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BTS chosen Variety’s Hitmaker of the Year

BTS was chosen as Variety’s Hitmaker of the Year, becoming the first South Korean act to attain the honor as it swept up prizes and stayed on the Billboard 200 for a year. Variety, an influential US entertainment magazine, announced that it had selected BTS as “Group of the Year” on Tuesday (US time), elaborating that “the record-breaking septet has solidified their status as global superstars, rounding out one of the largest stadium tours of the year and releasing a stri

Security cooperation still possible even after GSOMIA ends, says Moon

As an intelligence-sharing pact with Japan is set to expire Friday at midnight, South Korean President Moon Jae-in underscored that Tokyo has given Seoul just cause to terminate the agreement. Speaking at a question-and-answer session that was televised live on Tuesday, Moon also said he would work until the last minute with Japan to avoid the termination of the 2016 General Security of Military Information Agreement -- but that Tokyo still has to act first to normalize trade.In August, Kor

Today
Foreign Affairs
Railway union launches indefinite walkout nationwide

The unionized workers of state-run rail operator Korail and its affiliated companies began an indefinite strike at 9 a.m. Wednesday.A crowd bustled in front of the ticket boxes at Seoul Station on Wednesday afternoon, several hours after the Korean Railway Workers’ Union started their general walkout. Three to four Korail staff were ushering customers to the self-service kiosks while many stood confused, waiting for help. Seo Jung-min, 32, who travels to Seoul from Busan at least twi

Today
Social affairs
Unique ondol found at Gyeongbokgung pavilion

Designated Treasure No. 1761, Hyangwonjeong -- a two-story hexagonal pavilion on a small artificial island in the middle of a pond on the northern grounds of Gyeongbokgung -- was built by King Gojong around the time of the construction of the royal couple’s private quarters, between 1867 and 1873. The Cultural Heritage Administration of Korea on Wednesday unveiled the unique floor heating system found at the pavilion. Korea’s traditional heating system ondol generates warmth using di

Today
Culture
With Samsung’s lead, Korean TV makers dominate global market

South Korean manufacturers claimed nearly half of the global TV market as of the third quarter of this year with Samsung Electronics’ solid lead in the large premium TV segment, according to market data on Wednesday. Recent data from market researcher IHS Markit showed that Samsung and LG accounted for a combined 46.2 percent of the global market in terms of sales value in the third quarter. The combined share of the two Korean TV makers stood at 48.1 percent in the second quarter. Samsung

Today
Technology
Samsung SDI pledges to reduce wage gap with contractors

Samsung SDI said Wednesday it will help reduce the wage gap between the company and its contractors as part of efforts to seek co-prosperity. South Korea’s leading lithium-ion battery maker, an affiliate of Samsung Electronics, will run a 132.2 billion won ($113 million) worth program to support its contractors to increase wages of their employees. It has signed a trilateral agreement for this with suppliers and Korea Commission for Corporate Partnership. “Through the agreement

Today
Technology
Korean, Japanese lawyers demand action for forced labor victims

South Korean and Japanese legal professionals on Wednesday called for action to enforce Korean Supreme Court rulings holding Japanese firms responsible for compensating Koreans forced to work in their factories during Japan’s colonial rule of Korea. The legal professionals, representing six Korean and seven Japanese lawyers’ groups, jointly released a statement urging the Japanese companies to respect the rulings and the Japanese government not to impede the compensation process. It

Today
Social affairs
BTS will not be exempted from military service: culture minister

PARIS -- Globally acclaimed superstars BTS and other high-flying K-pop stars will not be exempted from mandatory military service under the government's new guidelines on conscription waivers, the culture minister has said. Since early this year, a government task force has been working to revamp the guidelines to raise fairness in military conscription, and the final result is due for announcement this week. The government has been facing rising calls to allow BTS a military service waiver, whi

Today
Music
[Editorial] Generational change

Calls rising for injecting fresh figures into political arena ahead of general elections

Today
Editorial
S. Korea’s producer prices slip for 4th month in Oct.

South Korea’s producer prices declined in October for the fourth straight month, central bank data showed Wednesday, reflecting sluggish growth and changes in pork prices.The overall producer price index stood at 103.61 last month, down 0.2 percent from a month earlier and down 0.6 percent from a year earlier, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea.This marked the fourth consecutive month of an on-year drop and the first on-month fall in three months.The key reason for the de

Today
Economy
[Kim Myong-sik] Suggesting plebiscite on energy denuclearization

Passing the halfway point in his five-year tenure, President Moon Jae-in’s approval rate hovers just above the 40 percent mark, half the level immediately after his election in May 2017. Woes grow among manufacturers, traders and consumers, security threats loom large and political groups are sharpening hostility. Amid rising discontent, the energy denuclearization policy has emerged as a top destabilizing issue.University students at nuclear science departments see no future in their chos

Today
Viewpoints
[Arvind Subramanian] Is Sri Lanka the next Argentina?

As Sri Lanka makes another crucial political transition, it faces a major risk of macroeconomic instability. Minimizing that risk will depend, above all, on whether the country’s newly elected President Gotabaya Rajapaksa can defy his reputation and embrace inclusive politics.This idyllic island in the Indian Ocean was once a star performer. In the years following independence in 1948, progress on leading social indicators such as poverty, infant mortality, and primary education put Sri La

Today
Viewpoints
Moon’s top policy aide urges businesses to embrace ‘labor-friendly’ initiatives

President Moon Jae-in’s top policy aide urged business leaders on Wednesday to support a government bill drafted to expand the scope of the 52-hour-week system, amid growing concerns that the administration’s policies are imposing a financial burden on them.“The government will continue to advocate labor rights. Such a policy stance won’t change,” said Kim Sang-jo, chief policy secretary for the president, at a meeting with members of Korea Employers’ Federati

Today
Technology
Lawmakers criticize US negotiation tactic, calling it diplomatic discourtesy

US Ambassador Harry Harris and his negotiation team for a defense cost-sharing deal have come under fire for what lawmakers here called “diplomatic discourtesy” as they continue to demand that South Korea pay more for the upkeep of US troops stationed here. The US team, led by James DeHart of the State Department, left the negotiation table earlier than planned Tuesday, the second day of talks in Seoul with the South Korean delegation for the third round of the 11th Special Measures

Today
Foreign Affairs
Foreigners continue selling spree of Korean stocks despite trade volume rebound

Foreign investors continued to offload Korean stocks despite a rebound in daily trading volume, a Korea Exchange data showed Wednesday.Analysts cited the lingering uncertainties surrounding the ongoing US-China trade war that has dampened global investor sentiment behind the move. According to the bourse operator, foreigners were net sellers of shares on the benchmark Kospi worth nearly 1.4 trillion won ($1.2 billion) from Nov. 7 to Wednesday. The offloading observed throughout 10 consecutive tr

Today
Finance

The Korea Herald by Herald Corporation

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