T'way Air Co., one of South Korea's six budget carriers, said Tuesday it will add a new route to Bangkok in October to strengthen services on non-Chinese routes.With the 189-seat B737-800 jet, T'way Air will begin services on the Daegu-Bangkok route beginning Oct. 29, the low-cost carrier said in a statement. From three airports -- Incheon International Airport, Gimpo International Airport and Daegu International Airport -- it currently operates one domestic route to Jeju Island and 11 internati

South Korea's industry ministry said Tuesday that it will turn its eyes toward promoting clean energies as part of President Moon Jae-in's nuclear-free pledge.The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy outlined its policy goals to President Moon at a gathering in Sejong, an administrative city some 130 kilometers south of Seoul."The ministry will expand the country's reliance on renewable energy to 20 percent by 2030," the ministry said in a release. "Also, we will phase out coal-fired power sta

South Korea will continue its efforts to seek dialogue with North Korea while sternly responding to Pyongyang's provocative acts, its pointman on unification said Tuesday.Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon made the remarks as North Korea fired a ballistic missile over Japan early in the morning. It flew more than 2,700 kilometers at a maximum altitude of around 550 km."North Korea is focusing on developing nuclear and missile programs, shunning away from international calls not to do so. The g

More than 58,000 new homes were completed throughout the country in July, an increase of 62.3 percent from the month's average over the past five years, data from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport showed Tuesday.A total of 58,718 units of new homes were supplied in the one-month period, 26,704 of them in Seoul and surrounding metropolitan areas for an increase of 22.9 percent from the five-year average for July, according to the ministry. It said 32,014 homes were built in regio

South Korea will increase its national health insurance rate by 2.04 percent next year, in line with the new Moon Jae-in administration's policy to strengthen the state's welfare infrastructure, the health ministry said Tuesday.The increase will push up insurance rates set at 6.12 percent of the monthly salary or income in 2017 to 6.24 percent in 2018, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said. Accordingly, salaried workers will pay an average of 102,242 won ($90.83) a month next year, up 1,966 wo

North Korea's firing of a ballistic missile over Japan on Tuesday is apparently aimed at showing that it's not bluffing with its recent threat to strike waters near Guam, experts here said.They believe the North's focus this time was likely testing the atmospheric re-entry technology of its mid-range ballistic missiles for possible combat use.The North launched what appears to be an intermediate-range ballistic missile from Pyongyang early Tuesday morning. It flew more than 2,700 kilometers at a

Nine out of 10 South Koreans lived in cities that accounted for only 17 percent of the overall national territory last year, the transport ministry said Tuesday. In 2016, 47.47 million people, or 91.8 percent, of the country's total population of 51.7 million resided in Seoul and other cities, according to data from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.  (Yonhap)Areas categorized as cities stood at 17,609.5 square meters, or 16.6 percent, of the overall territory measured at 106,05

South Korean health authorities said Tuesday that they have ordered an indepth inspection into four imported foods that may pose potential health risks starting later this week.The products --Taiwanese mango, processed blowfish, Indian whilteleg shrimp, and moringa from drumstick tree -- will undergo the mandatory inspection starting on Wednesday, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said. The measure is part of the authorities' effort to secure safety of the food that may pose health risks, the

South Korea's top court overturned lower courts' verdicts and ruled Tuesday in favor of a former Samsung Electronics Co. worker seeking an industrial accident claim for his rare neurological disorder. A 33-year-old man surnamed Lee filed a suit against the tech giant in 2011 requesting legal acknowledgment of the multiple sclerosis he had developed over the years of working at a Samsung factory as an industrial accident. His claim was turned down by two lower courts, which both cited a lack of e

A test bed area for autonomous cars will be built west of Seoul by the end of next year to put test vehicles through real world road and traffic conditions, the transport ministry said Tuesday.Groundbreaking for K-City will be held on Wednesday in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, to build the 320,000 square-meter facility for 11 billion won ($9.77 million), according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.  The facility will have simulated roads that like highways, downtown areas, cit

President Moon Jae-in called for stepped up efforts to resume dialogue with North Korea on Tuesday, hours after the communist state launched a missile that flew over Japan in the latest violation of UN Security Council resolutions.Moon made the remarks in a ceremony at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae to appoint the new vice chairman of an advisory council on unification headed by the president himself."It is true the National Unification Advisory Council has not been able to show its prese

The Forum for East Asia-Latin America Cooperation kicked off its three-day run in the biggest South Korean port city of Busan on Tuesday, bringing together foreign ministers from the two regions to discuss inter-regional collaboration and security issues stemming from North Korea's nuclear weapons development.This year's FEALAC ministerial meeting marks the eighth of its kind since the idea of bridging the regions through a regular channel was proposed in 1998. Foreign ministers from 36 FEALAC m

President Moon Jae-in on Tuesday called for additional efforts to prevent hidden camera crimes against women, also calling for additional steps to provide support for victims of such crimes."President Moon again ordered government measures to completely remove any concerns held by females through strong legal actions against hidden camera crimes and strong measures to help minimize damage of victims," Park Soo-hyun, a spokesman for the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae, said in a press release.M

A second baseball club has been questioned in connection with a money scandal involving a retired umpire.The Kia Tigers in the Korea Baseball Organization became the latest club to be embroiled in the scandal, in which a former umpire, surnamed Choi, had allegedly contacted multiple team officials for quick cash. The Tigers said two of their employees were recently questioned by prosecutors investigating the scandal.Any financial transaction between umpires and club employees are strictly prohib

Accounting firms in South Korea saw their combined sales rise 8.5 percent annually in the 2016 fiscal year, helped by a modest gain in revenues from their audits and consulting businesses, data showed Tuesday. The combined sales of 165 accounting firms stood at 2.67 trillion won ($2.37 billion) in fiscal 2016 that ended March of this year, compared with 2.46 trillion won a year earlier, according to the data by the Financial Supervisory Service.The nation's top four accounting firms -- Samil PwC