China’s role deemed critical in Pyongyang’s next move on economyWhen it comes to North Korea’s future following the death of its leader Kim Jong-il, peaceful denuclearization is often cited as key. Equally important, however, is the outlook for the isolated state’s battered economy, especially as any change would have a great impact on neighboring countries. The problem is that analysts and experts in Korea and elsewhere seem baffled by the sheer lack of information about the chosen successor, K

Ferrari S.p.A. is looking to build an ultra-large theme park near Seoul as part of its tourism-inspired promotion drive, officials here said Thursday.Senior officials of the city of Paju, about 50 kilometers northwest of Seoul, said they have begun talks with the Italian company over the development of the amusement park dedicated to racing cars, similar to Ferrari World in Abu Dhabi.The carmaker launched the world’s largest indoor theme park in the capital of the United Arab Emirates last year.

South Korean stocks inched down 0.05 percent on Thursday as lingering jitters over the eurozone debt crisis outweighed recent positive U.S. economic data and prompted investors to take a breather following the previous session’s rally, analysts said. The local currency fell against the U.S. dollar.After surging around 3 percent on Wednesday, the benchmark KOSPI dipped 0.92 points to 1,847.49. Trading volume was moderate at 400.2 million shares worth 3.08 trillion won ($2.67 billion), with declin

Lim Sung-nam, the South Korean chief negotiator to the six-party talks, rushed to Beijing to meet his counterpart Wu Dawei on Thursday afternoon, raising hopes that efforts to resume the stalled six-party nuclear talks could gain momentum with the recent U.S.-North Korea contact in New York.The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said the two sides will assess the situation on the Korean Peninsula in the aftermath of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il’s death and also have consultations on the fu

Former U.S. president Jimmy Carter has sent condolences for the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il and expressed a wish to visit the communist country, the North’s state media said Thursday.“In the message Jimmy Carter extended condolences to Kim Jong-un and the Korean people over the demise of leader Kim Jong-il,” the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.It said the message was sent on Monday, the same day that the communist state announced its longtime leader had died of a heart at

WASHINGTON (Yonhap News) -- The U.S. government said Wednesday that it is willing to have a continued dialogue with North Korea on possible food aid and the resumption of the six-way nuclear talks even after the death of the communist nation‘s leader last week.North Korea and the U.S. had working-level discussions through the New York channel, which refers to Pyongyang’s mission to the United Nations, on Monday, soon after the secretive regime announced the sudden demise of Kim Jong-il, accordin

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- The U.S. military has detected no unusual movements by the North Korean military after the death of the country‘s leader Kim Jong-il and the situation on the peninsula remains “calm,” the Pentagon said Wednesday.“We’ve not seen any unusual movements by the North Korean military. This appears to be a relatively smooth transition on the peninsula and we hope it stays that way,” press secretary George Little told reporters.There has been no change in the alert status for the 28,

A 28-year-old man from Abu Dhabi arrived in Seoul to be treated for a vocal cords disorder, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said Thursday. He is the first patient referred and transferred to a Korean medical institution under a pact signed by the Health Authority-Abu Dhabi and four Korean hospitals on patient referrals and transfers last month. According to the ministry, the patient arrived on Wednesday night, and received health checkups and examinations at the Seoul National University Hosp

Korea was ranked the 57th most charitable among 153 nations, according to a recent poll by a British aid group, trailing far behind the top-ranked United States, as well as Asian neighbors Hong Kong and Thailand. The second annual survey by the Charities Aid Foundation, called the World Giving Index 2011, was complied by questioning people in the surveyed nations on three measures ― volunteering, helping strangers and donating money. Korea, which had ranked 81st in the same poll last year, ranke

The Financial Services Commission on Wednesday filed a complaint with the prosecution against Jeon Jong-hwa, a relative of President Lee Myung-bak, for involvement in stock manipulation and embezzlement. Jeon is the latest person around Lee to be investigated for fraud or other criminal allegations. According to the FSC, business takeover specialists, Kim and Lee, in 2009 established a private equity fund, Namu Equity, and scouted Jeon, a financial analyst. Jeon is also the son-in-law of Lee San

Heated debates have arisen online over whether or not citizens are entitled to pay respects to the deceased North Korean leader Kim Jong-il on social network services.Since Kim’s sudden death was announced this Monday, a number of citizens paid their respects via the Internet, though opposite sentiment was also voiced.The National Police Agency has launched investigations into two online communities commemorating Kim, according to officials Wednesday.“Most of the contents have been deleted, exce

Experts say American’s departure extends statute of limitations in 1997 caseSeoul prosecutors indicted Thursday the now sole suspect of an infamous 1997 murder in Seoul.The Supreme Prosecutors’ Office indicted Arthur Patterson after learning that he had been arrested and placed under trial in October at a California district court on suspicion of murder in the 14-year-old case.On April 3, 1997, 23-year-old Hongik University student Cho Choong-pil was found brutally murdered in the first-floor ba