South Korea's auto exports rose sharply last month on the back of rising demand from North America and Europe, government data showed Tuesday.The total value of vehicles shipped overseas reached $2.84 billion last month, up 23.6 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.The number of vehicles shipped abroad also soared 24.1 percent on-year to 174,363 units in August, compared to a 5.1 percent rise in the previous month. (Yonhap)A to

South Korea's industry minister said he will meet with his US counterpart later this year to discuss pending trade and other economy-related issues between the two countries."We are in talks with the US side to set the schedule and agenda before meeting with US Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross later this year," Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Paik Un-gyu said in a press session held Monday. "The detailed agenda will be decided later."Seoul and Washington have been on a tightrope over rev

South Korea's retailers are wooing solo drinkers with gift packages targeting single households as a growing number of people have opted to live alone in recent years, industry sources said Tuesday.Eating and drinking alone have taken root as a new normal in a society that has seen a steep rise in the number of single-person households.  The percentage of those living alone stood at 27.2 percent in 2015 and is expected to rise to 29.6 percent in 2019 to become the most common household type in t

The main opposition Liberty Korea Party has asked the prosecution to launch a probe into the ruling party's controversial documents that it claims have been written to "hold sway" over the media, a party spokesman said Tuesday.Jeong Yong-ki said that the party requested the probe Monday regarding the Democratic Party's documents, which the local daily Chosun Ilbo reported appeared aimed at ousting two local broadcasters' executives allegedly in favor of the conservative bloc.During a party meeti

Top South Korean officials held an urgent meeting Tuesday to tackle increasing peer violence among teenagers after video footage of a cruel beating recently triggered public outrage.Education Minister Kim Sang-gon hosted the meeting that involved top officials from the fields of justice, culture, youth, police and broadcasting. Kim doubles as deputy prime minister for social affairs. Education Minister Kim Sang-gon (2nd from R, at table) holds a meeting with other ministers and officials from re

Operating profits of Starbucks Coffee Korea are expected to exceed 100 billion won ($88.4 million) this year amid growing popularity of the US coffeehouse chain here, industry sources said Tuesday.The 50-50 joint venture between retail conglomerate Shinsegae and the US coffee giant posted 52.8 billion won in operating profits on 593.5 billion won in sales during the first six months this year.It is the first time Starbucks recorded over 50 billion won in operating profits since it opened its fir

GYEONGJU -- South Korean Energy Minister on Tuesday checked the safety of nuclear reactors in Gyeongju to mark the first anniversary of the nation's largest recorded earthquake and vowed to step up anti-quake measures.Paik Un-gyu visited Gyeongju, located 370 kilometers southeast of Seoul, to check an active fault line near the Wolsong No. 1 reactor and a nuclear waste disposal facility to check the safety in the quake-prone region. The epicenter of the 5.8 magnitude earthquake was not far from

South Korea said Tuesday that it aims to export more than $1 billion worth of seaweed products annually by 2024 as part of its effort to diversify its overseas shipment portfolio.According to the report submitted to the Cabinet, the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries said the country is expected to ship 380,000 tons of dried laver and other seaweed products in 2024, up from the 250,000 tons -- worth $350 million -- sold overseas in 2016.Dried laver, called "gim" in Korean, is usually roa

WASHINGTON -- Two ranking US lawmakers urged President Donald Trump on Monday to bolster Washington's alliance with South Korea in the face of North Korea's escalating threat and China's growing regional influence.Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), chairman of the House committee on foreign affairs, and Rep. Ted Yoho (R-FL), chairman of the subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific, said it was clear the bilateral relationship has never been more important in their letter to Trump reflecting on their recent trip

South Korean stocks opened higher Tuesday, taking a cue from overnight Wall Street gains.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 8.17 points, or 0.35 percent, to 2,367.25 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Market kingpin Samsung Electronics was up 0.28 percent, while SK hynix, a major chipmaker, gained 0.54 percent.Hyundai Motor, the No. 1 automaker, climbed 0.74 percent, while AmorePacific, the country's top cosmetics maker, advanced 0.95 percent.The local currency was trading at 1

Nearly 40 percent of workers at public institutions based in provincial cities in South Korea live away from their families, a report said Tuesday, while calling for measures to help more live with their families.A decade ago, South Korea designated 10 "innovation cities" across the nation and relocated the headquarters of 115 public organizations to those cities to promote balanced regional growth.According to the report from the office of Rep. Song Ki-heon of the ruling Democratic Pa

South Korean automaker Hyundai Motor Co. will not sponsor a Chinese golf event this year, officials in Seoul said Tuesday, amid an escalating diplomatic row over the deployment of an advanced US missile defense system in South Korea.An official with Hyundai said that the automaker's Chinese unit Beijing Hyundai Motor Co. -- a joint venture between Hyundai Motor and BAIC Motor Corp. established in 2002 -- will not be the title sponsor for the Chinese Ladies Open on the China LPGA Tour. The bigges

South Korea's national tax revenue continued to grow in the first seven months of 2017 amid a steady growth pace of Asia's fourth-largest economy, the finance ministry said Tuesday.The government collected 168.7 trillion won ($149.2 billion) in taxes in the January-July period, up a solid 13.4 trillion won from a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Strategy and Finance.The amount collected is equal to 67.2 percent of this year's tax revenue target of 251.1 trillion won, including some 11

Offshore investors turned to net sellers of South Korean stocks in August, official data showed Tuesday, marking the first monthly outflows in eight months amid worries about North Korea's nuclear and missile provocations. Foreign investors sold a net 2.4 trillion won ($2.12 billion) worth of local stocks last month, according to the data by the Financial Supervisory Service.Investors from the US, Singapore and Britain were among net sellers of local stocks last month, the data showed. 

WASHINGTON -- The US House of Representatives will hold a hearing this week to address the North Korea issue following its latest nuclear test, the relevant committee said Monday.Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, will convene a hearing at 10 a.m. Tuesday to discuss "Sanctions, Diplomacy, and Information: Pressuring North Korea." (Yonhap)The hearing will be attended by Susan Thornton, acting assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, and