Prosecutors to grill Kim Hyo-jae over alleged vote-buying in 2008 ruling party leadership electionProsecutors plan to question on Wednesday a former aide to President Lee Myung-bak who is accused of being deeply involved in alleged vote-buying during a 2008 leadership election for the ruling party. “He has been summoned to appear at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office by 9:30 a.m. Wednesday,” a prosecution official said Sunday, referring to Kim Hyo-jae. The 60-year-old Kim resigned Fr

A pastor and his wife were detained Sunday on suspicions of assaulting and starving their three children to death, police said. The three children ― aged five, eight and 10 ― were found dead in their home attached to the church where their father works in Boseong, 398 kilometers south of Seoul. “It is presumed that their deaths were caused by assault and starvation at the hands of their parents,” said an officer at the South Jeolla Provincial Police Agency. He said the parents kept their bodies

The police on Sunday decided to place more officers in Itaewon, Daelim and Garibong-dong of Seoul and Wongok-dong of Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, where the foreign population is dense and relevant crimes are reportedly rampant. All police officers in the areas will join patrols and other security measures to stem violent crimes and prevent any terrorism that could take place ahead of the Nuclear Security Summit slated for March 26-27 in the capital. Police units will be placed around-the-clock to s

Teachers avoid extra responsibilities after bullying prompts police actionA middle school in Gyeonggi Province has recently fallen short of homeroom teachers. Despite repeated urges from the headmaster, few have stepped forward to take on the responsibility. The school had to fill the open positions with irregular contract-based teachers who conventionally have limited duties as specialized subject teachers.The teachers are reluctant because the government has placed more responsibility on homer

The main opposition Democratic United Party has rejected claims that the domestic political atmosphere surrounding the Korea-U.S. free trade agreement now threatens FTAs with other countries or damages Korea’s international reputation.Public opposition to the Korea-U.S. trade pact has continued to simmer with DUP chairwoman Han Myeong-sook sending letters to U.S. President Barack Obama and the United States Congress, threatening to repeal the FTA unless changes are made. The letters claim that t

Apple is estimated to have sold more than 1 million iPad tablet computers in the Korean market, outpacing its local rival Samsung Electronics’ Galaxy Tab by a wide margin. Apple’s iPad debuted here on Nov. 30, 2010 and its sequel iPad 2 was introduced on April 29 last year. About 700,000 units were sold last year alone, dominating the nascent tablet computer market here.Given that many early adopters bought iPad even before the product was formally available on the local market, the actual numbe

The corporate credit ratings for Korean conglomerates and their affiliates have gone up amid growing worries over the neutrality and credibility of local credit ratings agencies, data showed Sunday. Korea’s three major ratings agencies ― NICE Investors Service, Korea Investors Service and Korea Ratings ― have issued more upgrades than downgrades, boosting the up/down ratio for corporate credit ratings to 3.4, according to the Korea Capital Market Institute. A ratio above 1 means upgrades outnumb

South Korean stocks may expand their gain this week, buoyed by lessening eurozone default risks, local analysts said Saturday.The benchmark KOSPI closed on Friday at 1,993.71, up 1.4 percent from a week earlier.The index surpassed the keystone 2,000 mark for the first time in six months during the weekly trading session, although it lost some ground on Friday as investors remained cautious that a bailout deal for Greece may not end Europe’s fiscal woes.Market watchers said there are some downsid

South Korea retained its position as the world’s largest financial derivatives market in terms of trading volume last year, claiming 27 percent of total trading volume, data showed Sunday.The trading volume of financial derivatives, such as futures and options, on the local bourse gained 4.4 percent on-year to 3.81 billion contracts, according to the data from the World Federation of Exchanges. In the same period, global trading volume jumped 9.4 percent to 14.14 billion contracts.The on-year in

The number of jobs at eight South Korean conglomerates rose 8.7 percent last year as companies acquired affiliates and expanded into new business areas, data showed Sunday.The tallied conglomerate groups, including tech behemoth Samsung and auto giant Hyundai Motor, employed 622,000 people as of the end of 2011, compared with 572,000 the previous year, according to the data they provided to Yonhap News Agency.The eight conglomerate groups are Samsung, Hyundai Motor, SK, LG, POSCO, Hyundai Heavy

South Korean banks’ mid- and long-term overseas borrowing jumped in January as lenders secured foreign currency liquidity to brace against a possible deterioration in external conditions, the financial watchdog said Sunday.The refinancing rate of 12 local banks’ mid- and long-term foreign debts came to 382.2 percent at the end of last month, up from 174.4 percent in December, according to the Financial Supervisory Service.The rollover rate gauges the percentage of fresh overseas borrowing agains