Most Popular
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Koreans, Americans differ on prestigious jobs: lawmakers vs. firefighters
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Only half of S. Koreans willing to marry: data
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Disgraced ex-minister rises as major threat to ruling party
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Yoon calls for dialogue, trust from medical community
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Summit for Democracy opens in Seoul in mega-election year
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Jungkook of BTS updates life in Army
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Med professors to resign starting March 25
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Dyson founder visits Seoul for global debut of new hair dryer
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Leaders call for action against threats to democracy posed by AI
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Ryu Joon-yeol, Han So-hee confirm dating since early 2024
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Late Chun’s 5.5 billion won in assets to be confiscated, overdue fines down to 86.7 billion won
The unpaid fines of former President Chun Doo-hwan, who died in November 2021, are likely to be set at 86.7 billion won ($66.2 million), following a lawsuit that enabled authorities to confiscate an additional 5.5 billion won, marking the final indemnity payment from the former dictator. This would bring the total collected fines to 132.72 billion won out of the 220.5 billion won imposed in relation to his 1997 conviction for rebellion and bribery. Local media outlets and legal sources reporte
Jan. 4, 2024
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S. Korea plans W11tr inflation relief, picks immigration boost as key goal
President Yoon Suk Yeol on Thursday reiterated his pledge to support the livelihoods of South Korean citizens, including 11 trillion-won ($8.4 billion) in funding to curb consumer inflation. Yoon's office expressed its intention to slow inflation, as measured by the monthly consumer price index, to less than 3 percent by June. The consumer price index in December jumped to 3.6 percent in 2023, compared with 5.1 percent in 2022. "We anticipate the price stability with the consumer price inde
Jan. 4, 2024
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Birth rate-boosting bills should be passed: Assembly Speaker
South Korea’s National Assembly speaker on Thursday called for solutions to the nation’s low birth rate and declining population to be legislated, highlighting the need for more long-term policies. “The government and the political circles should see the ongoing population decline as a serious national crisis,” Kim Jin-pyo said in a New Year’s briefing held at the National Assembly. “The issue should be dealt with as a long-term agenda and solutions tied t
Jan. 4, 2024
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Opposition leader attack brings politics to standstill
The stabbing attack of opposition leader Lee Jae-myung has brought the nation’s political circles to a standstill, temporarily suspending a slew of harsh standoffs ahead of the April general elections. Tuesday’s surprise attack has apparently brought a halt to former Democratic Party of Korea leader and ex-Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon’s plans to establish a new political party. The attack took place 100 days before the upcoming April parliamentary elections, with the ruling par
Jan. 3, 2024
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Yoon to replace New Year briefings with debates
President Yoon Suk Yeol will hold a series of policy debates instead of receiving New Year briefings from each ministry, ditching formalities to lay out policy items aimed at improving people's livelihood, his office said Wednesday. The key agendas for Yoon's 2024 policy planning encompass housing, jobs, small- and medium-sized enterprises, public safety, caregiving, public transit, medical reform, media policy, low birth rate and energy. To touch upon these areas, at least 10 sessions
Jan. 3, 2024
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[Exclusive] Daughter Ju-ae Kim Jong-un’s ‘most likely successor’: Seoul spy service
South Korea’s spy agency sees North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s only publicly known child Ju-ae as his “most likely successor,” according to its latest analysis. According to a National Intelligence Service report seen by The Korea Herald, the spy service in Seoul believes Ju-ae is most likely to succeed her father as North Korea’s leader, based on her public appearances and reception. The NIS said in the analysis that besides Ju-ae, who was born in 2013, Kim has an
Jan. 3, 2024
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South Korean spy chief nominee had license suspended for drunk driving
Cho Tae-yong, who was nominated by President Yoon Suk Yeol as the National Intelligence Service director on Dec. 19, once had his driver’s license suspended for driving under the influence. According to the police report The Korea Herald obtained exclusively through the National Assembly on Tuesday, Cho was caught drunk driving on Feb. 23, 1999, and received a license suspension. On Aug. 10 of the same year, the court sentenced him to a fine of 700,000 won ($536). Until recently, Cho was n
Jan. 2, 2024
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North Korea expected to increase cyberattacks this year: experts
In a key year-end message, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un described the two Koreas as “warring countries,” and vowed to “mobilize all physical means and other capabilities to cause a big stir” in the South. The anticipated rise in North Korean provocations will likely include cyberattacks, experts and officials in Seoul say. At the end of five days of Workers’ Party of Korea meetings, the North Korean leader said his country should “no longer commit the error
Jan. 2, 2024
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Yoon proposes abandoning investor income tax plan
President Yoon Suk Yeol on Tuesday proposed to withdraw South Korea's plan to introduce a net investment income tax scheme beginning in 2025. This came about a year after plans to impose the "financial investment income tax" on investors had been deferred for two years, meaning the new tax rule would go into effect in January next year. The rule, under the revision of the Income Tax Act, was initially passed in 2020 with bipartisan agreement. "Our plan to introduce the financ
Jan. 2, 2024
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Opposition leader stabbing shows politicians still vulnerable to physical attack
