Moody's Investors Service on Tuesday lowered its outlook for South Korea's economic growth for next year to 2 percent from the previous 2.4 percent. The credit ratings agency said the revision came as South Korea is facing multiple external risks from China's slowdown, global inflationary pressure and aggressive monetary tightening by major economies. It also pointed to the country's rising hou...

Seoul shares closed lower to extend their losing streak to a third day on Tuesday as investors remain concerned that the Federal Reserve may continue its aggressive monetary tightening following unexpectedly strong US services data. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index retreated 26.16 points, or 1.08 percent, to 2,393.16. Trading volume was m...

Famed South Korean soprano Jo Sumi said Tuesday her new Korean-language crossover album "In Love" contains elements of the past, present and future to deliver the beautiful emotions of falling in love. The Grammy-winning singer said she had a hard time selecting 11 Korean tracks for the love-themed album released on Warner Classics as she wanted to introduce a wide range of Korean songs by conte...

A divorced couple accused of keeping the body of their dead infant daughter in a plastic container for three years to hide her death attended their arrest warrant hearing at a court Tuesday. A 34-year-old woman surnamed Seo and her former husband surnamed Choi, 29, were booked late last month on charges of abandoning and concealing the body of their 15-month-old daughter since her death at their...

Business leaders of South Korea and Vietnam on Tuesday discussed efforts to deepen bilateral economic cooperation in new areas such as a transition to green energy, in a step toward carbon neutrality and sustainable growth. The business forum, hosted by the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, took place a day after the summit between President Yoon Suk-yeol and Vietnamese President Nguyen Xu...

South Korea's military has identified the remains of another soldier killed during the 1950-53 Korean War following an excavation two years earlier, the defense ministry said Tuesday. The ministry's excavation team and personnel of the Army's 3rd Artillery Brigade found the remains of Pfc. Kang Nong-won in the mountainous county of Inje, 165 kilometers east of Seoul, in June 2020. Although they...

South Korean food giant CJ Cheiljedang Corp. said Tuesday it has joined hands with a US startup to develop ingredients used to make health supplements that prevent skeletal muscle loss. CJ Cheiljedang inked a license agreement with Emmyon earlier in the day to utilize the US startup's various patents covering ursolic acid. Ursolic acid is a substance found in apple peels and herbs like rosemary...

South Korean shipyard Samsung Heavy Industries Co. said Tuesday it has sold one drillship to Italian multinational oilfield services firm Saipem for 299.1 billion won ($230 million). The sale came after Samsung Heavy signed a contract with Saipem in June 2021 to lease the vessel for two years with an option to sell it. A drillship is a maritime vessel with drilling apparatus used to explore for...

Seoul stocks opened lower on Tuesday, tracking losses on Wall Street, as concerns grow that the US Federal Reserve may continue its aggressive monetary tightening following strong services data. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 16.19 points, or 0.67 percent, to 2,403.13 in the first 15 minutes of trading. US service sector activity unexpectedly picked up in November, raising...

South Korea's new COVID-19 cases sharply rose Tuesday to reach the highest total in 83 days amid lingering concerns that the country may face a winter surge of virus infections. The country reported 77,604 new COVID-19 infections, including 84 cases from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 27,408,854, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said. The tally is sharply up from Monday...

WASHINGTON-- South Korea and Japan must work closely together bilaterally and also trilaterally with the United States to deal with the various challenges at hand such as North Korean provocations and supply chain resiliency, the countries' top envoys in the US said Monday. South Korean Ambassador to the US Cho Tae-yong said the Seoul government stands ready to strengthen its cooperation with th...

Seoul shares closed lower on Monday as investors remain concerned that the Federal Reserve may continue its aggressive monetary tightening following a stronger-than-anticipated US jobs report. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index retreated 15.01 points, or 0.62 percent, to 2,419.32. Trading volume was moderate at 379.8 million shares worth 7....

South Korea's foreign reserves increased in November as the dollar-converted value of holdings rose thanks to the greenback's fall, central bank data showed Monday. The country's foreign reserves stood at $416.1 billion as of end-November, up $2.09 billion from the previous month, according to the data provided by the Bank of Korea. It marked the first growth in four months. The rise came as t...

South Korea plans to hold an interagency government meeting on its policy on North Korea's human rights situation this week in an effort to improve the North's rights conditions, according to the unification ministry Monday. The meeting, to be presided over by Vice Unification Minister Kim Ki-woong, will be held Friday to discuss ways to establish the government's basic plan to promote the North...

The Air Forces of South Korea, the United States and three other countries have kicked off an annual US-led humanitarian operation to deliver medicine and other basic necessities to remote Pacific islands ahead of the Christmas season, officials here said Monday. Hosted by the US Pacific Air Forces, the Operation Christmas Drop got under way on Sunday to send clothes and other necessities to res...