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Busan film festival to open after two tumultuous years

CultureOct 6, 2016

Asia's largest film festival will open in this southern South Korean city of Busan Thursday with the local film scene remaining divided after a two-year-long dispute over the festival's artistic freedom.This year's festival will run though next Saturday, featuring 299 films from 69 countries from around the world, a scale almost as large as last year's 304 films from 75 countries. (BIFF 2016)Leading the 299 titles will be Korean-Chinese director Zhang Lu's "A Quiet Dream," which depicts the sto
Chinese firms rush to Korean bourse

Oct 6, 2016

Chinese companies are actively seeking to be listed on the South Korean stock market this year thanks to cheaper costs and a relatively short period of time to complete listings, industry sources said Thursday.Three Chinese firms -- farm equipment parts maker Golden Century, Organic Tea Cosmetics Holdings Co. and plastics maker GRT -- are preparing to be listed on South Korea's secondary KOSDAQ market by year-end. The same number of Chinese companies has already been listed on the minor bourse s
Samsung to 'carefully consider' proposal by Elliott

IndustryOct 6, 2016

Samsung Electronics Co. said Thursday it will "carefully consider" a proposal by US hedge fund Elliott Management that urged the South Korean tech giant to split into two companies to increase the value of shareholders. Elliott, which fought in 2015 against a merger of two Samsung affiliates but lost, urged Samsung to split into holding and operating companies. Elliott urged Samsung to list the operating company on the NASDAQ stock exchange and pay a special dividend. (Yonhap)"Elliott is a shar
Ex-Portuguese PM Guterres chosen to succeed Ban Ki-moon as UN chief

InternationalOct 6, 2016

Former Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Guterres has been selected to succeed Ban Ki-moon as UN secretary-general.The UN Security Council decided to recommend Guterres as new UN chief in a straw poll Wednesday. (AP-Yonhap)The council plans to adopt a formal resolution on the decision Thursday. The decision should then be endorsed by the 193-member General Assembly, but the process is considered a formality.Guterres, 67, who served as UN high commissioner for refugees for 10 years until last ye
US flight evacuated after another Samsung phone fire

TechnologyOct 6, 2016

A Southwest Airlines flight leaving Louisville, Kentucky was evacuated Wednesday after a passenger’s Samsung phone began emitting smoke. Flight 994 was evacuated on the runway prior to takeoff after a passenger’s Samsung Galaxy Note 7 -- described as a replacement in Samsung’s global recall of the device -- apparently caught fire, the airline said.“All customers and crew deplaned calmly and safely via the main cabin door,” it said in a written statement. (Brian Green)There is an ongoing global
Residents of Gimcheon protest THAAD deployment decision

PoliticsOct 5, 2016

Some 1,000 residents from the southern city of Gimcheon staged a massive rally in downtown Seoul on Wednesday to protest the decision by South Korea and the United States to deploy a US anti-missile system to Seongju County, adjacent to the city.The protesters called on the central government to scrap the plan to station a Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense battery at a golf course in Seongju by the end of 2017 to counter North Korea's evolving nuclear and missile threats. The system is a core
Typhoon Chaba destroys Busan film festival venue

CultureOct 5, 2016

Typhoon Chaba struck venues for the Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) Wednesday, tearing down the walls of makeshift facilities and causing panic among the organizers.With the festival's opening just a day away, organizers scrambled to prevent further damage to the BIFF Village set up on Haeundae beach where various press conferences and hand-printing events have been scheduled for the participating actors and filmmakers."I'm glad the typhoon didn't come on opening day, but I'm still very
Prosecutors seek extradition of ex-Oxy head

IndustryOct 5, 2016

Prosecutors said Wednesday they will seek the criminal extradition of a former head of Oxy Reckitt Benckiser amid an ongoing probe of the firm's deadly products that claimed many lives here.Under the plan, the prosecutors will seek to bring Gaurav Jain, an Indian national residing in Singapore who currently works for Britain-based Reckitt Benckiser, to South Korea to further the investigation.Prosecutors said they will provide translated investigation records as well as an arrest warrant and ask
KRX's new head vows every effort for holding firm