Tuesday's stabbing of Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, showed that South Korea's politicians remain vulnerable to physical attacks despite several high-profile cases in the recent past. Lee, 59, had been visiting the site of the new airport in Busan and was speaking to members of the media when an unidentified man approached him asking for an autograph before lunging to stab him in the neck, undetected and undeterred by anyone. Lee is one of t
Jan. 2, 2024
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Opposition leader stabbed in Busan
Main opposition party leader Lee Jae-myung was attacked by an assailant and stabbed in the neck by a knife during his tour to Busan on Tuesday morning. Lee was stabbed around 10:27 a.m. after talking to reporters during a visit to the site of a new airport off the coast of Busan. The assailant was detained by police at the scene. Lee sustained a cut 1 centimeter wide and was conscious when the paramedics arrived at the scene, emergency authorities said, adding that his injuries were not thought
Jan. 2, 2024
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[Bills in Focus] 'Shrinkflation' warnings, platform monopoly regulations
Proposed Bill: Partial Amendment to the Act on Labeling and Advertising of Foods Proposed by Rep. Hwang Hee (Democratic Party of Korea) ● An increasing number of food manufacturing companies have been reducing the volume of their products while maintaining or raising their prices. However, these changes in quantity are not as easy for consumers to notice as price increases. Therefore, this amendment aims to protect the consumer’s right to information by requiring companies to clearly i
Jan. 1, 2024
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Yoon reaffirms plan to upgrade extended deterrence in New Year
President Yoon Suk Yeol expressed confidence that a plan to bolster extended deterrence on the Korean Peninsula could materialize before the end of June in his New Year's speech to the nation Monday. "By the first half of this year, we will complete the enhanced (Republic of Korea)-US extended deterrence system to fundamentally deter any North Korean nuclear and missile threat," Yoon said in a televised speech from his office, referring to South Korea as the ROK. In April, Yoon an
Jan. 1, 2024
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Yoon's approval rating inches up to 37.2 pct: poll
President Yoon Suk Yeol's approval rating rose slightly to 37.2 percent, after stagnating for the past two weeks, a poll showed Sunday. The rating was up 0.9 percentage point from the previous week, while the negative assessment went down 1.2 percentage points to 59.6 percent, according to a survey by Realmeter and commissioned by a local business news outlet on 2,007 people aged 18 and over from Tuesday to Friday. The positive assessment rose the most among respondents in their 30s and 40s
Jan. 1, 2024
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S. Korean shipbuilders rank 2nd in new global orders in 2023: data
South Korean shipbuilders ranked second in 2023 in terms of new global orders for the third straight year, industry data showed Sunday. Local shipbuilders clinched a combined 10.01 million compensated gross tons (CGTs) in new orders this year, accounting for 24 percent of the 41.49 million global total, according to the data provided by global market researcher Clarkson Research Service. The South Korean industry's total was down 37.6 percent from a year earlier. The global tally also went
Dec. 31, 2023
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DP leader rejects former leader's call for resignation
Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the main opposition Democratic Party, on Saturday rejected former party leader Lee Nak-yon's call for his resignation as they failed to patch up their differences. The two sides met for talks in Seoul after the former party leader demanded Lee Jae-myung step down and agree to form a joint interim leadership committee ahead of the general elections scheduled for next April. The current leader rejected both demands and called on the former leader to remain in th
Dec. 30, 2023
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DP leader to meet ex-leader Lee Nak-yon Saturday amid call for resignation
Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the main opposition Democratic Party, said Friday he will have a breakfast meeting with former DP leader Lee Nak-yon this weekend amid the latter's call for his resignation. The former party leader has demanded Lee Jae-myung step down and agree to form a joint interim leadership committee ahead of the parliamentary elections scheduled for next April. If Lee declines the proposal by the end of the year, the former leader has said he will set out to launch a new p
Dec. 29, 2023
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Yoon, ex-President Park meet over lunch at presidential residence
President Yoon Suk Yeol and former President Park Geun-hye met over lunch at the presidential residence in Seoul on Friday, Yoon's office said. This was their third meeting since Yoon's inauguration in May 2022. Yoon asked Park about her health and how often she visits Seoul, according to presidential spokesperson Kim Soo-kyung. The former president has lived in her hometown of Daegu, 237 kilometers southeast of Seoul, since she was pardoned in 2021 after spending four years and nine
Dec. 29, 2023
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Inspection shows over W125.6b in virtual asset transactions by lawmakers
The Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission said Friday that lawmakers traded virtual assets totaling over 125.6 billion won ($97.6 million) over the past three years, with irregularities detected in some instances. The agency announced the outcome of its 90-day inspection into virtual asset transaction records of all 298 sitting lawmakers between May 30, 2020, and May 31, 2023, after questions arose over a young lawmaker's once-massive cryptocurrency assets. According to the results, 1
Dec. 29, 2023
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Yoon appoints 4 ministers, broadcasting watchdog chief
President Yoon Suk Yeol appointed four ministers and the chief of the broadcasting watchdog on Friday, his office said. Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok, who also serves as deputy prime minister for the economy, Agriculture Minister Song Mi-ryung, Ocean Minister Kang Do-hyung and SMEs Minister Oh Young-ju were appointed, the office said. Kim Hong-il, a former chief of the anti-corruption agency, was also appointed as the head of the Korea Communications Commission, it said. The five were nominated
Dec. 29, 2023