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  North Korea

  Koreas agree to jointly fight pine tree pests until March

  • Koreas hold talks on forestry cooperation
  • N. Korea's media report on inter-Korean talks on forestry cooperation

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  Economy

  Policy change needed to cushion impact from rate hike

  Measures need to be taken quickly to prevent a possible interest rate hike next month from making a deeper dent in the country’s economic growth and employment, economists say.Slowing growth and disappointing job figures led the Bank of Korea last week to decide to freeze its key rate at 1.5 percent for 11 consecutive months despite growing concerns that a rate increase may be overdue.Announcing the rate freeze, the central bank revised down its growth forecast for this year to 2.7 percent from

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  North Korea

  NK wants to delay working-level talks for inter-Korean parliamentary meeting

  North Korea wants to delay working-level talks to prepare for an inter-Korean parliamentary meeting, given its hectic diplomatic schedule, a Seoul official said Tuesday.The South earlier proposed holding a meeting at an early date to prepare for the first-ever inter-Korean parliamentary meeting this year. (Yonhap)"North Korea said that it agreed to Seoul's offer for working-level talks, but hoped to have time to push for them, given various factors," the official said, asking not to be named.Nor

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  Defense

  Two Koreas, UNC hold second round of trilateral talks

  The two Koreas’ militaries and the United Nations Command agreed to complete until Thursday the withdrawal of firearms and guard posts from the jointly-controlled area inside the heavily-fortified Demilitarized Zone. During the trilateral meeting held on the border village of Panmunjom, the three militaries confirmed that the two Koreas have cleared landmines near the JSA and a mountainous area inside the DMZ. The disarming JSA and demining operation were a part of a military agreement signed af

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  Automode

  BMW to recall nearly 66,000 vehicles: ministry

  BMW Group Korea will voluntarily recall nearly 66,000 BMW and MINI vehicles to repair faulty parts, the transport ministry said Tuesday. (Yonhap)The German carmaker's recall plan will start Nov. 26, with a total of 65,763 vehicles encompassing 52 different models to be checked by mechanics, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said in a statement.The 52 models, including 7,222 118d compact cars and 23,559 MINI Cooper Ds, have been found to have faulty exhaust gas recirculation cool

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  Social affairs

  [Weather] Light rain, cloudy skies to clear up in the afternoon

  Cloudy skies will continue Tuesday nationwide, and light rain will dampen some parts of the country from morning through early afternoon.According to the Korean Meteorological Administration, the nation will see gray skies throughout the day, but the drizzle is expected to clear in the late afternoon starting from the western areas. In the morning, thick fog will envelop the southern inland areas.  Seoul, October 23rd(Yonhap)Temperatures will remain around average, reaching 5-15 C in the morning

NEWSMAKER

• Social affairs

  

  Internet cafe murder case fuels debate on mental health and violent crimes

  A heated debate on mental health and its link to violent crimes is underway after a murder suspect requested that his medical history be considered to mitigate punishment. He had been medically treated for depression before allegedly stabbing a man to death. Kim Seong-su, 29, is suspected of having stabbed a man to death at an internet cafe in western Seoul on Oct. 14. On Monday, he was sent to the Institute of Forensic Psychiatry in Gongju, South Chungcheong Province, for a monthlong examinatio

LATEST NEWS

• Today

  

  North Korea

  Pope expresses strong willingness to visit N. Korea: S. Korean bishop

  VATICAN CITY -- Pope Francis has given the impression that he has a strong willingness to visit North Korea, a senior South Korean bishop said Monday.Lazarus You Heung-sik, who heads the Daejeon diocese, spoke in an interview with Yonhap News Agency at Casa Santa Marta in the Vatican, three days after the pope indicated during a meeting with South Korean President Moon Jae-in that he may visit the North.  (Yonhap)In his meeting with the pope, Moon relayed a verbal invitation from North Korean le

• Today

  

  Social affairs

  Korea strengthens bird flu quarantine efforts ahead of winter

  South Korea's agriculture ministry vowed Tuesday to step up quarantine measures against bird flu as about 40,000 migratory birds have flocked here.The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said it has heightened alertness against the avian influenza as several outbreaks have been reported in Russia, where the migratory birds start their journey in late fall.  (Yonhap)South Korea has confirmed four H5 strains of avian influenza near bird habitats across the nation this month, with all o

