• 

  Film

  Bong Joon-ho bags Palme d'Or in Cannes milestone for Korea

  • Bong Joon-ho's 'Parasite' wins Palme d'Or at Cannes
  • S. Korean cinema finally embraces Palme d'Or at Cannes
  • President Moon celebrates Korean film's Cannes victory

• North Korea
  

  Trump brushes off concerns over N. Korea missile tests

  US President Donald Trump on Sunday downplayed the potential danger of North Korea’s missile launches in early May, just a day after national security adviser John Bolton called the tests a clear breach of UN resolutions. “North Korea fired off some small weapons, which disturbed some of my people, and others, but not me,” Trump tweeted during a four-day state visit to Japan that started Saturday. On May 9, North Korea tested two short-range missiles, which fell into the East S

• Automode
  

  Transport ministers forge alliance for connectivity, discuss development gap

  Chinese transport minister refuses to be drawn on inter-Korean rail project

• World News
  

  Strong 8.0-magnitude earthquake hits Peru, no injuries reported

  A strong 8.0-earthquake struck northern Peru in the early hours of Sunday, sending residents fleeing their homes and cutting off power to at least one town, with the impact felt as far afield as neighboring Ecuador.There were no immediate reports of injuries following the quake which the US Geological Survey said struck at a depth of 110 kilometers (68 miles).  The quake hit at 2:41 a.m. local time about 75 kilometers southeast of the town of Lagunas, along the Amazon basin near the border

• Politics
  

  Main opposition party ends protest against govt.

  Liberty Korea Party Chairman Hwang Kyo-ahn returned to the National Assembly over the weekend after holding an 18 day-long rally nationwide in protest against the liberal government for fast-tracking critical reform bills.The conservative party plans to hold a workshop this week to share views of supporters garnered during the rally and roll out the party’s road map in the coming days. Though the party has concluded its first round of protest, it has not ruled out the possibility of stagin

• Industry
  

  [Eye on Business] Can Sonokong become a Korean Marvel?

  Korea’s largest toy maker aims for global expansion but domestic issues remain unsolved

NEWSMAKER

• Industry

  

  Korean firms slam WHO’s listing of game disorder

  South Korean games companies reacted angrily on Sunday to the World Health Organization’s decision to officially recognize gaming disorder as a disease.A committee comprising 88 organizations, including the labor union of Korea’s biggest game company Nexon, opposed the decision saying it would “deprive a child’s right to play,” as decreed in Article 31 of the United Nation’s Convention on Rights of the Child. “We will do everything in our power to resist

LATEST NEWS

• Today

  

  World Business

  Renault, Fiat Chrysler in talks on alliance: sources

  French and Italian-US auto giants Renault and Fiat Chrysler are set to announce talks on an alliance, with a view to a potential merger, informed sources said on Sunday.Renault and FCA are likely to unveil the move "within hours, perhaps tomorrow (Monday), before the (Paris) bourse opens," one of the sources told AFP on condition of anonymity, adding an eventual "merger" was on the agenda.The same source added a statement would cover "the possibility of a convergence bet

• Today

  

  World News

  Former Thai Prime Minister Prem Tinsulanonda dies at 98

  Prem Tinsulanonda, who as an army commander, prime minister and adviser to the royal palace was one of Thailand’s most influential political figures over four decades, died Sunday at age 98.His death in a Bangkok hospital was announced by the government’s Public Relations Department. Never married, he leaves no family survivors. Thai Princess Sirindhorn will preside over his initial Buddhist funeral rites on Monday. Prem was best known for his long-standing devotion to the monarchy,

• Today

  

  Technology

  GS Home Shopping invests $1.2m in Vietnamese home-sharing startup

  GS Home Shopping, a leading home shopping channel operator here, said Sunday that it has invested $1.2 million in Luxstay, a Vietnamese home-sharing platform that targets the Southeast Asian market.The deal marks GS Home Shopping's second such investment in an e-commerce startup based in Vietnam. In January this year, the South Korean company invested $3 million in another e-commerce venture firm, Leflair, which focuses on premium-branded products for women, men, children and homes.Vietnam, one

• Today

  

