SPOTLIGHT

• Music

  

  BTS stages grand performance at Billboard Music Awards

  In 2014, when BTS was a rookie group worried about finding 200 fans to fill a concert venue in Los Angeles, who would have imagined that it would one day become the first K-pop act to fire up the Billboard Music Awards?In a watershed moment in K-pop history, BTS on Sunday won the Billboard Music Awards’ top social artist award for the second consecutive year. It also performed the world premiere of its new track “Fake Love” during the awards show at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. B

• Music

  

  Top 5 artists best known for cover songs in Korea

  South Koreans are known for their love for singing. Singing competition programs are always favored by the local audience, while some of them take part in the shows and rise to stardom themselves. To those who missed the chance to appear on TV, YouTube has become another outlet to show off their heavenly voices. Here is a list of the talented YouTube singers in Korea, who are best known for cover songs. 5. Lim Han-byul (118,129 subscribers) (Lim Han-byul's YouTube)Once a member of the K-pop grou

• Social affairs

  

  Golf range ordered to pay W150m in eye injury case

  The Seoul Central District Court said on Monday that it has ruled in favor of a plaintiff who filed a suit against a golf range after the customer suffered serious eye injury from another customer’s club. Authorities said the plaintiff suffered significant visual impairment in the right eye after being struck by another person making a back swing at the tee next to his at a driving range in Seoul in 2015. The victim reportedly sustained the injury near the whiteboard-mounted pillar that stands i

• Social affairs

  

  Man who claims to have witnessed helicopter shooting in Gwangju speaks out

  A resident of Gwangju spoke out about how he witnessed a military helicopter firing shots at a building during the deadly crackdown on a 1980 pro-democracy uprising in the southwestern city, and how he joined the civilian militia at the time.Ji Yong, 76, recently visited the May 18 Memorial Culture Center to testify after learning that a right-wing critic had identified him in a photo as a member of the North Korean special forces, the center’s chief Lim Jong-soo said. (Yonhap)Ji said he saw a h

LATEST NEWS

• 

  Automode

  Hyundai Motor Group retracts spinoff merger plan

  Hyundai Motor Group retracted its spinoff merger plan for Hyundai Mobis and Hyundai Glovis on Monday, citing the views of the market and shareholders that had widely been against the move. Auto parts unit Mobis and logistics arm Glovis’ board of directors each called off the general meeting initially set for May 29, when the group’s reform plan announced in late March was to be put to a vote.Mobis and Glovis instead decided to revise and improve on the measures. “We will humbly review and suffic

• 

  Television

  ‘Miss Hammurabi’ to search for warmhearted justice

  While foreign superheroes and people with supernatural powers are taking up the local cinema screens, stories of desperate ordinary people will propel JTBC’s new series “Miss Hammurabi.” The series is an adaptation of a best-selling novel of the same title, written by real-life judge Moon Yoo-suk, who also participated in the scriptwriting of the series. The story will center on three judges with completely different perspectives. Go A-ra plays a rookie judge while Kim Myung-soo, better known as

• 

  Automode

  (Urgent) Hyundai Mobis cancels next week‘s general meeting

  Hyundai Mobis, the auto parts making arm of Hyundai Group at the center of the group’s restructuring plan, has canceled its upcoming general meeting, the company said Monday.Hyundai Mobis’ board of directors called off the meeting initially set for May 29, when the group’s spinoff merger plan would have been put to a vote. Starting with Elliott Management, which has been pressuring Hyundai to take the form of a holding company, there has been opposition from major proxy firms in and out of the c

• 

  World

  Plastic planet

  　More than 8.3 billion metric tons of plastics have been produced since the 1950s, according to a new study published in the journal Science Advances.　As of 2015, humans had generated 8.3 billion tons of plastics, 6.3 billion tons of which had already become waste. Of that waste total, only 9 percent was recycled, 12 percent was incinerated and 79 percent accumulated in landfills or the natural environment.　The research predicts around 12 billion tons of plastic waste will be polluting the natur