• Today

  

  Industry

  Six in 10 S. Korean venture companies willing to invest in NK: poll

  Six out of 10 South Korean venture companies with overseas operations are willing to invest in North Korea if inter-Korean economic cooperation is revitalized, according to a poll released Tuesday.In the survey of 267 venture companies by the Small and Medium Business Corporation, over 60 percent reacted positively to the possibility of them making inroads into the North.Asked about their willingness to invest in North Korea when cross-border economic cooperation is reactivated, 37.8 percent sai

• Today

  

  Politics

  Cabinet to approve inter-Korean summit deal before Moon ratifies it

  The Cabinet was set Tuesday to approve a wide-ranging peace agreement reached with North Korea at last month's third summit between President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in a procedural step necessary for Moon to sign and ratify the deal.The move comes after the Ministry of Government Legislation concluded that the Pyongyang Joint Declaration does not need parliamentary consent for ratification because an earlier, overarching agreement, the Panmunjom Declaration reached at Ap

• Today

  

  Industry

  Online malls planning big sales for November

  Online shopping malls are planning big sales for November, a month that used to be a slow season but is turning out record sales from discounts, industry officials said Tuesday.EBay Korea racked up sales in November last year through its "Big Smile Day" discounts. Although it did not disclose details, sales of home appliances are said to have increased 15 percent from the same month the previous year, clothing and fashion accessories 18 percent, beauty products 19 percent and food 14 percent. (Y

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SPOTLIGHT

• Music

  

  K-pop singer to open Korean restaurant in Paris

  K-pop singer Jung Joon-young, 29, will try his luck at running a Korean restaurant in none other than the culinary connoisseur city of Paris.Jung will open Maison de Coree next year, according to his agency, C9 Entertainment, Tuesday. Prior to a full-fledged launch, Jung will test the waters with a pop-up store at 80 Rue des Tournelles in the third arrondissement in Paris from Oct. 29 to Nov. 17. At Jung’s side will be chef Lee Jun of Seoul’s Michelin one-star contemporary cuisine restaurant Soi

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  Social affairs

  2 USFK soldiers invoke right to silence after assaulting passer-by, policeman

  Two female soldiers with the United States Forces Korea invoked their right to silence after allegedly assaulting a South Korean man and a police officer in Dongducheon, Gyeonggi Province. According to the Gyeonggi Bukbu Provincial Police Agency, a private in the 8th Army and private first class in the Second Infantry were walking along a road in Dongducheon when they pushed over a motorcycle at a little past midnight Monday.The owner of the motorcycle, 58, testified to police that the private,

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  Music

  Ed Sheeran to hold Seoul concert in April

  Pop singer Ed Sheeran has confirmed that his first concert here will take place in April. The star will perform at the Songdo Moonlight Festival Park, an hour’s drive west of central Seoul, at 6 p.m. on April 21.  Poster for Ed Sheeran’s April concert (Private Curve)The artist will be visiting Seoul as a part of his Asian tour next spring. He will also be performing in Singapore and Thailand. A more detailed schedule of the tour has yet to be released. Tickets for his concert cost 110,000 ($97)

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  Baseball

  Dodgers make Ryu Hyun-jin 1st Korean to start in World Series

  Los Angeles Dodgers' left-hander Ryu Hyun-jin will become the first South Korean to start a World Series game this week.The Dodgers will face the Boston Red Sox in the 2018 World Series. Game 1 will be at Fenway Park in Boston on Tuesday, followed by Game 2 at the same venue the next day.LA manager Dave Roberts tapped ace Clayton Kershaw for the opening game, followed by Ryu in Game 2, beginning at 8:09 p.m. (Yonhap)(Eastern Time) on Wednesday, which will be 9:09 a.m. on Thursday in South Korea.