  Industry

  E-cigarette sales on the rise in Korea

  Sales of e-cigarettes, electronic devices that simulate the experience of smoking a cigarette, have been rising in South Korea as more people make the switch from traditional cigarettes.According to data from the Ministry of Economy and Finance, e-cigarette sales accounted for 21.3 percent of all cigarette sales in Korea in March this year. In the first quarter of 2019, the figure was 10.9 percent.(khnews@heraldcorp.com)

• Today

  

  Finance

  Regulator rejects 2 applications for online banks

  In an unexpected turn of events, South Korea’s financial regulator on Sunday rejected applications by two consortia to set up the nation’s third and fourth internet-only banks.One consortium is backed by financial technology firm Viva Republica and the other is led by brokerage Kiwoom Securities.The Financial Services Commission said it accepted the recommendations of an independent evaluation committee that both consortia had put together inadequate bids. The outside evaluators said

More Stories

SPOTLIGHT

• Social affairs

  

  Singer Goo Ha-ra moved to hospital after suicide attempt

  South Korean celebrity Goo Ha-ra, a former member of popular K-pop girl group Kara, was admitted to a hospital on Sunday following an apparent suicide attempt, the police said.The 28-year-old was found by her manager lying unconscious at her home in Seoul's Gangnam district in the small hours of Sunday morning and rushed to a nearby hospital. She has yet to recover consciousness, but her breathing and pulse are reported to be stable. The manager went to Goo's home after she did not pick up repea

• 

  Economy

  Online shopping expands more than 100% in 3 years

  SEJONG -- South Koreans have sharply increased their shopping through computers and smartphones in recent years, which is taking up more than 20 percent of their total consumption.The rapid growth of online shopping transactions has been backed by systematic parcel delivery services, which send products to consumers across the country in one to three days.Almost every kind of product -- from drinking water, food and cosmetics to clothing, home appliances and furniture -- are available on online

• 

  Baseball

  Dodgers' Ryu Hyun-jin wins 7th game of '19, has scoreless streak snapped at 32 innings

  Los Angeles Dodgers' Ryu Hyun-jin has won his fifth straight game despite having his scoreless streak snapped and giving up a season-high 10 hits.Ryu labored through six innings, working around those 10 hits to limit the Pittsburgh Pirates to two runs in a 7-2 victory at PNC Park in Pittsburgh on Saturday (local time). Ryu improved to 7-1 for the season, striking out three and giving up no walks on 93 pitches, 66 for strikes. Ryu entered the game not having allowed a run in 31 straight innings,

• 

  Industry

  Ocean ministry wants new English name of Korean fish cakes

  South Korea's ocean ministry said Sunday it will hold a contest to find a new English name for Korean-style fish cakes to promote the processed seafood around the globe.The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries said the move is intended to find a better English name that represents the unique texture and taste of South Korean fish cakes. Exports of Korean fish cakes, called "eomuk" here, came to $57 million in 2017, up 18 percent from $48 million two years ago, ministry data showed, with th

GRAPHIC NEWS

• 

EDITORIAL

• Tilted ground

  Ratification of ILO conventions needs to be accompanied by proper legal revisions

• Conditions for reform

  Plan fails to address concerns over arbitrary investigation by police, ensure independence

VIEWPOINTS

THE INVESTOR

• Retail & Consumer

  

  [INVESTING IN KOREA] Can Sonokong become a Korean Marvel?

  Korea’s largest toy maker aims for global expansion but domestic issues remain unsolved

• 

  Mobile & Internet

  Korean firms slam WHO’s listing of game disorder

  　South Korean games companies reacted angrily on May 26 to the World Health Organization’s decision to officially recognize gaming disorder as a disease.　A committee comprising 88 organizations, including the labor union of Korea’s biggest game company Nexon, opposed the decision saying it would “deprive a child’s right to play,” as decreed in Article 31 of the United Nation’s Convention on Rights of the Child. 　“We will do everything in our power to res

