President Yoon Suk-yeol said Friday that North Korea is ready to conduct a nuclear test at any time it decides. Yoon was responding to a reporter's question about the U.S. Department of Defense's assessment that the North has completed preparations to carry out a nuclear test as early as within the month. "We believe that not only at the end of this month, but ever since my inauguration, it's f...

South Korea's Veterans Affairs Minister Park Min-shik will attend a ceremony celebrating the completion of a new Korean War memorial monument in Washington DC next week, his ministry said Friday. Park plans to read out President Yoon Suk-yeol's message during Wednesday's event unveiling the Wall of Remembrance, which bears the names of 36,634 US troops and 7,174 members of the Korean Augmentatio...

North Korea's new suspected COVID-19 cases remained below 200 for the second consecutive day, according to its state media Friday. More than 140 people showed symptoms of fever over a 24-hour period until 6 p.m. the previous day, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said, citing data from the state emergency epidemic prevention headquarters. It did not provide information on whether a...

South Korean shares opened slightly higher Friday, following overnight Wall Street gains, amid lingering concerns over a global economic recession. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 2.09 points, or 0.09 percent, to trade at 2,411.25 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Foreigners and retail investors went on a buying mode, while institutions sold shares. Overnight, US...

South Korea's producer prices gained for the sixth straight month in June, driven by rising prices of oil, coal and services, central bank data showed Friday. The producer price index, a major barometer of consumer inflation, stood at 120.04 last month, up 0.5 percent from the previous month, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). From a year earlier, the index spiked 9...

South Korean stocks ended higher Thursday, as US rallies and eased concerns over high global energy prices boosted investor sentiment. The Korean won gained ground against the US dollar. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 22.31 points, or 0.93 percent, to close at 2,409.16, extending the winning streak to the second consecutive session. It is the highest figure since June 28, whe...

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's Working Group on Bribery has voiced "serious concerns" that the recently enacted prosecution reform laws could hamper the country's capacity to investigate and prosecute foreign bribery. The Working Group on Bribery in International Business Transactions, tasked with monitoring the implementation of the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention and ...

SEOUL, July 21 (Yonhap) -- Foreign direct investment (FDI) pledged to South Korea's free economic zones (FEZs) more than doubled in the first half of this year to hit a three-year high amid post-pandemic economic recovery, data showed Thursday. The country's nine FEZs received $560 million worth of FDI commitment during the January-June period, up 164 percent from a year earlier, according to th...

President Yoon Suk-yeol postponed receiving a policy briefing from the unification ministry Thursday due to a scheduling conflict, officials said. The briefing had been scheduled for 4 p.m. at the presidential office but is currently being rescheduled, presidential spokesperson Kang In-sun told reporters. A presidential official said there were "various circumstances" that led to the postponeme...

The Hungarian and Colombian ambassadors to South Korea were awarded honorary citizenship of Seoul on Thursday in recognition of their contributions to developing bilateral ties. Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon presented a certificate of honorary citizenship to Hungarian Ambassador to South Korea Mozes Csoma and Colombian Ambassador to South Korea Juan Carlos Caiza Rosero in a ceremony at City Hall. Csom...

A lawmaker of the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) on Thursday refuted the ruling People Power Party's claim that the preceding Moon Jae-in administration falsely accused two North Korean fishermen of killing 16 fellow crew members before repatriating them in 2019. The alleged killings were the main reason behind the Moon administration's decision to send the North Koreans back to their hom...

Cargo processed at South Korean seaports fell 5.1 percent on-year in the second quarter of this year amid global supply disruptions due to the prolonged crisis in Ukraine and China's lockdown of major cities over the COVID-19 pandemic, the oceans ministry said Thursday. Cargo handled at the country's ports came to 373.98 million tons in the April-June period, compared with 394.17 million tons a ...

An international ocean forum kicked off in the western port city of Incheon on Thursday to seek ways to further promote the maritime industry. The two-day Incheon International Ocean Forum (IIOF) 2022 opened at Songdo Convensia in Incheon, about 30 kilometers west of Seoul, under the theme of "The World Calls, The Ocean Waves," bringing together maritime industry experts and businessmen from acr...

President Yoon Suk-yeol said Thursday the people wish to see a quick end to a strike at Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. (DSME) and enabling that will be helpful to everyone. Subcontract workers at DSME have been striking since June 2, occupying a shipyard on Geoje Island on the south coast and causing up to trillions of won in losses for the company. Wage negotiations between the w...

South Korea's western city of Incheon will host former major league sluggers and celebrities in a global home run derby tour in September, the event's organizers said Thursday. "FTX MLB Home Run Derby X" will stop in Incheon, some 30 kilometers west of Seoul, on Sept. 17. London hosted the inaugural event on July 9, and the tour will also visit Mexico City in October. Major League Baseball (MLB...