The Korea-EU Free Trade Agreement took effect Friday, beginning the process of removing tariffs on more than 20,000 items produced in Korea and the EU.Negotiations over the pact, which began in May 2007, came to a close in October 2009 when the agreement was penciled in, and in October 2010 the agreement was formally signed by the leaders of Korea and the EU.Under the agreement, tariffs on 11,261

Finance Minister Bahk Jae-wan addresses a news conference on Thursday. (Yonhap News)Growth outlook lowered to 4.5%, inflation likely to be 4% this yearThe government has cut its growth forecast for the economy and raised the outlook for inflation this year, backing off from its ambitious growth plan due to weakening consumption and persistent price hikes. In a downbeat assessment of Asia’s fourth-

The international community should come together to pressure North Korea into giving up its nuclear weapons programs that pose a major threat to global safety and security, a ranking South Korean official said Thursday.Speaking at a global nuclear conference in Daejeon, 164 kilometers south of Seoul, Second Vice Foreign Minister Min Dong-seok urged the participants from 86 nations and internationa

Media office may lead to increased U.S.-North Korea exchangesThe Associated Press said it signed an agreement with Pyongyang on Thursday to become the first Western media to open a permanent news bureau in the reclusive state, a move that may lead to increased Washington-North Korea exchanges. The memorandum of understanding agreed by the AP and the North’s official Korean Central News Agency “wou

The second private international school broke ground on Thursday in Jeju Global Education City, a government-led development project on the Jeju Island meant to turn the island into a leading English education hub in Asia.The Jeju Free International City Development Center held the ground-breaking ceremony for Branksome Hall Asia, the Korean branch of Branksome Hall Canada, a premier private girls

Social networking tools become routine of government publicity officialsShortly after Labor Minister Lee Chae-pil met representatives of labor and management for Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction amid the labor confrontation in mid-June, word of an imminent police crackdown on striking workers started spreading via Twitter.“That wasn’t what the minister truly meant. So we responded via Twitte

Busan Mayor Hur Nam-sik has a strong conviction that Busan Global Village, an English immersion camp in the southeastern port city, will grow into the country’s representative English education hub.For the last two years since its opening in 2009, BGV has garnered great recognition from locals as well as some from outside the city for its high-quality, yet low-cost language learning programs.While

Students of many ages show high satisfaction with unique language programsBusan Global Village is emerging as the country’s key center for English education thanks to a variety of unique programs tailored to the needs of different age groups and its location in the center of the southeastern port city.Since it opened in July 2009, BGV has gained much recognition from inside and outside of the coun

Celebrating 50 years in business, company hopes to nearly triple annual sales by 2020Korea Electric Power Corp. is hoping to more than double its annual revenue as it drives for a spot among the world’s five largest energy companies.The company, which has its 50th anniversary on Friday, is aiming for annual sales of 85 trillion won ($79 billion), of which 26 trillion won will be raised from overse

Hyundai Motor Group chairman Chung Mong-koo has called for employees in the United States to prioritize producing vehicles with “advanced” quality.His remarks are in line with Hyundai Motor and its affiliate Kia Motors’ road map to catch up with European and Japanese carmakers from its earlier business strategy focused on product stabilization.Chung visited a sales corporation of Hyundai-Kia in Lo