SPOTLIGHT

• Television

  

  Meet mastermind behind the original ‘Masked Singer’

  Fashion designer Hwang Jae-keun talks making masks, US version, fashion advice

• Technology

  

  Twitter focuses on 'public conversation' in S. Korean society: CEO

  Global online social networking service Twitter Inc. aims to make more people participate in "public conversation" in South Korea, the company's chief said Friday."We believe public conversation influences and drives society," CEO Jack Patrick Dorsey told reporters in Seoul, adding that the company is focusing on making the platform healthier. Jack Dorsey, co-founder and chief executive of Twitter, speaks during an event at a Seoul hotel on March 22, 2019, to celebrate the platform`s 13th annive

• Industry

  

  Samsung Biologics claims legality of accounting, vows future growth

  SONGDO -- Samsung Biologics President and CEO Kim Tae-han on Friday reiterated the legality of the firm’s accounting practices at an annual shareholders meeting held in Songdo, Gyeonggi Province.“We deeply regret the supervision results of the Financial Services Commission. We believe our accounting was done within all legal boundaries. We apologize for any concerns the investigations have caused our shareholders,” Kim said.“Samsung Biologics will make its best efforts to prevent this issue from

• Social affairs

  

  YG Entertainment chief vows full cooperation with investigations

  The chief of the management agency of BIGBANG and other K-pop stars said Friday he will faithfully comply with the authorities investigating its suspected tax evasion and an alleged sex-for-favors scandal involving a former BIGBANG member.Yang Min-suk, chief executive of YG Entertainment, made the remarks to reporters before attending the company's regular shareholder meeting in Seoul."I take those cases very seriously. (I) will faithfully cooperate with the relevant authorities in charge of inv

LATEST NEWS

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  Social affairs

  Ex-vice minister barred from leaving Korea amid sex crime probe

  Former Vice Justice Minister Kim Hak-ui has been barred from traveling overseas amid a fresh probe into allegations of a sex crime in 2013, officials said Saturday. 　Kim, who retired from public service in March 2013 amid allegations that he attended a sex party hosted by local contractor Yoon Jung-cheon at his villa in Wonju, 120 kilometers east of Seoul, had attempted to leave South Korea on Friday at Incheon International Airport, according to officials at the justice ministry. 　The ministry

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  Finance

  Seoul shares expected to move in tight range next week

  South Korean stocks are expected to move in a relatively tight range as investors are set to digest the U.S. Federal Reserve‘s rate decision amid ongoing trade talks between Washington and Beijing, analysts here said Saturday.　The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) closed at 2,186.95 points on Friday, up from 2,176.11 the previous week.　The KOSPI started on strong note on hopes for headway in trade talks between the United States and China. (Yonhap)　The bourse, however, slipped

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  World News

  Mueller submits report on bombshell Trump-Russia probe

  WASHINGTON (AFP) - Special counsel Robert Mueller on Friday submitted his long-awaited report into an explosive two-year investigation of Russian meddling in Donald Trump‘s 2016 election -- a probe the president denounces as a “witch hunt” and opponents say could fuel impeachment.　What the report says is confidential, but Attorney General Bill Barr wrote in a letter to Congress that he might be able to summarize its “principal conclusions” for Congress as early as this weekend.　The Mueller drama

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  Baseball

  Ryu Hyun-jin named Dodgers' Opening Day starter

  Los Angeles Dodgers’ South Korean left-hander Ryu Hyun-jin has been named the team‘s Opening Day starter, becoming just the second pitcher from the country to have the honor.　Manager Dave Roberts made the announcement in the Dodgers’ spring training site in Glendale, Arizona, on Friday (local time).　Injuries to Clayton Kershaw, who had opened the previous eight seasons, plus Walker Buehler and Rich Hill left Ryu as the most viable option to start the season against the Arizona Diamondbacks next

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  Social affairs

  Seoul ranks as 7th most expensive city in the world: survey

  South Korea‘s capital city, Seoul, ranks as the seventh most expensive city in the world to live in this year, a survey showed Saturday.　The Worldwide Cost of Living Survey, conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit, measures the prices of more than 150 items in 133 cities across the globe, with the index for New York set as a benchmark of 100. A view of Seoul from the Lotte World Tower in Jamsil, southeastern Seoul (Yonhap News)　According to the latest WCL poll, Seoul ranked seventh, on a pa

