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Jan 23, 2020 North Korea

North Korea to make Munich Security Conference debut in 2020

North Korea will send a delegation to the Munich Security Conference for the first time in the 56-year history of the top diplomatic gathering, organizers said Thursday.An MSC spokesperson confirmed that North Korean vice foreign minister Kim Son-gyong would attend next month's event.The announcement comes a month after Pyongyang declared it was abandoning moratoriums on nuclear and intercontinental ballistic missile tests.The self-imposed ban on tests had been the centerpiece of two years of nu

Justice minister expresses intent to probe prosecution over indictment of presidential official

Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae expressed intent on Thursday to order an internal probe into prosecutors that brought charges against a presidential secretary for suspected misconduct, calling it a rash move that did not follow due process.Choo delivered her message to the press after an anti-corruption team at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office earlier in the day indicted Choi Kang-wook, a presidential secretary for public office discipline, for fabricating an internship certificate for

Jan 23, 2020
Social affairs
Samsung sets up tech platform center, names new home appliance biz chief

Samsung Electronics created an in-house technology platform unit and named a new chief for its home appliance business in the company's latest reshuffle, corporate sources here said Thursday. Samsung combined its in-house tech units related with artificial intelligence, internet of things and big data solutions to set up a new tech group, tentatively named "next-generation platform center," according to the company officials. The center will be headed by Chung Eui-suk, an executi

Jan 23, 2020
Technology
Search operations for S. Koreans missing in Himalayas suspended due to bad weather

The search for four South Koreans missing after an avalanche in the Himalayas were called off Thursday (Nepal time) as worsening weather continued to hamper operations. Nepalese authorities and a voluntary South Korean rescue team have been conducting the search since Friday's accident that left four Koreans and three Nepalese guides missing after an avalanche struck the popular trekking route on Mount Annapurna in northwestern Nepal. South Korea's quick response team dispatched to the site said

Jan 23, 2020
Foreign Affairs
Samsung may see passive funds cut exposure sooner than expected

A cap on Samsung Electronics’s weight in a Korean equity index could kick in earlier than planned, triggering fears that billions of dollars will exit the stock.Instead of the bi-annual adjustment, the Korea Exchange is considering putting a 30 percent limit on Samsung’s weighting on the Kospi 200 Index earlier due to the stock’s recent rally, said Ahn Kil-Hyun, the manager of the team that oversees the index. Given the gauge’s popularity among passive funds, research pro

Jan 23, 2020
Money
Furlough threat hangs over US military bases in S. Korea

The US is warning it will send furlough notices within weeks to almost 9,000 South Korean workers at US bases if the two countries don’t reach agreement on President Donald Trump’s demand for Seoul to increase dramatically what it pays for American troops.Trump’s push for South Korea to contribute much more has put the alliance under strain at a time when North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s regime has said it would no longer be bound by its previous promise to halt testing

Jan 23, 2020
Defense
NSC members discuss follow-up measures to Hormuz troop dispatch decision: Cheong Wa Dae

South Korea’s top security officials had internal discussions Thursday on ways to strengthen "communication" with Iran and the United States in connection with its decision to send naval troops to the Strait of Hormuz for contributions to maritime security there, according to Cheong Wa Dae.They reviewed the international community’s responses to the move and discussed "follow-up measures," including the strengthening of "communication" with relevant nati

Jan 23, 2020
Defense
Another Korean sexual slavery victim dies, number of survivors at 19

Another elderly Korean victim of Japan’s wartime sexual slavery died Thursday, the gender ministry said. The death of the woman, whose identity was withheld at the request of her family, puts the number of surviving victims at 19, according to the ministry. A total of 240 are officially registered with the government as victims of sexual enslavement by the Japanese imperial army during World War II. Five died last year. Gender Minister Lee Jung-ok expressed condolences to the family over t

Jan 23, 2020
Social affairs
Labor leader gets suspended sentence for organizing violent protests

The leader of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, a militant labor umbrella group, was given a suspended sentence Thursday for masterminding assaults on police during outdoor rallies.The Seoul Southern District Court sentenced Kim Myeong-hwan to 2 years and six months in prison, suspended for four years, and ordered him to complete 160 hours of community service.Kim was accused of overseeing violent illegal acts during KCTU members’ four protest rallies in front of the National Assem

Jan 23, 2020
Social affairs
Duty-free shares suffer decline amid new coronavirus fear

Shares in South Korean duty-free operators took a hit amid concerns that the outbreak of the Wuhan coronavirus may hurt the companies’ revenues from Chinese visitors, data showed Thursday. Hotel Shilla closed at 97,000 won ($83) on Thursday, down 10.6 percent from Friday’s closing price of 108,500 won. Shinsegae fell 4.37 percent over the cited period to finish at 306,500 won. Lotte Shopping also tumbled 4.76 percent to close at 130,000 won.On Monday, South Korea reported

Jan 23, 2020
Markets
SK Chairman Chey Tae-won advocates social value measurement model in Davos

SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won promoted the need to upgrade measurements of social value creation during his speech at the World Economic Forum that is underway in Davos, Switzerland, the firm said Thursday.“It is not an option but an obligation to change the goals and systems of corporate management from the interests of shareholders to those of stakeholders,” he said in a panel session held under the theme of “Stakeholder Capitalism in the Asian Century” at the Davos Co

Jan 23, 2020
Industry
[Editorial] Declining growth

Reliance on fiscal spending to bolster the economy is unsustainable

Jan 23, 2020
Editorial
[Sarita Nayyar] The case for consumption equality

Discussions about economic development often focus on how to increase income equality. More recently, however, thoughtful observers have begun to regard consumption equality -- the equal use of goods and services -- as a more robust indicator of parity in human wellbeing. After all, it more accurately captures inequality as people experience it when they consume, and consumption can be affected by borrowing and saving, as well as by social safety-net programs.But consumption equality is a double

Jan 23, 2020
Viewpoints
Joys and perils of Seollal

Millions of South Koreans will flock across the country today to reunite with family members for one of the two biggest national holidays -- Seollal. The Lunar New Year, which this year falls Saturday, is characterized by traditional food, celebrations and customs and a chance to start over again with one’s resolutions. But for many, the time of celebrations and togetherness is increasingly becoming a source of woes. According to a poll released Jan. 18 by job-hunting platform Saramin, abo

Jan 23, 2020
Social affairs
FSS expands consumer protection in reshuffle

The Financial Supervisory Service on Thursday unveiled its reshuffle blueprint, focusing on consumer protection and innovative finance.The move came amid the ongoing controversy regarding the so-called derivatives-linked fund fiasco -- the improper sales of products by local banks and securities. The FSS is slated to announce its sanction decision for two major banking chiefs later this month.“To respond to the stronger consumer protection needs and enhance the supervisory functions over

Jan 23, 2020
Markets

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