South Korea welcomes an agreement between Sudan and Israel to normalize their diplomatic relations and a subsequent US decision to remove the African country from its list of terrorism-sponsoring countries, the foreign ministry said Monday. "Our government welcomes the agreement to normalize relations between Sudan and Israel and end hostilities, and expects the agreement to contribute to regional stability and a peace settlement," ministry spokesperson Kim In-chul said in a commenta

SsangYong Motor Co., the South Korean unit of Indian carmaker Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., said Monday its third-quarter net losses narrowed from a year earlier, helped by reduced costs. Net losses for the three months that ended in September narrowed to 102.44 billion won ($90 million) from 107.9 billion won in the same period of last year, the company said in a statement. "The company's drastic cost-cutting efforts in wages and welfare benefits for employees helped narrow the quarterl

North Korea has shown little sign of lifting restrictions imposed on the operation of trains across its border with China to contain the spread of the coronavirus, the unification ministry said Monday. Early in the day, the Daily NK, a local news website specializing in North Korea, reported that the North and China have reached a deal to resume the operation of international trains moving across their border starting Friday. "We are paying close attention to relevant situations, but bas

South Korea's leading construction equipment maker Doosan Infracore Co. said Monday that sales of its mini-sized excavators in South Korea nearly tripled in the first nine months from a year ago. Sales of mini-sized excavators, which refer to those under 5 tons, rose 192 percent in the January-September period from a year ago, thanks mainly to Doosan Infracore's competitive edge in customer service, the company said. Compared with 2018, sales of mini-sized excavators increased four times in th

Popular K-pop girl group TWICE said Monday that its upcoming full-length album "Eyes Wide Open" will likely surprise fans with the band's darker and bolder side. "It portrays the danger and anxiety that come from standing on the boundary between the good and bad," rapper Dahyun said in a series of questions and answers sent to the press before the album drops at 6 p.m. "It also captures a provocative ambience that boldly crosses the line, which I feel that a lot of peo

South Korea said Monday it has inked an agreement with the United Nations Development Programme to provide 6 billion won ($5.3 million) in aid to build sustainable infrastructure in farms in Southeast Asia. The fund, set to be provided over the next three years, will be spent to install solar facilities at farms in Myanmar and Cambodia, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. It marked the first time for the agricultural ministry to officially join forces with the UND

SEJONG -- South Korea's finance ministry said Monday it has approved $200 million in health care aid for three Asian nations to better combat the coronavirus pandemic. The approval is part of the nation's plans to provide more than $400 million in loans and grants to developing nations this year to help them push for health projects against the novel coronavirus. The three nations are the Philippines, Cambodia and Bangladesh. The fund is expected to help developing nations build testing and

WASHINGTON -- US Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden said Sunday that North Korea now possesses a greater number of missiles that are also more dangerous than before because of US President Donald Trump. He also accused Trump of embracing dictators, such as North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, while undermining the country's relationship with its traditional allies. "He embraces every dictator in sight, and he pokes his finger in the eye of all our friends," the former vice presi

Sales of imported commercial vehicles in South Korea jumped 26 percent last month from a year earlier on robust sales of Scania and Iveco trucks, an industry association said Monday. The number of newly registered imported commercial vehicles rose to 383 units in September from 304 a year ago, the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association (KAIDA) said in a statement. "Increased sales of Scania and Iveco trucks helped offset decreased sales of MAN and Mercedes-Benz trucks la

Samsung Electro-Mechanics Co., a major electronics components maker in South Korea, on Monday reported robust third-quarter earnings on firm demand amid the novel coronavirus pandemic. The Samsung Group affiliate chalked up a net profit of 240 billion won ($212.5 million), up 119.4 percent from a year earlier. The company said in a regulatory filing that it posted 302.5 billion won in operating profit for the July-September period, up 59.9 percent from a year ago. Sales rose 3.3 percent on-ye

SM Entertainment, the K-pop powerhouse that represents popular girl groups Girls' Generation and Red Velvet, on Monday announced the debut of a new girl group next month. Little is known about the new act, named "aespa," except for a logo and a teaser video uploaded on the group's social media accounts early Monday. SM Entertainment said the band's name comes from the English words "avatar, experience and aspect" -- with the name meaning "to be able to meet another se

The approval rating for the ruling Democratic Party (DP) rebounded last week, widening its lead over the main opposition party amid allegations of opposition politicians' possible implication in a ballooning fund scam scandal, an opinion poll showed Monday. According to the Realmeter poll conducted on 2,527 voters nationwide from last Monday-Friday, the approval rating for the DP came in at 35.1 percent, up 2.9 percentage points from a week ago. The previous week, the DP saw its approval rati

Baseball fans who miss out on postseason tickets next month will be able to watch games live on select big screens across the country. The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) announced Monday that it has reached an agreement with Lotte Cinema, one of South Korea's top multiplex chains, to screen live postseason games at 10 locations nationwide. Websites and official apps for both the KBO and Lotte Cinema will provide further details on screening times and ticketing. The postseason begins Sunday

LG Electronics Inc. on Monday released premium wireless earbuds with an active noise cancellation (ANC) system in South Korea as the company seeks to expand its presence in the wearables market. The high-end model of the LG TONE Free wireless earbuds, the HBS-TFN7, was launched here for 219,000 won ($190). LG said the earwear device is equipped with ANC technology that tunes out ambient noise, allowing users to better concentrate on the sound coming through the earbuds. It also used technolo

South Korea's major instant noodle makers are estimated to have posted solid earnings in the third quarter, as demand from stay-at-home consumers rose amid the pandemic and sales in overseas markets remained robust, a survey showed Monday. The combined operating profit of Nongshim Co., Samyang Foods Co. and Ottogi Co. is projected to have reached 107.1 billion won ($94.9 million) in the July-September period, up 31.6 percent from a year earlier, according to the survey by Yonhap Infomax, the fi