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  More sports

  S. Korean Lim Eun-soo finishes 10th at figure skating worlds

  South Korean figure skater Lim Eun-soo finished in 10th place at her first senior world championships on Friday, while competing with an injury sustained in a controversial incident involving an American rival.Lim scored 205.57 points at the International Skating Union (ISU) World Figure Skating Championships in Saitama, Japan. Lim was fifth after Wednesday's short program with a personal-best 72.91 points and also set a new personal high in the free skate with 132.66 points on Friday.It was the

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  Soccer

  Ex-midfielder gets warm reception from S. Korean football fans in retirement ceremony

  Former South Korean midfielder Kim Jung-woo received a warm reception at his retirement ceremony on Friday as fans gave a standing ovation for his service to the national football team. Kim officially bid goodbye to his playing career and thanked fans for their support in his retirement ceremony prepared by the Korea Football Association (KFA) during halftime of the men's national football team friendly against Bolivia at Munsu Football Stadium in Ulsan, some 400 kilometers south of Seoul. Kim J

• 

  Foreign Policy

  Gov't holds interagency meeting on Brexit

  South Korea on Friday held an interagency government meeting on Britain's planned exit from the European Union (EU) after leaders of the regional bloc agreed to extend the deadline for withdrawal.Officials from the ministries of foreign affairs, finance and trade, as well as the Korea Customs Service, attended the meeting to discuss how to minimize any negative ramifications that could arise should Britain leave the EU. British Prime Minister Theresa May holds a press conference on March 22 at t

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  Social affairs

  Prosecution seeks arrest warrant for ex-minister in blacklist probe

  Prosecutors on Friday sought an arrest warrant for former Environment Minister Kim Eun-kyung on allegations that her ministry had pressured heads of public organizations picked by preceding governments to resign.The Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors' Office said that it requested the writ for her alleged abuse of authority and interference with others' exercise of their rights. Kim, who led the ministry from July 2017 to November 2018, reportedly denies the allegations. Kim Eun-kyung (Yonhap)Th

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  North Korea

  S. Korea offers military talks with N. Korea

  South Korea has proposed holding military talks with North Korea on implementing a bilateral accord signed last year, but there's no reply from Pyongyang yet, an official here said Friday."Recently, (we) suggested South-North military talks and are currently waiting for a response," the defense ministry official said, requesting anonymity.Attending a National Security Council (NSC) session last week, Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo reported to President Moon Jae-in that the military plans to h

GRAPHIC NEWS

OPINION

• Columnists

  

  China’s electric cars hit potholes

  For several days last week, the often distressingly poor quality of China’s electric cars was a leading topic across Chinese media. According to one survey ricocheting across the web, nearly 70 percent of respondents said they regretted buying a new-energy vehicle. Many expected the industry to be targeted in China’s wildly popular “Consumer Rights Day” gala television special, which shames corporate giants for service and quality lapses. While privacy-invading tech companies were harangued inst

• Columnists

  

  Kazakh strongman shows Putin a path for staying in power

  Nursultan Nazarbayev, the president of Kazakhstan since 1990, announced that he is stepping down at age 78. The way he is ostensibly relinquishing power could be an example for a younger counterpart and, in some ways, faithful student: President Vladimir Putin of Russia.Post-Soviet Central Asian dictators don’t resign. The first presidents of Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, who, like Nazarbayev, ascended to their posts while the Soviet Union still existed, died in office, leaving behind regimes rem

THE INVESTOR

• Startups & Investors

  

  [INTERVIEW] H2O CEO woos property investors to usher in future hospitality biz

  For over a century, major hotel chains have kept growing bigger in part with their portfolio of upscale properties, rooms and amenities.Their race to become flashier and more elegant was meant to appeal to high net worth individuals -- a key source of revenue in the hotel industry. But at the same time, such labor-intensive strategies raised the upkeep costs of high-end accommodations, sparking concerns about undermining the attraction to real estate investors.The advance of technology is openin

• Deals

  

