With a hostile neighbor to the north, military duty remains costly, but necessary for South Koreans

Whenever former military officer Kim Jung-wook receives a letter from the Army requiring him to join a military drill as reservist, the 28-year-old office worker is nervous about how to bring it up with his boss. “Sometimes I feel like I’m requesting a permission for time off,” Kim told The Korea Herald “Though no one has ever accused me of it, I am worried that my boss and teammates wouldn’t appreciate it because I am the only one who has served in the military from the team,” he said. He is on

Shares of Seoul Auction, the only listed art auction house in Korea, rallied on a rosy outlook for its 2016 performance in the beginning of the year. The company shares hit a record high of 24,950 won ($21.70) on Jan. 19. NH Investments and Securities forecast the company’s operating profits will soar to 21.6 billion won this year, up 43.5 percent from 2014, thanks to increased global interest in Korean monochromatic paintings.The firm’s revenue is also expected to jump to 71.9 billion won this

Art auction houses continue record sales momentum, boosted by foreign sales and a growing number of individuals who “invest” in art

Samsung Group chairman Lee Kun-hee is known as Korea’s most powerful and the wealthiest business tycoon, but he is also an avid art collector – a side of the man not well-known to the public. Samsung’s chief is currently the largest private holder of artworks in the nation, with more than 150 national treasures in the company’s Ho-Am Art Museum and Leeum museum. “Lee learned how to collect art pieces from his father Lee Byung-chul, the founder of Samsung,” said Lee Chong-sun, who worked as a dir

With art auctions booming in South Korea, auctioneers are increasingly a crucial factor in boosting sales at such events. “Auctioneers play a key role in setting market prices during art auctions,” Kim Hyun-hee, an experienced auctioneer for Seoul Auction, said in an interview with The Korea Herald.“They need extensive understanding and knowledge of art to induce participants to compete for the best prices,” she said. Kim, who studied history in college and art history in graduate school, starte

Given the current low interest rates, negative rates, low inflation and slow growth, investors are in search of alternative investment products that offer higher returns than savings.Stocks and equity funds are ideal during low inflation, but can be volatile when unpredictable forces suddenly catch markets off guard. Gold and U.S. dollars are attractive assets in times of uncertainties, in addition to bonds that can offer steady monthly returns.Bids are placed on “Nu assis sur un divan (La Belle

Popularity of monochrome paintings ramps up strong HK sales of Korean auction houses

While Asia competition intensifies, signs grow of worldwide collaboration

Space has become a new theme powering ticket sales in Korean theaters of late, thanks to the growing interest in science as well as evolving visual technology.The past three years at the Korean box office have seen a string of successful Hollywood movies set in space. Alfonso Cuaron‘s “Gravity” set the spark in October 2013, followed by the blockbuster hit “Interstellar” by Christopher Nolan in November 2014, and “The Martian” and “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” just two months apart in late 2015

Korea strives to cross the threshold of space technology through a lunar exploration project in 2020

Chief of Korea’s NASA talks about life-long mission, challenges, expectations for the country’s first self-developed rocket, lunar exploration project

Lack of interest by Chaebol a major setback for Korea‘s aerospace industry

Almost everyone is talking about “Descendants of the Sun,” the latest joint Korea-China television drama project.Fans have fallen head over heels into the love story between an Army captain played by Song Joong-ki and a doctor played by Song Hye-kyo in a faraway, natural disaster-hit country. Critics, meanwhile, predict that this blockbuster will boost KBS, a network broadcaster that has been lagging behind MBC, SBS and even cable channels such as tvN in dramas.A scene from “Descendants of the S

Behind the glory of hallyu dramas are the star-studded casts. After garnering attention abroad in Korean dramas -- mainly other Asian countries including China and Japan -- stars quickly jump into dramas and variety shows thereOverseas endorsements, and fan meetings follow, consolidating their positions, as well as the prominent status of hallyu.Starting with the unexpected success of the KBS2 TV drama series “Winter Sonata” which aired on Japanese satellite channel BS2 in 2003, the drama’s prot