenience for ordinary people.Under the project that began in April, consumers can deposit small change left from purchases of goods into prepaid mobile cards that can be used at convenience stores, discount stores and department stores, according to the Bank of Korea. It means that consumers won't have to carry coins in their pockets after making
Sept. 1, 2017
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Seoul asks Beijing to lift trade restrictions over missile row: trade ministry
South Korea has asked China to remove economic sanctions imposed on South Korea due to the diplomatic row over the deployment of a US missile defense system here, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said Friday.China has been retaliating economically against South Korea since early this year over the stationing of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system.South Korea says the missile defense system is not aimed at China but is to combat North Korea's missile and nuclear threats.
Sept. 1, 2017
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Korean economy grows 0.6% on-quarter in Q2: BOK
South Korea's economy grew at a slower pace in the second quarter from three months earlier on decreased manufacturing and construction, central bank data showed Friday.The country's gross domestic product expanded 0.6 percent in the April-June period from the previous quarter, decelerating from a 1.1 percent on-quarter expansion three months earlier, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea.From a year earlier, the local economy grew 2.7 percent in the second quarter, compared with
Sept. 1, 2017
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Korea's exports continue rally, surge 17.4% in Aug.
South Korea's exports extended their double-digit growth to eight straight months in August on record shipments of semiconductors, government data showed Friday.Outbound shipments came to $47.1 billion in the month, up from $40.1 billion tallied a year earlier, according to data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, and the Korea Customs Service.The country's exports have been on a steady rise since November led by an upturn in oil prices and recovering global trade. August mar
Sept. 1, 2017
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Average wedding in Korea costs W46m: survey
An average wedding in South Korea costs nearly 46 million won ($40,000), excluding the price of buying or renting a home, a survey showed Thursday, with more people opting for smaller ceremonies.Of the 45.9 million won total, the proportion spent on essential items like home furnishings accounted for 32 percent or 14.6 million won, followed by spending on presents and the wedding ceremony, according to the survey by the Korea Consumer Agency. The survey was conducted on 2,000 respondents w
Aug. 31, 2017
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KCCI chief backs Moon's economic vision
The Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, a leading business lobby group, on Thursday expressed support for the government’s recent decision to restructure the nation’s fiscal policy for a fundamental paradigm shift. “The economic community agrees that it is necessary to shift the fundamental paradigm of the economy,” said its Chairman Park Yong-maan, during a meeting with Paik Un-gyu, minister of trade, industry and energy, and other chamber officials in Seoul. &ldquo
Aug. 31, 2017
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BOK maintains key rate at 1.25% in August
South Korea’s central bank on Thursday froze the key interest rate for August, keeping the nation’s benchmark rate unchanged for 14 months straight since June last year.The monetary policy board of the Bank of Korea voted in its monthly meeting to hold the key rate steady at 1.25 percent for the intermeeting period, officials said.“The board shall operate the monetary policy focused on financial stability so that the (current) growth recovery may continue and the inflation rate
Aug. 31, 2017
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BOK chief says uncertainties heightened over N. Korea risks
The head of South Korea's central bank said Thursday that the North Korean risk factor has raised uncertainties for Asia's fourth-largest economy.Tensions on the Korean Peninsula have been escalating over North Korea's long-range missile and nuclear programs.On Tuesday, North Korea fired an intermediate-range ballistic missile that flew over Japan in what North Korean leader Kim Jong-un says was a prelude to containing the US Pacific territory of Guam.The missile launch drew strong UN condemnati
Aug. 31, 2017
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[Monitor] Korea's fertility rate drops to 7-year low
South Korea’s fertility rate fell to a seven-year low last year, data by Statistics Korea showed.The total fertility rate, or the average number of babies that a woman is projected to have during her lifetime, reached 1.17 in 2016, down from 1.24 a year earlier.The number of newborns also declined 7.3 percent to a record-breaking low of 406,200 last year.The average age that a woman had her first child was 31.4 last year.To tackle the low birthrate that would hurt the country’s econo
Aug. 31, 2017
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Korea to create 200,000 jobs in health sector over 5 yrs
South Korea aims to create 200,000 new jobs in the health care sector over the next five years in an effort to improve medical services, the health ministry said Thursday.The government forecast that some 100,000 new jobs will be created naturally over the next five years, with another 100,000 positions being made with the government's policy intervention. It said such growth is possible as health care is the country's next growth engine after information technology. The plan was announced durin
Aug. 31, 2017
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FTC adds four firms on its antitrust watch list in Aug.
South Korea's corporate watchdog said Thursday that it has put four more affiliates of large business groups under tight restrictions on mutual investment and loan guarantees.The Fair Trade Commission said 1,281 firms were on its monthly watch list as of end-August, up four from the previous month.They are owned by the country's 31 largest business groups, including Samsung Group and Hyundai Motor Group, with assets of 10 trillion won ($8.5 billion) or more. Three groups, like Hanwha and LS
Aug. 31, 2017