  Woori Financial to acquire two Anbang-owned AMCs

  Woori Financial Group, one of South Korea’s five financial holding companies, is poised to become the new owner of Tongyang Asset Management and ABL Asset Management, subsidiaries of two Anbang Insurance Group-owned insurance companies, industry sources said on March 22. Woori has been selected as a preferred bidder for the two asset management companies put up for sale as part of the Chinese government’s plans to divest troubled Anbang’s overseas assets. Beijing took control over Anbang in Febr

• Startups & Investors

  

  Yanolja seeks talents for global biz expansion

  Accommodation booking platform Yanolja said on March 22 that it will hire more than 400 skilled people this year, including 200 for research and development projects.The new employment plan is aimed at attracting global talents to increase its presence in the accommodation and leisure sectors. Yanolja CEO Lee Soo-jinThe Seoul-headquartered firm hired 400 new employees and executives last year, surpassing its initial target of 300 with its operations, ranging from motel booking to leisure activit

• Retail & Consumer

  

  WeMakePrice to start food delivery service

  South Korean e-commerce company WeMakePrice will start operating a food delivery platform from April, according to sources on March 22.The company aims to take around 5 percent sales as commission, which is lower than the 7 percent charged by top operator Woowa Brothers. Advertising fees will be charged separately. The e-commerce company will also allow customers to place their orders through its app and pick up their food.Currently, the leading food delivery app in Korea’s 15 trillion won marke

K-POP HERALD

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  ‘I have no regrets’: Holland on world tour, BTS’s UN speech, and coming out to family

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  YG CEO survives no-confidence vote

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  Twitter CEO: ‘Authentic’ K-pop stars more successful

HERALD INTERVIEW

• Social affairs

  

  Blaming China doesn’t help combat fine dust: GGGI director

• Finance

  

  Yulchon M&A lawyer predicts ‘new wave’ in Indonesia

• Food

  

  Chef Akira comes back to Seoul

• Industry

  

  Unity goes beyond games to cars, AI, VR

PHOTO NEWS

• Culture

  

  The history beneath our feet

  History is closer to people’s lives than in the musty pages of old books. In the ultra-modern metropolis of Seoul, there is a place where a step into the lower ground of a high-rise office building can pull one into the city’s past, dating back to the 16th century. It is Gongpyeong Historic Site Museum, a 3,817-square-meter space in the underground floor of Centropolis office building in Gongpyeong-dong, central Seoul -- the biggest historic site unearthed in Seoul to date.  (Park Hyun-koo/The K

VIDEO

• Industry

  

  Seoul Square, witness to Seoul’s economic history

• North Korea

  

  Hanoi welcomes US, N. Korean leaders

• Social affairs

  

  Violence erupts at Liberty Korea Party national convention as union stages surprise protest

• Social affairs

  

  Inside dog farm in Korea

FEATURES

• Social affairs

  

  Workers more likely to call out abuse in wake of 2016 candlelight vigils

  7 in 10 workers say they experienced workplace harassment in 2017: survey

• Industry

  

  Korea’s peeping Tom dilemma: Are censors getting too much power?

  Controversy erupts over government's method of blocking ‘illegal’ websites

• Industry

  

  Booyoung’s real estate dilemma on acquiring Samsung assets

  The Korea Herald is publishing a series of articles and videos about some of the most expensive and fascinating landmark office buildings in Seoul. -- Ed. Defining the symbolic cityscape of Seoul is Sejong Main Street, a 10-lane road that runs across the downtown area, stretching from Seoul Station to Gwanghwamun Square. Halfway along this main road, just north of Sungnyemun, the southern gate of Seoul, is the “Taepyeong-ro zone,” location of landmark buildings such as the palace Deoksugun

• Social affairs

  

  Delinquency among self-employed gets critical

  SEJONG -- A string of business closures of small enterprises -- particularly the self-employed -- has been increasingly drawing attention since last year amid the sluggish economy.Their financial difficulty, in line with the drastic hike in minimum wage and weak consumer sentiment, is also seen from the lending data of commercial banks. Aside from the first-tier financial firms, a large portion of the self-employed were found to have borrowed from second-tier lenders.According to the Bank of Kor