• 

  Startups & Investors

  Wongnai aims to become Thailand’s Naver

  BANGKOK -- Thailand-based restaurant review platform operator Wongnai founder and CEO Yod Chinsupakul wants to turn the startup into a tech company that can run internet portals and search engines. “In South Korea, there is Naver. In Thailand, we don’t have a tech company doing something like this. Whatever it takes, and how long it takes, we need to make a big tech company in Thailand,” Chinsupaku said in an interview with The Investor. He also added that Thailand needs a unic

• 

  Startups & Investors

  Exit Daejeon announces W14.2b startup funding agreement

  DAEJEON -- Startups from across South Korea, global startup community leaders and representatives of Daejeon Metropolitan City flocked to Daejeon Convention Center on May 23 to mark the end of the three-day Exit Daejeon 2019 event. Located some 140 kilometers south of Seoul, Daejeon served as a venue where local startups were given an opportunity for more international exposure. In the meantime, global startup community organizers like Slush and Junction, as well as early-stage startup

K-POP HERALD

• 

  R&B Singer Katie is ready to step back into the spotlight

• 

  Katie: “Log” review -- a rising R&B star

• 

  [V Report] BTS teases live-streaming of upcoming London concert

• 

  BTS’ London concert to be livestreamed from Wembley on Naver’s V Live

HERALD INTERVIEW

• People

  

  How to stay competitive in the era of scandals and influencers

  Professor Jeff Cunningham of Thunderbird School of Global Management shares tips on social media scandals, digital conversation and lateral knowledge

• 

  Social affairs

  Customers must be punished for harassment: Seoul Emotional Labor Center CEO

  South Korea has traditionally been known as “the courteous country in the East,” meaning Koreans prioritize politeness above other values.The country’s service industry, however, reveals a strikingly different image of the country, as it grapples with customers on power trips at the expense of employees’ health. The top-down power dynamic between customers and workers has created an environment that tolerates almost any behavior by customers and requires excruciating emot

• 

  Food

  Chef puts faith in gimbap

  Kim Rock-hun bent on giving Korea’s beloved street food a gourmet makeover

• 

  Technology

  The Shortcut to train talent from diverse backgrounds

  DAEJEON -- Established in January, 2016, The Shortcut, a community-based Finnish organization, has been offering pro-bono training programs for people with diverse backgrounds, including refugees, immigrants, and multicultural youth, to help them get a breakthrough in the technology sector.While nurturing people to have skill sets, the organization also helps quench the thirst for skilled personnel in the startup world. “What we do is accelerate people from diverse backgrounds to think of their

PHOTO NEWS

• Industry

  

  Green magic blooms in heart of Seoul

  Farming in the densely populated city of Seoul is nothing new. Many urban farmers make use of vacant spaces on top of apartment buildings, schools and public buildings to grow vegetables. Some rent privately owned spaces to start their own green experiments. As of 2017, Seoul had 170 hectares of these farms, about the size of 238 soccer fields combined. In 2011, the figure was 29 hectares. The Seoul Metropolitan Government is a key backer of this growing urban farming trend.Earlier this year, it

VIDEO

• Food

  

  Chicken stew alley with fishy vibe in Dongdaemun

  Seoul’s alleys are filled with eateries specializing in particular dishes. The Korea Herald takes you on a foodie trip to narrow alleys where decades-old establishments beckon diners with their secret recipes, often handed down through generations. -- Ed.Hidden among massive shopping malls, the back alleys of Dongdaemun are filled with old eateries that have been serving spicy meals for decades. Tucked away near Pyounghwa Market, the wholesale market for clothing, is a meter-wide alley serving c

• 

  Technology

  ‘Fortnite billionaire’ envisions VR social media

  Tim Sweeney says Epic Games Korea accounts for largest revenue globally

• 

  Food

  Buildings filled with stir-fried Korean blood sausage

  Seoul’s alleys are filled with eateries specializing in particular dishes. The Korea Herald takes you on a foodie trip to narrow alleys where decades-old establishments beckon diners with their secret recipes, often handed down through generations. -- Ed.Though not spread across a labyrinth of narrow alleys, Sillim-dong Sundae Town is still a complex cobweb of eateries. Sundae, Korean blood sausage, refers to pig intestines stuffed with glass noodles, vegetables and various spices. Often served

