A countdown clock for the first Winter Olympics to take place in South Korea was unveiled on Wednesday. Citizens are posing for a photo in front of the countdown clock on Wednesday in Seoul. (Yonhap)The countdown to the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Games will reach one year on Thursday. To celebrate the occasion, Omega, the official Olympic timekeeper, set up the digital clock at Seoul Plaza in front of the city hall. It displays the number of days, hours, minutes and seconds left to the quadrennial

VATICAN CITY (AP) -- Pope Francis has repeated his appeal for people to build bridges of understanding instead of walls in his first, albeit indirect, comments since the Trump administration tried to impose a travel ban on people from seven mostly Muslim countries. Pope Francis (AFP)Francis made the comments during his weekly Wednesday catechism lesson, dedicated to the general Christian precepts of hope and forgiveness in forging peace.He said: "In the social and civil context as well, I appeal

The presidential office Cheong Wa Dae on Wednesday lambasted special prosecutors for leaking the schedule set for investigators to question President Park Geun-hye over her role in the corruption scandal that led to her impeachment, further clouding the prospects of the unprecedented inquiry.Some media outlets reported on the day that Cheong Wa Dae and the probe team, led by Independent Counsel Park Young-soo, had agreed to the plan to question Park face to face at her presidential office on Thu

The Gyeongbu (Seoul-Busan) Expressway near the Yangjae Interchange in southern Seoul is packed with cars on Thursday. (Yonhap)An annual mass migration started in South Korea on Thursday as people headed to their hometowns for one of the country's key traditional holidays.Seol, or Lunar New Year's Day, falls on Saturday this year, with the official holiday period running from Friday to Monday.(Yonhap)Along with Chuseok, the equivalent of Thanksgiving in the United States, Seol marks South Korea's

Bank lending rates on new household loans edged up in December while interest rates paid by banks on new deposits also increased, central bank data showed Thursday.The average interest rates on fresh household loans extended by local banks came to 3.29 percent last month, up 0.09 percentage point from the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea. (Yonhap)The BOK data came amid South Korea's efforts to tackle rising household debt. The country's overall household debt reached a record high

To many, SBS TV's "Legend of the Blue Sea" ended up as somewhat of an artistic letdown. Famed screenwriter Park Ji-eun's time-slip tale of star-crossed lovers was criticized by many viewers for being derivative and too familiar.But that doesn't mean people tuned out. On the contrary, Wednesday's happy-ending finale claimed the No. 1 spot among its competitors in the same time slot, garnering a 17.9 percent nationwide viewership, according to Nielson Korea. (SBS)The take away? Star power still ma

Rep. Yoo Seong-min of the conservative splinter Bareun Party announced his presidential bid Thursday, pledging to restore justice, and tide the nation over economic and security crises."I am running in the 19th presidential election, keeping the people's anger, frustration and questions about what is statehood in mind," Yoo, 59, said in his statement.The fourth-term lawmaker declared that the fight against corruption will be one of his top priorities in the wake of an immense influence-peddling

SK Group, South Korea's No. 3 conglomerate, said Thursday that its affiliates plan to invest a combined 17 trillion won ($14.7 billion) this year, up 21 percent from last year, although economic uncertainty still persists at home and abroad.Energy and telecom giant SK said its 16 affiliates will newly hire 8,200 this year, up 200 from last year. (Yonhap)SK's aggressive investment plan is accelerating as group chief Chey Tae-won came back to the management last year.In 2014, the group chief stepp