South Korean stocks are expected to face an extended loss next week, as uncertainties about a potential rate hike by the U.S. Federal Reserve continue amid the lingering aftershock of China's yuan devaluations, analysts said Saturday. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) slumped 5.5 percent this week to close at 1,876.07 on Friday, hitting the lowest point in two years. The main index began the week in negative terrain as the lingering aftershock from the yuan devaluations las

Aug. 22, 2015

China's foreign ministry on Friday expressed "deep concern" about soaring tensions on the Korean Peninsula, after North Korea fired artillery shells into the southern side of the demilitarized zone dividing the two Koreas.The Thursday artillery fire by North Korea was apparently in response to propaganda broadcasts by South Korea, but Seoul fired back. North Korea ordered its troops to put on "a quasi-state of war." Voicing "deep concern" about the development on the Korean Peninsula, Chinese fo

North Korea Aug. 22, 2015

South Korea and the United States have resumed a joint military exercise after a brief break in the wake of an exchange of artillery fire between the two Koreas, a U.S. official said Friday.The annual Ulchi Freedom Guardian exercise, which began Monday, "was suspended temporarily, I believe day before yesterday, in order to allow the U.S. side to coordinate with the ROK side on the actual exchange of artillery fire across the DMZ," Assistant Secretary of Defense David Shear told reporters. "That

Defense Aug. 22, 2015

Mirae Asset Securities Co., one of South Korea's largest brokerages, said Sunday that it has decided not to enter the Internet-only bank business, to better concentrate on its core areas.A corporate source said that the firm, which had set up a task force and actively considered branching out into the new sector, decided against taking such a step, so it can better enhance its competitiveness as an investment firm.Internet-only bank operations range from deposits, lending and cards to foreign ex

Aug. 16, 2015

An Indonesian twin-turboprop aircraft carrying 54 people lost contact with air traffic control on Sunday in the remote, forested eastern Papua region, the National Search and Rescue Agency (BASARNAS) said, with search efforts hampered by failing light as night falls."We can't confirm it has crashed. We can say contact has been lost with the plane," BASARNAS chief Bambang Soelystyo told Reuters by phone. "It's a Trigana airline plane carrying 54 people including 5crew. We are working to get more

World News Aug. 16, 2015

Chinese soldiers and rescue workers in gas masks and hazard suits searched for toxic materials in China's port of Tianjin on Sunday as Premier Li Keqiang arrived to offer condolences, days after explosions flattened part of a national development zone. The goal is to clear the chemicals before any rain falls, which could create further toxic gas. The death toll rose to 112 from Wednesday's disaster, which sent massive yellow and orange fireballs into the sky, hurled burning debris on to a vast i

World News Aug. 16, 2015

North Korea on Sunday blasted President Park Geun-hye's Liberation Day speech, and made clear that it rejects calls for family reunions for people separated during the Korean War (1950-53).The Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of Korea (CPRK) said in a statement released by its spokesperson that the president's speech viciously slandered the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). It said such behavior caused shock and outrage among the people. The DPRK is North Korea's official nam

North Korea Aug. 16, 2015

The top diplomats from South Korea and France plan to have talks in Paris on Friday to exchange views on Iran's nuclear deal and North Korea's nuclear weapons program, Seoul's foreign ministry said.Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se will meet with his French counterpart Laurant Fabius to discuss the landmark Iranian nuclear deal and its implications on the North's nuke issue, the ministry added.Yun stopped by Paris on Friday after participating in a U.N. conference on financing for development held i

Foreign Affairs July 17, 2015

South Korea's top spy agency said Friday that it will show the usage records of controversial hacking programs to lawmakers in coming days, a rare move to back up its claims that it has never used the programs to monitor civilians.The National Intelligence Service said the usage records of the hacking software are classified, but it will allow lawmakers to see them as "an emergency measure.""It will become clear that the NIS did not carry out surveillance of civilians once" the lawmakers see the

Politics July 17, 2015

South Korea on Friday returned one of two Korean Buddha statues back to Japan, which were stolen by a Korean theft ring three years ago from a Japanese temple, a diplomatic source said.A group of seven South Korean thieves stole the two statues from the Kaijin shrine in Japan's Nagasaki Prefecture in October 2012. The two cultural artifacts were passed through Korean customs as they were mistakenly appraised as copied antiques.As South Korean cultural artifacts were looted by Japan during its 19

Foreign Affairs July 17, 2015

Three-term lawmaker Choi Jae-sung, who is considered a loyalist to former President Roh Moo-hyun, was appointed as secretary general of the New Politics Alliance for Democracy on Tuesday, in spite of opposition from some party members. The NPAD leader Moon Jae-in, who served as the former chief of staff to late President Roh, has been struggling to bring his party members together, particularly those who belong to the mainstream pro-Roh faction and members of the anti-Roh camp. NPAD lawmakers wh

Politics June 23, 2015

President Park Geun-hye called Tuesday for increased civilian exchanges with North Korea as part of efforts to lay the groundwork for a peaceful unification with the North.She made the comment in a meeting with members of the National Unification Advisory Council, the presidential advisory body on unification.The comment came a week after civic groups from South and North Korea failed to hold a joint ceremony to mark the 15th anniversary of the first inter-Korean summit.The leaders of the two Ko

North Korea June 23, 2015

A top South Korean diplomat will make a rare trip to Iran this week, the Foreign Ministry said Tuesday, with a deal in sight in the U.S.-led talks over Tehran's nuclear program.The two-day trip starting Friday by Vice Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yong is apparently aimed at laying the groundwork for closer bilateral economic cooperation and partnerships in other fields.Cho is scheduled to hold talks with his Iranian counterpart, Morteza Sarmadi, on Saturday."The two sides plan to consult on ways for

International June 23, 2015

The United States and South Korea are weighing Chinese opposition to a potential deployment of the THAAD missile defense system to the South, the U.S. Forces Korea commander said Thursday, strongly suggesting the two sides are discussing the issue.   The remark by Gen. Curtis Scaparrotti appears to run counter to what U.S. Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter said during a visit to South Korea last week that the U.S. is not ready to begin discussions with Seoul about whether to deploy THAAD to the

Foreign Affairs April 17, 2015