South Korean shares opened sharply lower Wednesday, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) fell 60.72 points, or 2.28 percent, to 2,603.91 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled 1.51 percent to close at 40,936.93, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq plunged 3.26 percent. Tech giants, including Nvidia and Intel, led the decline as the lower-than-expected US manufacturing purchasing managers index (

Market Sept. 4, 2024

The main opposition Democratic Party has proposed a bill mandating a special counsel recommended by the Supreme Court chief justice investigate the military's response to a Marine's death last year. The bill, proposed Tuesday, mandates that the chief justice recommend four candidates to the special counsel. They will be narrowed down by the opposition parties to two, from which the president will make the final appointment. The special counsel will be tasked with looking into allegatio

Politics Sept. 4, 2024

A powerful union of bus drivers in Gyeonggi Province, which surrounds Seoul, called off a strike planned for Wednesday after reaching a last-minute wage hike agreement with their employers before dawn. The union, which has about 90 percent of city and intercity bus drivers in the nation's most populous province under its wing, and representatives of the province's bus company owners agreed to a 7 percent wage increase around 3 a.m. Wednesday after marathon negotiations that began at 3

Social Affairs Sept. 4, 2024

Shooter Park Jin-ho has become South Korea's first double gold medalist of the Paris Paralympics. Park won the men's 50-meter rifle 3 positions (SH1 classification) title with the Paralympic record score of 454.6 points at the Chateauroux Shooting Centre in Chateauroux, south of Paris, on Tuesday. Dong Chao of China finished with 451.8 points for silver. Park had earlier won the 10m air rifle standing gold medal. In the 50m 3 positions event, shooters competed in kneeling, prone and st

More Sports Sept. 4, 2024

South Korea's foreign reserves increased for the second straight month in August on the back of the increased value of non-US dollar assets and investment gains, central bank data showed Wednesday. The country's foreign reserves had come to $415.92 billion as of end-August, up $2.41 billion from the previous month, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). The central bank attributed the increase to a rise in the converted value of non-dollar assets amid the weak greenback an

Economy Sept. 4, 2024

The United States may need to reevaluate its strategy on the expanding military ties between North Korea and Russia if Vice President Kamala Harris becomes president as Pyongyang's alleged arms support for Moscow's war in Ukraine is deeply troubling, a US senator said Tuesday. In an interview with Yonhap News Agency, Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del) said the Biden administration's North Korea policy has focused on its denuclearization and recently has been pressing the North to stop s

Foreign Affairs Sept. 3, 2024

Bank of Korea Gov. Rhee Chang-yong said Tuesday the time has come to "sufficiently consider" a rate cut as the nation's consumer inflation cooled. "In terms of stability of consumer prices, it is time to sufficiently consider lowering a benchmark interest rate," Rhee told reporters at a forum in Seoul. Rhee said the central bank would review an "appropriate timing" for a rate cut, in his strongest signal yet about a policy pivot. In a meeting of the parliamen

Economy Sept. 3, 2024

South Korean shares fell as investors took to the sidelines ahead of key US data. The local currency lost ground against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index lost 16.37 points, or 0.61 percent, to close at 2,664.63. Trade volume was moderate at 291 million shares worth 8.8 trillion won ($6.56 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 458 to 416. Foreign investors turned net sellers, offloading a net 287.5 billion won worth of shares, one day after they ended a six-day

Market Sept. 3, 2024

Around 30 South Korean nationals who stayed in Israel after attending a religious event have now left the country, officials said Tuesday. That means all South Korean travelers who were there for the same event have exited the region, where tensions have heightened following a series of missile and air strikes exchanged between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. The 30 people were among some 180 South Koreans who entered Israel last month to attend the event. Of them, 150 first de

Foreign Affairs Sept. 3, 2024

Former US President Donald Trump said in a soon-to-be-published book that his summitry with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during his time in office showed "real change" was "indeed" possible, portraying it as "honest, direct and productive." The Republican presidential candidate made the remarks in the photo book, titled "Save America," reinforcing speculation that should he win the Nov. 5 general election, he could revive his personal diplomacy with the

Foreign Affairs Sept. 3, 2024

Six days after the dismissal of Min Hee-jin as CEO of their label, ADOR, members of the K-pop girl group NewJeans broke their silence on the issue, expressing concerns and emotional distress. "Since the CEO was dismissed, it's been difficult in many ways and we have a lot of concerns. For a while, I was in a state of mental breakdown and very anxious," member Danielle was quoted as saying on "Phoning," a dedicated mobile app for the group's fans, on Monday by indust

K-pop Sept. 3, 2024

North Korea is estimated to have earned more than $6 billion through hacking and other illicit activities over the past seven years despite facing heavy international sanctions, a state-run think tank report showed Tuesday. North Korea's income through illegal activities from 2017 to 2023, such as smuggling out coal, reached a total of $6.29 billion, according to the report from the Institute for National Security Strategy. The UN Security Council has imposed wide-ranging sanctions on North

North Korea Sept. 3, 2024

South Korean shares opened higher Tuesday, helped by large cap gains amid growing hopes for a US rate cut. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 12.33 points, or 0.46 percent, to 2,693.33 in the first 15 minutes of trading. The index has closed higher for two consecutive sessions, with a growing number of investors expecting the United States to start cutting interest rates as early as this month. The US Federal Reserve is set to hold its rate-setting meeting on Tuesday and Wedne

Market Sept. 3, 2024

South Korea opened their training camp Monday ahead of two World Cup qualifying matches coming up this month, as head coach Hong Myung-bo began his second tour of duty with the men's national team. South Korea will host Palestine at 8 p.m. Thursday at Seoul World Cup Stadium to begin Group B play in the third round of the Asian qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. South Korea will then visit Muscat to play Oman on Sept. 10. These will be Hong's first two matches in his second t

Soccer Sept. 2, 2024

President Yoon Suk Yeol met with Fatih Birol, the chief of the International Energy Agency (IEA), on Monday, the president's office said, expressing gratitude for the agency's support of Seoul's Carbon-Free Energy (CFE) initiative. In September, Yoon introduced the CFE initiative during his keynote speech at the U.N. General Assembly, focusing on achieving carbon neutrality by leveraging carbon-free energy sources. Yoon acknowledged Birol's leadership and efforts to promote t

Politics Sept. 2, 2024