• 

  Social affairs

  Customs service seizes suspected smuggled goods at Korean Air supplier

  Customs authorities said Monday officials have raided a supplier of Korean Air Lines Co. and seized dozens of boxes of goods believed to have been smuggled for members of the family of the national flag carrier's chairman.The Korea Customs Service has been looking into allegations that Korean Air Chairman Cho Yang-ho's family smuggled certain goods without paying due taxes while reportedly disguising them as corporate assets.A 2.5-ton truck loaded with confiscated goods is heading to a warehouse

• 

  Industry

  Hyundai cancels corporate overhaul plan on opposition

  Hyundai Motor Co. on Monday canceled a key spinoff merger plan in a setback to its corporate restructuring amid stepped-up opposition campaigns by some investors.The decision comes as global hedge fund Elliott and proxy advisers such as ISS continued to take issue with the carmaker's proposed corporate governance overhaul plan, citing that the "unfair" swap ratio of stocks between the two major affiliates will hurt shareholders' value."In a new plan, we will fully reflect the views and advice th

• 

  Columnists

  Resentment of crazy-rich Americans isn’t just envy

  In the forthcoming movie “Crazy Rich Asians,” an American woman discovers that her boyfriend belongs to Singapore’s secretive, obnoxious jet set. It’s fun to laugh at the ultrarich when they’re just a caricature on a screen. But it’s possible that the increasing visibility of crazy rich Americans is fueling rising anger about inequality.　In the past few decades, the US has greatly improved its social safety net. And the country’s middle class has seen real income gains. But a 2015 New York Times

• Columnists

  Sports wagering has an unlikely foe

  Last week the Supreme Court ruled in favor of an issue that seems to be nearing a tipping point in terms of public acceptance: sports betting. But will it be enough to overcome staunch opposition from those who stand to lose the most? Time will tell.　Back in 2011, New Jersey voters overwhelmingly approved an amendment to their state constitution to allow sports betting in the Garden State and the following year, then-Gov. Chris Christie signed a law permitting the practice. In doing so, he chall

• Columnists

  Where free speech ends

  I have long defended freedom of speech for all, even those expressing the most appalling views. Yet I applauded when a United Nations court sentenced Vojislav Seselj, a Serbian politician, to ten years in prison for inciting war crimes with a nationalist speech in the former Yugoslavia during the early 1990s.Freedom of speech is a fundamental human right. That is why, when I was the executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union in 1977, I defended that right for a group calling themse

• 

  Columnists

  How Europe can keep money flowing to Iran

  The determination of European nations, Russia and China to keep the 2015 nuclear agreement with Iran alive isn’t necessarily futile. Europe has more influence than the US on SWIFT, the Brussels-based global payments network.　The system was founded in the 1970s by a group of global banks that wanted to standardize the way they shared transaction information, instead of letting each country, or even big banks, impose their own standards. SWIFT is owned by its members and provides the backbone of m

GRAPHIC NEWS

OPINION

• Columnists

  

  Resentment of crazy-rich Americans isn’t just envy

  In the forthcoming movie “Crazy Rich Asians,” an American woman discovers that her boyfriend belongs to Singapore’s secretive, obnoxious jet set. It’s fun to laugh at the ultrarich when they’re just a caricature on a screen. But it’s possible that the increasing visibility of crazy rich Americans is fueling rising anger about inequality.　In the past few decades, the US has greatly improved its social safety net. And the country’s middle class has seen real income gains. But a 2015 New York Times

• Columnists

  

  How Europe can keep money flowing to Iran

  The determination of European nations, Russia and China to keep the 2015 nuclear agreement with Iran alive isn’t necessarily futile. Europe has more influence than the US on SWIFT, the Brussels-based global payments network.　The system was founded in the 1970s by a group of global banks that wanted to standardize the way they shared transaction information, instead of letting each country, or even big banks, impose their own standards. SWIFT is owned by its members and provides the backbone of m

THE INVESTOR

• Samsung

  

