Samsung may heave a sigh of relief over the news reports that the National Pension Service has decided to support the proposed merger of Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries. The decision, reportedly made by its investment panel Friday, certainly gives the upper hand to the Korean conglomerate in its showdown with the U.S. hedge fund Elliott Associates, which has striven to block the merger. The decision of the NPS, which holds the largest voting stake, 11.2 percent, in Samsung C&T, followed two suc

A trilateral committee of labor, management and government representatives decided Thursday to raise the country’s minimum wage by 8.1 percent to 6,030 won ($5.33) per hour for next year. About 3.4 million workers on low incomes are expected to be affected by the pay increase, which will be steeper than this year’s 7.1 percent hike.The decision came 10 days after the legal deadline set for June 29. Labor representatives walked out of a vote on the compromise suggested by government-appointed mem

Lawmakers on a parliamentary subcommittee set up to deliberate taxation rules have been sitting on their hands over measures submitted by the government early this month to reduce the number of income earners exempted from tax.This is an embarrassing scene as it was the panel itself that had asked Finance Ministry officials to work out the measures. More perplexingly, the lawmakers contradicted themselves in making the request, having put pressure on the ministry to settle complaints from wage e

Infighting within Korean political parties ― ruling and opposition alike ― is as notorious as fights between rival parties. Yet, the recent brouhaha in the ruling camp and the way it was settled increases skepticism about the Park administration and the Saenuri Party. Usually, the relationship between the president and the ruling party becomes strained around the end of the chief executive’s term. This is largely because the president ― who serves a single five-year term ― is in the lame-duck st

President Park Geun-hye issued a warning Tuesday against Cabinet members who she said were distracted from their jobs. The warning, made at the weekly Cabinet meeting, was a clear manifestation that she was not happy with the performance of some ministers. Specifically, a stern-faced Park raised her voice when she said that Cabinet ministers should work on behalf of the people and that they should lead their respective ministries well, without pursuing any “personal paths.”Park did not elaborate

Yet another Defense Security Command official has been caught passing on classified documents, raising serious concerns about the organization’s function as the military counterintelligence agency and protector of military secrets.On Friday, the military said a Navy lieutenant commander was arrested early last month on suspicion of leaking classified military secrets to a Chinese national. According to the military, the officer is suspected of having handed over military information to a Chinese

The UNESCO added 23 industrial sites in Japan to its World Heritage list Sunday, after a 24-hour delay due to last-minute negotiations between Korea and Japan over the wording of the statement to be issued following the inscription.In the end, the listing was agreed on by consensus by the 21 member states of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, including Korea and Japan, avoiding a vote that would have been unprecedented.Korea and Japan negotiated for several months over the UNESCO listing of Ja

The number of multicultural residents in the country has more than tripled over the past decade to 1.74 million this year, according to government data released Sunday. The figure accounted for 3.4 percent of Korea’s total population of 51.33 million.The figure includes naturalized Koreans and their children, migrant workers, foreign students and immigrant spouses. Their number, which stood at about 540,000 in 2006 when the government began compiling related data, has since increased by an annua

All eyes in political circles are on whether and when Saenuri Party floor leader Yoo Seong-min will resign from his post in what should be a move to end deepening discord in the ruling camp.Yoo has not clarified his stance since the National Assembly failed to put a bill designed to strengthen its oversight over the administration’s authority to enact ordinances to a revote Monday. The ruling Saenuri Party, which has 160 seats in the 300-member parliament, boycotted the vote on whether to overri

Excessive demands may foil probe on Sung scandal

Parliament should move fast on extra budget

Of the four major Joseon-period palaces in Seoul, Changdeokgung Palace stands out for its natural beauty. Unlike the nearby Gyeongbokgung Palace, which was arranged in the Chinese style, Changdeokgung Palace reflects the more nature-loving Korean style. The palace was built to be in harmony with the natural terrain and the extensive garden has been kept in its natural state.The palace also stands out for being well-preserved. The Changdeokgung Palace garden was closed to the public for 38 years

With food experts predicting a possible famine in North Korea as a result of prolonged drought, Unification Minister Hong Yong-pyo told the National Assembly that the government stood ready to cooperate with Pyongyang in tackling the emergency.The entire Korean Peninsula has been hit by a drought this year as a result of the El Nino weather phenomenon and Pyongyang last month said that it was experiencing the worst drought in 100 years. In a statement by the official Korean Central News Agency,

Corruption hampers certification of import cars

Special prosecutor needed to investigate Sung scandal