S. Korea biz delegation visits Malaysia to promote closer ties
South Korea’s business mission will visit Malaysia on the occasion of President Moon Jae-in’s state visit to the Southeast Asian country this week, to strengthen economic ties, a local corporate lobby said Monday. A total of 250 business leaders who represent 13 conglomerates and 57 small and medium-sized companies will visit Malaysia to boost two-way […]
S. Korea: market share of eco-friendly cars jumped to 8.2 pct last year
The share of environment-friendly vehicles jumped to 8.2 percent of South Korea’s passenger car market last year on government subsidies and changing consumer appetite, a car industry association said Sunday. In 2018, the number of environment-friendly vehicles, such as hybrid electric, all-electric and hydrogen fuel-cell electric models, reached 124,979 units, jumping 26 percent from a […]
S. Korea: Gender minister vows legal efforts to ban sexism on Int’l Women’s Day
As South Korea joined in celebrating International Women’s Day on Friday, the gender minister pledged efforts to enact laws to ban discrimination based on one’s sex and to secure education on gender equality. “Gender equality is a key step toward building a solid democracy. … I will join hands with all the people in […]
S. Korea: President Moon names 7 new ministers in Cabinet reshuffle
President Moon Jae-in on Friday named seven new ministers in a move to set his administration up for the second half of his term that will also replace the country’s point man on North Korea. Kim Yeon-chul, currently the head of the Korea Institute for National Unification, has been tapped as the new unification […]
South Korea: income affects senior households’ spending more than assets
Income has a greater impact than assets on consumption by South Korean households comprised of seniors, a parliamentary report said Tuesday. A 1 percent increase in elderly households’ earned income made their consumption expenditure go up 0.09 percent between 2006-2016, according to the report by the National Assembly Budget Office. In contrast, elderly households’ spending […]
Seoul seeks to widen cooperation with Beijing to fight fine dust pollution
South Korea’s government said Thursday it will push to team up with China to take emergency measures on reducing fine dust. Environment Minister Cho Myung-rae, announcing the government’s special measures to fight fine dust pollution, said Seoul will ask Beijing to conduct a joint artificial rain experiment over the sea between the two countries this […]
Signs of N. Korea reassembling part of Dongchang-ri missile site detected: source
South Korea has detected signs of North Korea restoring an ancillary building of its Dongchang-ri long-range missile launch site that it partially disassembled last year, a government source in Seoul said Wednesday. On Tuesday, Beyond Parallel, a project of the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, said that its satellite imagery analysis showed […]
S. Korean banks’ household lending grows faster in February
Household lending extended by South Korea’s major banks picked up the pace in February due to the growth in credit loans, market data showed Tuesday. The country’s five major lenders — KB Kookmin, Shinhan, Woori, KEB Hana, and Nonghyup — had 573.91 trillion won (US$509.87 billion) in outstanding household loans as of end-February, up 2.53 […]
President Moon calls for joint action with China to reduce fine dust
South Korean President Moon Jae-in ordered his government Wednesday to work together with China to fight fine dust pollution, his office Cheong Wa Dae said. South Korea has suffered from the worst particulate matter pollution this week with a large portion of the fine dust believed to be blown from China. The president told […]
After Singapore, Can Sizzle Be Replaced With Steak?
WHAT can face-to-face diplomacy between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un achieve? It is wisest not to expect a revolutionary change in Trump’s approach and instead for him to play to his strengths: ceremony and personal relationships. On substance, the South Korean-led process should be allowed to take the lead […]