South Korean steel giant POSCO is expected to see its long-delayed project to build an integrated plant in India move speedily forward in the wake of President Park Geun-hye's state visit to the country, the presidential office said Thursday.In 2005, POSCO signed a memorandum of understanding with the eastern Indian state of Odisha to construct a US$12 billion steel plant with an annual production capacity of up to 12 million tons. But the project has been stalled due to a series of regulatory a

South Korea vowed to sternly retaliate against any North Korean provocations on Thursday, a day after Pyongyang warned of an "unimaginable holocaust" in response to South Korea's upcoming joint military exercises with the United States.South Korea also urged North Korea not to harm inter-Korean relations, noting that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un called for an end to "slander and calumny" in his New Year's address.Defense ministry spokesman Kim Min-seok said the North's latest threat that the

South Korea and the United States wrapped up a high-profile military session Wednesday aimed at countering threats from North Korea's nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction.About 40 defense and foreign affairs government officials took part in the two-day Extended Deterrence Policy Committee Tabletop Exercise held at U.S. Pacific Command in Hawaii, the Pentagon said. It was the third of its kind."The exercise scenario is designed to allow officials to explore a range of possible alliance

KT&G Corp., South Korea's largest tobacco manufacturer, said Thursday its fourth-quarter net income fell 25.3 percent from a year earlier due to decreased exports.Net profit came to 78.82 billion won ($74.1 million) in the October-December period, compared with 105.57 billion won a year ago, the company said in a regulatory filing.Sales, however, rose 3.4 percent to 987.10 billion won and operating profit rose 22.9 percent to 222.84 billion won.The figures reflect performances by KT&G and its su

South Korea is set to launch a task force on economic cooperation projects with North Korea and Russia, including a long-discussed plan for a trilateral rail link, Seoul officials said Thursday.The move is the first follow-up step after President Park Geun-hye announced late last year her plan to expand economic cooperation with Eurasian countries for more trade opportunities.Called the Eurasian Initiative, the policy is centered on the idea that exchanges between South Korea and Eurasian nation

The nation's top court on Thursday confirmed prison terms and penalties for three sitting lawmakers for illegal electioneering ahead of the 2012 general elections, stripping them of their parliamentary seats.Lee Jae-young of the ruling Saenuri Party was sentenced to one year in prison, suspended for two years, for embezzling money from a company he runs and using it to give money to party officials, in violation of the Public Official Election Act.In a separate ruling, the Supreme Court sentence

The number of vehicles registered in South Korea grew significantly from a year earlier last year with the number expected to top 20 million in early 2015, the government said Thursday.As of the end of 2013, the number of registered vehicles came to 19,400,864, up 2.8 percent from 18,870,533 at the end of 2012, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport."Such a rise comes partly from an increase in sales of new cars on the release of new vehicle models and growing popularity

South Korea's energy imports inched down last year from a year earlier, mostly due to lower demand for crude oil, customs data showed Thursday.According to the data from the Korea Customs Service, South Korea's energy imports shrank 0.7 percent on-year in 2013. Crude oil imports dropped 4.8 percent, while those of coal and natural gas rose 0.8 percent and 7.7 percent, respectively.The overall decline in energy imports is attributable to lessened demand for crude oil from industry and the transpo

South Korea will greatly increase the number of safety tests this year on fishery products sold here, including for radiation, the government said Thursday.According to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, the government plans to conduct 7,200 safety checks, 18 percent more than in 2013. Tests for antibiotic residues and prohibited drugs will increase the most, to over 5,700, it said.The number of tests for radiation will increase from 811 last year to 911, according to the ministry.A widesprea

South Korea's exports of industrial parts surged to a record high last year as did the sector's trade surplus, the government said Thursday.In 2013, outbound shipments of industrial parts and materials reached $263.1 billion, up 3.8 percent from a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The amount accounts for over 47 percent of the country's total exports in 2013, which came to $559.6 billion.Imports gained 1.9 percent on-year to $165.5 billion.The trade surplus i

Samsung Electronics Co., the world's leading maker of smartphones, said Thursday it has sold more than 10 million units of its Galaxy Note line-up in South Korea, proving its dominance on its home turf.The tech giant said the number of Galaxy Note smartphones sold in the country surpassed the milestone as of Thursday, apparently as the phablets successfully attracted users searching for a cross between a smartphone and a tablet computer.The phablets have been one of the industry's main attention