South Korea’s stock market retreated Thursday, hit by the growing debt crisis faced by Evergrande Group, one of China’s biggest property developers, as financial authorities vowed to closely monitor the situation’s impact on the market. The benchmark Kospi lost 12.93 points, or 0.41 percent, to close at 3,127.58 points. The secondary tech-heavy Kosdaq shed 9.86 points or 0.94 percent to close at 1,036.26. Trading volume was moderate at about 612 million shares worth some 13.

South Korean stocks retreated Thursday after the three-day Chuseok holiday in the face of comments by the US Federal Reserve's chief that it could start tapering its stimulus as early as November, as well as growing woes over a default of a giant Chinese real estate developer. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) lost 12.93 points, or 0.41 percent, to close at 3,127.58 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 612 million shares

Natural gas shortage in Europe spills over to South Korea as oncoming winter spurs fuel stockpiling

Panic-buying in the property market continues despite tougher lending regulations

South Korea, the US and Japan will further bolster cooperation to persuade North Korea to abandon its nuclear arsenals, the three countries’ foreign ministers concluded at a meeting on Wednesday. 　 South Korean Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong held talks with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi on Wednesday (US time) in New York, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. 　 During their session, the three discussed the recent situation o

Two allied opposition parties on Thursday proposed a bill for a special counsel probe into growing corruption allegations against Gyeonggi Province Gov. Lee Jae-myung, the front-running presidential contender for the ruling party. The main opposition People Power Party and the conservative minor People's Party together said they submitted the bill to the legislature earlier in the day, along with a letter officially requesting a parliamentary investigation into the allegations. The bill, propose

A growing number of people in South Korea are planning to travel to Saipan via a travel bubble amid rising vaccination rates and extended benefits offered for travelers. According to Asiana Airlines on Thursday, over 1,000 bookings have been made for flights to Saipan scheduled throughout the rest of the year. An Asiana flight to Sapian last Saturday, just ahead of the Chuseok holiday, had 150 passengers on board, accounting for 85 percent of bookings. With more than 9 in 10 people on board

An inter-Korean summit on the sidelines of the Beijing Winter Olympics in February is still a possibility, President Moon Jae-in’s senior secretary for communications, Park Soo-hyun, said Thursday. “We are making efforts for peace and denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula, with all possibilities remaining on the table,” Park said during a radio interview with MBC when asked about the possibility of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un attending the Beijing Games. South Korea

South Korea will join international efforts to help Afghanistan overcome the humanitarian crisis and other hardships in the wake of the Taliban takeover, the foreign ministry said Thursday. Ham Sang-wook, deputy foreign minister for multilateral affairs, made the remark during a virtual ministerial meeting of the Group of 20 nations (G-20) held on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday. In the meeting, Ham voiced concerns over the current situation in Kabul and called for concer

A 2.6 magnitude earthquake struck South Korea's southeastern region Thursday afternoon, the state weather agency said. The quake occurred about 14 kilometers south of Changnyeong, about 350 kilometers southeast of Seoul, at 12:02 p.m., according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA). It was the sixth strongest quake to hit the Korean Peninsula to date this year. The epicenter was at 35.42 degrees north latitude and 128.49 east longitude at a depth of 16 km. The quake's tremor was reco

South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Wednesday expressed his wish for his country and the United States to further enhance their combined defense capabilities to ensure permanent peace on the Korean Peninsula. Moon made the remarks during his meeting with Adm. John C. Aquilino, commander of the US Indo-Pacific Command, at Hickam Air Force Base in Honolulu, where the two earlier attended a ceremony to transfer the remains of Korean and American soldiers killed during the 1950-53 Korean War. Moon

Social distancing rules to tighten back to pre-Chuseok levels

LG Electronics is taking over an Israeli firm with expertise in cybersecurity for automobiles as part of its plan to strengthen its auto parts business portfolio. According to the South Korean electronics maker on Thursday, the company recently signed a deal with Tel Aviv-based Cybellum to acquire a 63.9 percent stake. Founded in 2016, the Israeli firm’s valuation is estimated at $140 million. It has around 50 employees. The company is recognized for a platform that is designed to analy

Fines, prison sentences introduced for online grooming; police allowed to conduct undercover investigations in digital sex crime cases

The government has come up with a set of special measures to boost the COVID-19 vaccination rate among migrant workers here as fears of a possible crackdown on unregistered immigrants are holding back their vaccination turnout, officials said Thursday. The Ministry of the Interior and Safety, the Ministry of Justice and other related government agencies discussed the measures in an interagency pandemic response meeting held a day earlier in a bid to help ease the hesitation many migrant workers