HONG KONG -- On a small green stage dubbed “PITCH,” one of three judges posed a sharp question to Sunny Choi, chief operations officer of Yana Trip, a travel startup from South Korea, after Choi’s presentation about her company at the RISE 2017 event being held in Hong Kong on Wednesday. “So why did you say it is difficult for big players like Expedia to interrupt your business?” the judge asked. “We do have a lot of exclusive products that can be found only in Asia -- trips to small and unknown

It costs the most to open a Burger King outlet of BKR Co., at some 479 million won ($418,000), a survey by CEOScore showed Tuesday.Opening costs include application and training fees, along with a deposit and other costs, according to the standards set by the Fair Trade Commission.Of the top 100 companies in terms of revenue, following Burger King was iCoop, a health-conscious food brand, Lotteria, Lotte Super and Bornga.

President Moon Jae-in on Wednesday named seven vice minister-level officials, including the chiefs of the Ministry of Personnel Management and Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. To head the Ministry of Personnel Management, Moon tapped Kim Pan-suk, a Yonsei University professor of public administration. Kim has specialized in public administration and personnel management for much of his academic career and previously headed the Korean Society for Public Personnel Administration. He also served a

Regional social service organizations will be set up from next year, to create 340,000 jobs in the sector over a five year period, the Moon Jae-in administration’s de facto transition committee said Wednesday. Under the plans revealed by the State Affairs Planning Advisory Committee, the envisioned entities will be established under each of the 17 metropolitan, provincial and special autonomous governments – Sejong and Jeju – beginning 2018.  Park Kwang-on (Yonhap)“(The plans are) for realizing

The weather is hot and sticky. I am desperately seeking respite, but that’s getting harder and harder to find in the stifling city. This means it’s vacation time. Time to get away. But I just can’t decide. Where would be warm, yet not humid, full of fun things to do and good things to eat? Before I make my choice, I think I’ll just have to take a look to see what it’s like in Singapore, Hong Kong and Hawaii. Am I going to leaf through pamphlets or go online to browse picture galleries posted by

BANGKOK -- The Cabinet on Tuesday approved a Bt8.8-billion ($258.7 million) purchase of eight T-50TH Golden Eagle fighter training aircraft from Korea Aerospace Industries of South Korea, which the military said would not be too much of a burden on the national budget. The purchase of the aircraft brings the total value of military hardware bought under the ruling junta since the coup of 2014 to a total of Bt 72.7 billion ($2.14 billion)T-50TH Golden Eagle fighter (The Nation)Prime Minister Gene

HONG KONG -- Around 14,000 startup founders, investors and media figures from about 90 countries gathered at the RISE 2017 event in Hong Kong on Tuesday to discuss ways to build Asia’s “new economy” with new technologies. Joe Tsai (left), co-founder and vice chairman of Alibaba Group, and Gary Liu, CEO of South China Morning Post, speak at the opening session of RISE 2017 held at Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Center on Tuesday. (RISE)Being held in Hong Kong for the third consecutive year, th

The proportion of babies born out of wedlock was 1.9 percent in South Korea in 2014, the lowest level among 35 member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, according to a central bank report. This was due to deep-rooted sentiment here against having a child without first getting married, the Bank of Korea said. Korea’s figure was lower than Japan’s 2.3 percent and below the average of 39.9 percent for OECD members in the cited year.The BOK’s report was based on

The 2017 Gracias Special Concert, a cultural festival, opened at the Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul at 7 p.m., Sunday, with a record 25,000 people in attendance.Attendees included ambassadors, youth ministers, university presidents from 40 nations across the globe and 3,000 domestic and foreign youths.The concert, presented by the International Youth Fellowship in celebration of the 2017 World Culture Camp, took place as a free performance for the people of Seoul and comprised various programs such a

Baltimore Orioles outfielder Kim Hyun-soo singles in the fourth inning of a game against the Chicago White Sox on June 14, 2017. (Yonhap)For a second consecutive season, Baltimore Orioles left fielder Kim Hyun-soo has found himself fighting to hold down his starting spot. But compared to last season, stating his case in 2017 has proven to be a struggle, as his offensive production has unexpectedly deteriorated.Last season, Kim’s spring training struggles lost him the confidence of manager Buck S