The Korea Herald

Jeju airport resumes operations

Jeju International Airport resumed operations at noon on Monday after a 42–hour closure due to heavy snow and high winds. (Yonhap)Nearly 86,000 people were stranded and some 1,100 flights were canceled on the southern resort island over the weekend and early Monday. The island recorded its biggest snowfall in three decades at 11 centimeters as of Sunday, with more than 1 meter of snow in mountain areas. (khnews@heraldcorp.com)

Social Affairs Jan. 25, 2016

Rival parties to vote on North Korea rights bill

Rival parties agreed Saturday to put a set of bills on North Korean human rights and corporate revitalization to a full-floor vote this week, ending a months-long dispute which had crippled the legislative procedures.They, however, failed to reach a final consensus on other disputed bills, such as those on terrorism prevention and labor reform bills as well as the revision bill to redraw the nation’s electoral map ahead of the April general elections.The floor leaders of the Saenuri Party and Th

Politics Jan. 24, 2016

Rival parties to vote on North Korea rights bill

Cold wave sweeps Korea; Snow paralizes Jeju airport

SEOUL/JEJUDO ISLAND-- The number of frozen-pipe accidents and hypothermia patients soared while operations at the Jeju International Airport were paralyzed following the biggest snowfall in the region in three decades Sunday, as the nation experienced the coldest weather this winter.Just a day after the Korea Meteorological Administration issued a cold wave warning for Seoul, temperature in the capital dropped to minus 18 degrees Celsius on Sunday -- the coldest since January 2001. Also on Sunda

Social Affairs Jan. 24, 2016

Cold wave sweeps Korea; Snow paralizes Jeju airport

Tokyo stocks plunge by break after Wall St dive

TOKYO (AFP) - Tokyo stocks plunged Thursday morning after a dive on Wall Street while a pick up in the yen took a bite out of exporters like Toyota and factory robotics giant Fanuc.The Japanese market led a regional sell-off, plunging almost four percent at the start, as jittery investors reacted to another drop in oil prices and a lukewarm Federal Reserve regional economies report. Renewed jitters about the world's top economy and broader concerns about global growth pushed currency traders int

World Business Jan. 14, 2016

China's market turmoil: Worry, but don't panic

NEW YORK (AP) -- There's no reason for panic. Worry, yes, but not panic.That was the opinion of some U.S. investment strategists after another free-fall on China's main stock market reverberated around the globe Thursday and sent the Dow Jones average to a loss of nearly 400 points.Stock prices in China fell so fast that for the second time in four days, circuit-breaker mechanisms kicked in and halted trading, this time after just 30 minutes.China's tumbling stock prices are, in themselves, noth

World Business Jan. 8, 2016

Oil extends losses, nears $33 a barrel

SINGAPORE (AFP) - Oil prices plunged close to $33 a barrel on Thursday as crude extended losses on rising US energy stockpiles and China's weakening currency.At 0230 GMT, US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for February delivery was down 60 cents at $33.37.Its close of $33.97 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange on Wednesday marked the lowest settlement price since December 2008 during the global financial crisis.In London, Brent crude for February delivery, the European benchmark

World Business Jan. 7, 2016

Seoul shares, currency shrink

South Korean stocks traded 0.88 percent lower late Thursday morning due to a Chinese stock market crash coupled with new North Korean risks.The local currency was trading at 1,201.70 won against the U.S. dollar as of 11:20 a.m., down 3.80 won from the previous session's close.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) lost 16.92 points to 1,908.51 as of 11:20 a.m.Shares lost ground across the board, with Samsung Electronics plunging 1.02 percent and No. 1 carmaker Hyundai Motor losi

Jan. 7, 2016

Chinese stock markets closed after shares fall 7%

SHANGHAI (AFP) - China stock markets closed for the day less than half an hour after opening Thursday when shares fell more than seven percent, triggering an automatic "circuit breaker", after authorities lowered the yuan's value by the most since August.By 9.58am, when trading was halted, the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index had slumped 7.32 percent, or 245.95 points, to 3,115.89.The Shenzhen Composite Index, which tracks stocks on China's second exchange, had tumbled 8.35 percent, or 178.08

