South Korea is seeking to focus on a long-term vision that can raise the overall competitiveness of the country as it utilizes its research and development budget, the ICT ministry said Tuesday.The plan was announced during a gathering of Ministry of Science and ICT policymakers and President Moon Jae-in. The policy briefing was the first of its kind since Moon took office May 10.In accordance with the goal, the ministry will now have the right to conduct a prefeasibility study related to the R&

WASHINGTON -- US House Speaker Paul Ryan said Monday that he worries most about North Korea selling a nuclear-tipped long-range missile to terrorists.The Republican congressman from Wisconsin told an audience at CNN's Town Hall that that is the reason the North Korea issue is serious."Having North Korea with nuclear-tipped warheads that can strike the United States is not a good thing to have for this country," he said. "But it's not just that they would launch a missile to the United States. Wh

South Korea's state regulator said Tuesday it will map out a plan by the end of this year to ease regulations on the financial industry, aimed at reinvigorating the sector suffering from slow growth.The main goal is to ease restrictions and cut red tape that has discouraged companies from making inroads into the financial sector, the Financial Services Commission said in a statement.Another goal is to encourage banks and other financial institutions to lend money to start-ups and other promising

One-person families will likely become the most common household type in all South Korean cities and provinces in the next 30 years amid the country's low birthrate and rapidly aging population, government data showed Tuesday.Households consisting of a single member are forecast to account for 36.3 percent of all family units in 2045, far outnumbering families of married couples with children, according to the data by Statistics Korea.The percentage of those living alone stood at 27.2 percent in

South Korea's deficit in the trade of intellectual property rights narrowed in the first six months of this year from a year earlier on reduced shortfalls from patent use contracts, the central bank said Tuesday.South Korea posted a trade deficit of $600 million in intellectual property rights for the January-June period, down from a deficit of $950 million a year earlier, data released by the Bank of Korea showed. South Korea exported $5.53 billion and imported $6.13 billion in intellectua

South Korean President Moon Jae-in will hold a summit with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Vladivostok next month during a trip to take part in the Eastern Economic Forum, the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae said Tuesday.The forum, to be held Sept. 6-7, will largely focus on the economic and development potentials of Russia's Far East, and possible a chance for South Korean businesses to explore new business opportunities there.However, the venue is also expected to provide a crucial

South Korean shares trimmed earlier gains late Monday morning as foreigners sold off more shares. The won rose against the dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 7.10 points, or 0.30 percent, to 2,362.10 as of 11:20 a.m.Foreigners and individuals sold a combined 40 billion won ($37 million) worth of stocks, weighing down the main index. Institutions bought 29 billion won worth of shares.  A strong rally in the KOSPI index is not expected this week as investors remain c

Conservative parties on Tuesday expressed unease over President Moon Jae-in's nomination of a liberal, reformist judge to lead the Supreme Court, warning it could compromise the judiciary's political neutrality.On Monday, the liberal president tapped Kim Meong-su, the 57-year-old head of the Chuncheon District Court in Gangwon Province, to replace Chief Justice Yang Sung-tae whose six-year term ends next month.The designation of Kim, who formerly led a group of liberal judges, caused consternati

South Korean football club Gangwon FC said Tuesday they will move into a new home stadium next season.Gangwon currently uses the Olympic Ski Jumping Centre in PyeongChang, the host city of the 2018 Winter Olympic Games in Gangwon Province, as their home. But for next season, Gangwon said they will play at Songam Stadium in Chuncheon, also a city in Gangwon Province, located some 85 kilometers east of Seoul, after reaching an agreement with Chuncheon city government."We've received offers from se

Caritas Internationalis, a Catholic aid group, has built 10 greenhouses in North Korea this year to grow vegetables for tuberculosis and hepatitis patients, a report said Tuesday. This undated file photo shows North Korean residents working at a greenhouse. (Yonhap)The confederation of over 160 Catholic charities said on its website the greenhouses were built in Kangwon and South Pyongan provinces as part of its humanitarian project, supported by Germany, to provide vegetables to medical facilit

The organizing committee for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics and the United States Olympic Committee on Tuesday announced their launch of a Korean youth mentorship program.In a statement, the organizations said the goodwill campaign is part of the USOC's "Thank You, PyeongChang" initiative, designed to "contribute to the positive legacy" of the first Winter Olympics to take place in South Korea.In the mentorship program, American ice dance tandem of Maia and Alex Shibutani will mentor stude

About 100 South Korean-owned cars and trucks left at the now suspended inter-Korean industrial complex in the North Korean border city of Kaesong have been confirmed missing, Voice of America reported Tuesday.The report came after the US broadcaster analyzed a satellite photo of the parking lot of an apparels factory at the Kaesong complex taken June 16 by Digital Globe Inc., a US imagery and information company.At the parking lot, about 100 vehicles were parked from February 2016, when Seoul sh

Samsung Electronics Co. said Tuesday it will promote "The Frame" TVs during the showcase event for its presumed Galaxy Note 8 slated for later this week.The South Korean tech giant, which plans to unveil its new phablet in New York on Wednesday (US time), said The Frame TVs installed at the venue will display artwork drawn by the Galaxy Note series' exclusive S-Pen. (Yonhap)Samsung said The Frame TVs will display 54 pieces produced by 13 artists through "art mode," which allows the TVs to displa

Online sales of heating items soared last week as the summer season is coming to an end and people prepare for cooler weather, industry data showed Tuesday. According to the data compiled by Gmarket, a major online shopping mall here, sales of electric blankets from Aug. 13-16 soared 205 percent on-year. The company declined to provided details on the actual number. This undated photo provided by Gmarket, a major online shopping mall, on Aug. 22, 2017, shows an electric blanket laid on a bed. (Y

Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Co., South Korea's top power equipment maker, traded at a yearly low on Tuesday on concerns that it would suffer from the new government's policy against nuclear power and thermal power generation.Doosan Heavy stocks were trading at 17,900 won ($15.80) on the Seoul bourse as of 10:05 a.m., down 0.56 percent from the previous session's close and nearing their lowest level in one year. In June, the government said the construction of the two reactors -- Shin