• 

  Food

  Traditional liquor-based cocktails beckon adventurous drinkers

  Fancy a glass of sujeonggwa-tini? Sujeonggwa is persimmon punch made with cinnamon and ginger, usually served as dessert. To create sujeonggwa-tini, local distilled spirit is added to the sweet traditional drink, and the mixture is shaken with ice in a reinterpretation of traditional Korean liquor. As its name suggests, sujeonggwa-tini is similar to martini, with strong soju serving as the base. Pine nuts are sprinkled on top as a garnish. The drink is one of nine cocktails mixed with Korean liq

MOST POPULAR

• Bong Joon-ho's 'Parasite' wins Palme d'Or at Cannes
• Bong Joon-ho bags Palme d'Or in Cannes milestone for Korea
• Singer Goo Ha-ra moved to hospital after suicide attempt
• Leak of Moon’s phone chat with Trump stokes controversy
• Korean firms slam WHO’s listing of game disorder
• Trump brushes off concerns over N. Korea missile tests
• Ocean ministry wants new English name of Korean fish cakes
• S. Korean cinema finally embraces Palme d'Or at Cannes
• US commander says Pyongyang’s recent missile launches ‘routine military activities’
• Main opposition party ends protest against govt.

FEATURES

• Social affairs

  

  Korea’s farming population decreases 42% since 2000

  SEJONG -- South Korea saw the number and percentage of population engaged in agriculture continue to drop, though the number of urbanites returning or turning to farming has notably increased over the past decade.According to Statistics Korea, the number of farm population (farming-household population in official) stood at 2.31 million as of 2018, which is a decline by about 750,000 individuals in the 2010s, compared to 3.06 million in 2010. Further, given 4.03 million recorded in 2000, th

• 

  Economy

  In efforts to curb apartment prices, rate hikes seemingly pushed aside

  SEJONG -- The Moon Jae-in government has repeatedly expressed its commitment to lower housing prices in Seoul, amid an extraordinary situation in which many apartments surged in price more than 50 percent from late 2016 through 2018.Most of its anti-speculation measures have been mapped out by the Finance Ministry, the Land Ministry and the Financial Services Commission.But the presidential office has refrained from seeking to normalize apartment prices by normalizing interest rates. This is des

• 

  Social affairs

  Surging Sejong population appeals to mega-shopping malls, hospitals

  SEJONG -- It is now seven years since the government relocated numerous ministries and agencies to the newly developed special autonomous city of Sejong, neighboring the northwestern part of Daejeon, as part of its efforts to decongest Seoul.Sejong has 14 dongs -- administrative divisions -- including Eojin-dong where the Government Complex is located, one eup -- town -- and nine myeons –- townships. (Graphic by Heo Tae-seong/The Korea Herald)Though the city is rapidly expanding, its infrastruct

• 

  Social affairs

  We saw helicopters firing in Gwangju: US missionary

  GWANGJU -- Gwangju streets at this time of the year are full of banners on events related to the May 1980 Democratic Uprising as the city remembers the brutal military crackdown on protesting citizens under former President Chun Doo-hwan, with exhibitions, forums, music contests and food sharing.The deadly military crackdown left an estimated 160 dead and some 5,000 injured in the course of 10 days from May 18, 1980.Experts say the figure is expected to be higher given that many of the dead were

WEEKENDER

• Travel

  

  An eerie reminder of precarious peace at DMZ Peace Trail

  Cheorwon section of 3-route hiking trails at border area offers unique combination of history, nature

• 

  Travel

  World travel -- living the dream

  Shin Seon-a at the Eduardo Avaroa Andean Fauna National Reserve in Bolivia. She has traveled 47 countries in this rugged 4x4 off-load vehicle with her husband Yoon Jin-young for nearly three years. (Photo provided by Shin)A trip around the world may sound like an unrealistic dream. Especially so for South Koreans, for whom a two-week vacation from work is a rarity and taking years off work can risk a career altogether, unless one has special skills that are in unusually high demand. Yet there se

• 

  Food

  Makgeolli makes a comeback

  Geared for young, sophisticated sippers, South Korean rice wine takes on modern flair

• 

  Culture

  Where to picnic in Seoul

  Picnic-perfect spots in the city