Singer and entertainer Kim Jong-kook, who has gained more than 2 million subscribers just months after launching his YouTube channel “GYM JONG KOOK,” has responded to a suspicion of steroid use. Greg Doucette, a renowned Canadian bodybuilder and fitness YouTuber, recently raised suspicion that the Korean singer and well-known body builder could be using steroids. In a video posted on Oct. 31, titled “Kim Jung Kook || Natty or Not,” the trainer accused Kim of abusing st

US investment firm KKR & Co. said Friday it has acquired newly issued redeemable convertible preferred shares of South Korean energy company SK E&S for 2.4 trillion won ($2 billion). The investment, via KKR‘s Asia Pacific Infrastructure Fund, will provide KKR with an opportunity to receive cash or in-kind redemption for repayment in the future, as well as an opportunity to convert the securities into common shares of SK conglomerate’s natural gas arm, according to KKR. The

Rainbow Bridge World, the South Korean entertainment agency behind girl group Mamamoo, said Friday that it is looking to spur growth globally by raising funds through its initial public offering scheduled for later this month.  “We will further accumulate experience in producing high-quality content by making active investments (after the IPO). We are poised for a leap in the global market as an integrated content provider,” Kim Jin-woo, co-chief executive officer at Rainbow Br

A look back on the former prosecutor general’s remarks on economy and business

Jang Wonyoung, of disbanded group IZ*ONE, is joining a new girl group Ive, announced agency Starship Entertainment late Thursday. 　 She is the third member to be identified, following her former bandmate Ahn Yujin, and according to the new profile pictures, will go by her first name only. 　 In the promotional images, she switches between a fresh-faced pretty girl next door and a daring lass in a dramatic makeup. She will be the main vocalist of the six-member act. 　 Jang has been the face of a

Police on Friday transferred to the prosecution a former elementary school principal accused of installing a spy camera in a female teachers' restroom. The Anyang Dongan Police Station in Anyang, 23 kilometers south of Seoul, concluded its probe into the 57-year-old man, who was arrested late last month, and handed the case over to the prosecution, recommending he be indicted on sexual offense charges, officials said. He has admitted to having fitted a tiny camera inside a tissue box in the re

Samsung Heavy Industries Co. said Friday that its net losses widened in the third quarter from a year earlier due to one-off costs. Its net losses widened to 124 billion won ($105 million) in the July-September period from a loss of 7.3 billion won a year ago, the company said in a regulatory filing. Its operating losses deepened to 110 billion won in the third quarter from an operating loss of 13.4 billion won a year earlier, and sales dropped 11.4 percent on-year to reach 1.49 trillion won o

After Google’s move to allow a free choice of payment options for digital purchases made on its app store in South Korea, attention is turning to Apple, the other global tech giant targeted by a new law here. As of Friday, Apple remained silent on how it plans to comply with the law, which was passed by the National Assembly in August as the world’s first aimed at curbing the dominance of Google and Apple in the app ecosystem. On Thursday, the Korea Communications Commission said

Netmarble Neo, the development unit of South Korea’s top gaming company Netmarble, has scrapped its plan to go public, on the back of its lackluster performance and underperforming gaming stocks listed on the local market, according to investment banking sources on Friday. The company withdrew its preliminary application for an initial public offering a day earlier, which was submitted to the Korea Exchange in June. Blaming “stagnant market situation” for the thwarted plan,

South Korean stocks retreated on Friday, led by institutional sell-offs. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) lost 13.95 points, or 0.47 percent, to close at 2,969.27 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 676 million shares worth some 12.4 trillion won ($10.5 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 608 to 269. Institutions sold a net 446 billion won, while retail investors purchased 388 billion won. Foreigners bought a ne

Veteran director Kim Jee-woon, debuting as a TV series producer after a 23-year film career, is feeling a mixed bag of emotions. “I am very nervous and excited about ‘Dr. Brain’ being the first Korean-language original of Apple TV+. I feel like I am here to showcase my debut project as a rookie director,” the director said in an online press conference on Wednesday. “Dr. Brain,” the streaming service’s first original series from South Korea, is an adap

Several Korean artists will be participating at the Head in the Clouds music festival that starts Saturday at the Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, California. Known for bringing together some of the biggest names in Asian music, the two-day event is returning after taking a break in 2020. Hip-hop legends Tiger JK, Yoon Mi-rae, rappers Bizzy, CL, DPR Ian, DPR Live, singer and songwriter Bibi, Seori and guitarist and singer of DAY6 eaJ are among the line up of Korean artists. Other Asian musicians

The US said it remains committed to imposing UN Security Council resolutions on North Korea aimed at limiting its nuclear and ballistic missile program, amid Beijing and Moscow’s push to ease sanctions on the regime.  “We do remain committed to the sanctions regime,” Ned Price, the spokesperson for the US State Department, said during a daily press briefing on Thursday (US time). “We call on all UN members to fulfill their sanctions obligations under existing UN Sec

Around 42 percent of North Koreans have suffered from undernourishment over the past three years, a UN report said Friday, as the impoverished nation grapples with acute food insecurity amid the prolonged pandemic and severe weather conditions, compounded by international sanctions.  As many as 10.9 million people in North Korea, or 42.4 percent of the population, were undernourished from 2018 to 2020, according to the Statistical Yearbook – World Food and Agriculture 2021 released