  ‘Out with the old’ comes with hefty price tag for Korean chaebol

  50% tax on inheritance worth W3b or more to take big toll on conglomerates facing generational change

• Automobiles

  

  Hyundai Mobis calls off shareholders vote on merger deal

  The board of Hyundai Mobis, the parts-making unit of Hyundai Motor Group, on May 21 decided to call off the planned vote on its spin-off merger deal at a shareholders meeting next week.The board convened an urgent meeting later on the day to cancel the vote that was scheduled to be held on May 29 possibly due to some investors upping pressure to block the deal. Chairman Chung Mong-koo and his son Chung Eui-sunIn March, Hyundai Motor Group announced Hyundai Mobis would spin off its

• Startups & Investors

  

  [INTERVIEW] This time it's body-measuring: Bagel Labs

  The startup behind the first digitalized tape measure taps into health business, fashion

• Finance

  

  Woori Bank’s holding company plan boosts investor sentiments

  Woori Bank, which has announced plans to adopt a holding company system by early 2019, saw its share boosted on May 21 as investors gave their thumbs-up. Korea’s third-largest commercial bank by assets said on May 20 that it would transform itself into a holding company, saying that “as the only non-holding commercial bank in the country, we have been placed at a disadvantage for expansion of our non-banking and global businesses.” Following the news, shares of Woori Bank rose alm

K-POP HERALD

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  BTS stages grand performance at BBMAs

• 

  Warmhearted justice for ‘Miss Hammurabi’

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  Seohyun shines in Bali

HERALD INTERVIEW

• Foreign Policy

  

  ‘Accepting migrants is in national interest’: IOM chief

• Industry

  

  ‘Korean women are underestimated in leadership’

• Technology

  

  ‘Father of the internet’ says IoT both a ‘big opportunity and risk’

• Politics

  

  ‘Migrant families should contribute to Korean society for equal share’

PHOTO NEWS

• Music

  

  BTS delivers another energetic Billboard performance

  BTS performed its new track “Fake Love” at the 2018 Billboard Music Awards on Sunday, US time. The six-member boy band delivered an energetic performance, showing off powerful dance moves alongside emotion-filled vocals. International fans in the audience were spotted cheering and singing along to the song, with some appearing teary-eyed.The song is from BTS’ latest album “Love Yourself: Tear.” BTS won the top social artist award at the awards for the second consecutive year. By Rumy Doo (doo@he

VIDEO

• People

  

  Polyglots, businesswomen among winners of 10th Miss SuperTalent pageant

• Industry

  

  Matching unique beer with Korean BBQ

• North Korea

  

  What people in Korea think about Kim Jong-un

• Social affairs

  

  Intentional crash on highway saves lives

FEATURES

• Economy

  

  Different economic diagnoses confuse markets

  Key economic officials have recently expressed different views on the performance of the Korean economy, leaving market watchers confused about their intended policy direction. (Yonhap)Last week saw the three top economic aides to President Moon Jae-in and the central bank head strike different tones on the current state of the economy and the effect of minimum wage hikes on employment.Finance Minister Kim Dong-yeon, who concurrently serves as deputy prime minister for economic affairs, came for

• North Korea

  

  Defense reform hijacked by Kim Jong-un's diplomatic overture

  　With the diplomatic breakthrough between the two Koreas dominating most narratives in South Korea, concerns are growing that the inter-Korean detente may hinder the military’s efforts to overhaul its defensive posture. 　Originally expected to be announced earlier this month, the defense reform plan remains unannounced to the public since Defense Minister Song Young-moo briefed President Moon Jae-in on the scheme on May 11. 　The delay is feeding speculations whether the Moon administration, in p

• Technology

  

  Samsung to unveil future foundry tech to become world’s top 2

  Samsung holding global forums in US, China, Japan and Germany to attract global foundry customers

• Arts&Design

  

  Coming to terms with apocalypse

  Amorepacific Museum of Art opens its doors with Rafael Lozano-Hemmer works that meld art and technologies