World Business Jan. 7, 2016

[John H. Cha] Formula for Korea-Japan harmony

Lincoln Park overlooking the Golden Gate to the San Francisco Bay is a special place for me. My father, bless his soul, used to spend a lot of time there, poring over his oil painting canvass, trying to capture the beautiful surroundings. The park also houses an art museum, Legion of Honor, known for its European painting collection. An Auguste Rodin bronze statue, The Thinker, guards its entrance, where my children used to run around during the 1970s and 1980s. Come November 1984, Holocaust Mem

Viewpoints Dec. 27, 2015

[John H. Cha] Formula for Korea-Japan harmony

Former National Assembly Speaker Lee Man-sup passes away

Former National Assembly Speaker Lee Man-sup passed away Monday. He was 83. Lee Man-sup (Yonhap)Lee, who served as the parliamentary speaker in the early 1990's and 2000's, died at 4:31 p.m. at Severance Hospital, a general hospital in western Seoul, according to Kwon Joong-tae, a parliamentary official.A graduate of Yonsei University, Lee worked as a reporter for the daily Dong-a Ilbo before entering politics in 1963.Eight-term lawmaker Lee first served as speaker in 1993 when he replaced Park

Latest News Dec. 14, 2015

Former National Assembly Speaker Lee Man-sup passes away

Bank of Japan holds fire on fresh stimulus despite sinking economy

TOKYO (AFP) - The Bank of Japan Friday held fire on expanding its massive stimulus programme despite more weak data as the world's number three economy teeters on the edge of recession.In a short statement following a closely watched meeting, the BoJ said it would hold steady on its record 80 trillion yen ($665 billion) annual asset-buying scheme.The central bank also releases its semi-annual inflation and growth projections later in the day, with speculation mounting that it will roll back its

World News Oct. 30, 2015

Daewoo Ship rises after creditors pledge to provide funding

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co., the world's second-biggest shipyard, rose the most in two months in Seoul trading on expectations creditors?plan to provide 4.2 trillion won ($3.7 billion) in funds will help ease concerns about its cash position.Shares of Daewoo Shipbuilding jumped as much as 8.5 percent, the biggest intraday gain since Aug. 25, to 7,400 won and traded at 7,050 won as of 9:56 a.m. in Seoul. The stock has fallen 62 percent this year after reporting big losses due to

Industry Oct. 30, 2015

Samsung continues drive to streamline businesses

Samsung Group has decided to sell its affiliate’s stake in chemical units to Lotte Chemical, an apparent move to focus on its flagship businesses including information technology and electronics.In separate regulatory filings on Friday, the group’s affiliates -- including Samsung Electronics, Samsung SDI, Samsung C&T, Samsung Electro-Mechanics and Hotel Shilla -- said they would sell off their entire stake, totaling 31.5 percent and valued at 470 billion won ($412 million), in Samsung Fine Chemi

Industry Oct. 30, 2015

Samsung continues drive to streamline businesses

Creditors of Daewoo Shipbuilding to unveil rescue plan this week

The government and the main creditor of Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. said Tuesday that they will soon announce a set of measures to help save the shipyard, whose annual operating loss may exceed 5 trillion won ($4.41 trillion).The measures, expected to include up to 4.3 trillion won in additional funds for the troubled shipbuilder, will be announced early Thursday, the state-run Korea Development Bank said in a released statement.Just one day earlier, unionized workers of Daewoo

Business Oct. 27, 2015

Stampede at Saudi hajj kills more than 700 pilgrims

Muslim pilgrims gather around bodies of people crushed in Mina, Saudi Arabia during the annual hajj pilgrimage on Thursday. (AP-Yonhap)Two giant waves of Muslim pilgrims collided at an intersection Thursday near a holy site in Saudi Arabia, and more than 700 people were crushed and trampled to death in the worst disaster at the hajj in a quarter-century."People were climbing over one another just to breathe," said Abdullah Lotfy of Egypt. "It was like a wave. You go forward and suddenly you go b

World News Sept. 24, 2015

Stampede at Saudi hajj kills more than 700 pilgrims

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