Oct 5, 2016

The new head of South Korea's sole bourse operator on Wednesday pledged all-out efforts to transform it into a holding company with a few subsidiaries in a bid to survive the rapidly changing market environment."Given internal and external necessities, a shift to a holding firm is a task we have to achieve at all costs," Korea Exchange CEO Jeong Chan-woo said, starting his three-year tenure.The KRX has sought to go public and become a holding firm as part of efforts to strengthen governance and
Ban has made up his mind to run for president: former PM

PoliticsOct 5, 2016

A former prime minister was quoted by political sources on Wednesday as saying that UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will run in the upcoming presidential race, a move which may bring key changes in the election amid the lack of popular figures among the conservative bloc here."I think Ban has clearly made up his mind," said Kim Jong-pil, a former prime minister and an iconic conservative politician, during a meeting with close figures last week.Former Prime Minister Kim Jong-pil (Yonhap)Kim, ho
Hyundai unionists threaten to stage general strike if gov't orders emergency arbitration

IndustryOct 5, 2016

Unionized workers at Hyundai Motor Group threatened Wednesday to stage a general strike if the government invokes its right to emergency arbitration to order workers at South Korea's No. 1 carmaker to return to work, sources said.The move came after Labor Minister Lee Ki-kweon said last week the government would consider calling for an emergency measure if the trade union and management fail to iron out a compromise and end a strike at Hyundai Motor Co. that is seriously hurting car parts subcon
More mid-range smartphones available in Korea

TechnologyOct 5, 2016

Smartphone makers such as Samsung Electronics Co. and Sony Corp. have launched their latest mid-range smartphones in South Korea, targeting the niche segment between flagship and low-end smartphones.Samsung began selling the Galaxy A8 smartphone on Wednesday via SK Telecom, the nation's top mobile carrier. With a 5.7-inch screen and better camera capabilities, the A8 smartphone is touted as the closet mid-range smtphone to the flagship Galaxy S series. The A8 is priced at 649,000 won ($583) in S
[3천만뷰] 운동 커플 ‘세젤예’

Oct 5, 2016

운동으로 다져진 커플 오스틴 레이 (Austin Raye)와 줄리안 데이거 (Julian Daigre)의 영상이 5일 오전 11시 기준 페이스북에서 3천만번 이상 조회되는 기염을 토하고 있다.　(페이스북)　지난 9월 22일 게재된 이 영상에서 이 선남선녀는 일반인으로썬 엄두도 못 낼 동작을 함께 해내며 공중 곡예와도 같은 묘기를 부린다. 　　　　레이(26)와 데이거는 각각 18만2천명과 15만6천명의 인스타그램 팔로워를 자랑한다. 　　 Chillin': the art of doing nothing without being bored. That's what my @iFit told me to do. #iFit #ad⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Austin Raye(@austin_raye)님이 게시한 사진님, 2016 10월 2 오후 2:09 PDT　 Decide if you're going to get through the task at hand before you start. See it
Ranking NK official stationed in Beijing seeks asylum: source

North KoreaOct 5, 2016

A ranking North Korean official stationed at North Korea's mission in Beijing has recently defected, possibly seeking to move to South Korea, a source familiar with Pyongyang's affairs said Wednesday.An official belonging to the North's health ministry disappeared with his family in late September, according to the source, who declined to be identified.He is known to be in charge of providing medical supplies to a clinic in Pyongyang which caters to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and his family
Gov't reaffirms unyielding pay reform drive for bank workers

Oct 5, 2016

South Korea's top financial regulator on Wednesday emphasized the government's unswerving commitment to expand performance-linked pay for local bank workers."It's an indispensable financial reform task," Yim Jong-yong, chairman of the Financial Services Commission said at a government-civilian meeting on improving the nation's financial system.The government will push for the spread of a "performance-oriented culture" on the basis of constant principles, he added.Yim's comments came as bank work