GRAPHIC NEWS

• 

EDITORIAL

• Half success

  Moon fails to earn Europe’s agreement on easing sanctions on NK

• Gain trust

  GM Korea stirs suspicion by approving R&D spinoff plan

VIEWPOINTS

THE INVESTOR

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  Retail & Consumer

  Mirae consortium fails to sell majority stake in Coffee Bean

  A consortium led by Mirae Asset Global Investments, Korea’s largest asset management firm, has failed to sell a majority stake in Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, according to industry sources on Oct. 22.The consortium had picked Morgan Stanley as the deal manager in August. Since then, it has been discussing with five global investors to sell a 75 percent stake in the California-based coffee chain operator.As the plans have fallen through, the consortium is making adjustments to sell next

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  Blockchain

  Zikto’s Insureum coin listed on BitForex exchange

  Korean insurtech firm Zikto said on Oct. 22 that its Insureum coin has been listed on Singapore’s BitForex, one of the top crypto exchanges around the world.This is the fourth listing for Insureum since its debut on CoinBene in Singapore in August.Zikto said it has also secured new funding from BitForex and Hong Kong-based Blue Chain Asset Management in a strategic partnership to jointly develop insurance products for crypto investors. The exact amount of the investment was not re

K-POP HERALD

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  Taeyeon wows fans in Seoul concert

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  Twice celebrates 3rd anniversary with Once

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  IZ*ONE sings impromptu song

HERALD INTERVIEW

• Diplomatic Circuit

  

  ‘Future of Malaysia, Korea lies in ASEAN’: international trade minister

  “Now there is a chance to reshape and rewrite our future under our current government. The answer is ASEAN. Korea and Malaysia are inseparable, just as ASEAN, Malaysia and Korea are inseparable.”

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  Automode

  Volvo CE president highlights Korea as global excavator hub

  Mergers and acquisitions are approached carefully and reviewed in depth. While they can help make the company an industry leader, they can also destroy in the company by overloading it in debt.Volvo Construction Equipment Korea, which was created when the Swedish company purchased the construction equipment business from Samsung Heavy Industries in 1998, celebrated its 20th anniversary last week in a festive mood, looking back on the growth achieved.Volvo CE President Melker Jernberg who visited

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  Music

  Unmasked by a mask

  [Eye] Rapper Mommy Son explodes his other self by covering face with a pink beanie

PHOTO NEWS

• Culture

  

  Street styles we noticed at 2019 S/S Seoul Fashion Week

  The shows are amazing at the 2019 S/S Hera Seoul Fashion Week, but the fun spills out to the streets. Brightly dyed hair was a visible trend at Dongdaemun Design Plaza on Friday, alongside see-through blouses, neon tops and transparent plastic bags.Oversized jackets, baggy pants, leopard print and fashionable eyewear also drew attention.  (Lim Jeong-yeo/The Korea Herald) (Lim Jeong-yeo/The Korea Herald) (Lim Jeong-yeo/The Korea Herald) (Lim Jeong-yeo/The Korea Herald) (Lim Jeong-yeo/The Korea He

VIDEO

• Music

  

  Seoul Fashion Week KYE show draws K-pop celebrities

  Designer Hanhee Kathleen Kye’s 2019 spring-summer show at HERA Seoul Fashion Week on Friday attracted a slew of K-pop celebrities in the audience, as well as strutting down the catwalk for her brand KYE. In the photo, from left, are GWSN’s Lena, singer Ko Sung-min, makeup artist Risabe, 9 Muses’ Kyungri, model Irene, f(X)’s Amber, Girls’ Generation’s Hyoyoen, Chungha, AKMU’s Lee Su-hyun and veteran singer Noh Sa-yeon.  (Lim Je

MOST POPULAR

• [K-Talk] Dark side of K-pop: Leader of The East Light claims years of abuse
• [Newsmaker] Internet cafe murder case fuels debate on mental health and violent crimes
• Two Koreas, UN Command agree to withdraw firearms, guard posts by Thursday
• [Feature] How teen feminism is changing school uniforms in South Korea
• [Newsmaker] University bans public, deliveries, taxis after naked trespasser

FEATURES

• 

  Automode

  Ulsan strives to become global hydrogen leader

  Ulsan starts first pilot operation of hydrogen city buses, aims to have 300 more by 2030

• 

  Social affairs

  How teen feminism is changing school uniforms in South Korea

  　When Jeong Ji-eun was in her high school, in the early 2000s, one of her close friends pierced her tongue. The friend, who had hated having to wear her school uniform all the time -- she especially found the stiff fabric of her blouse unbearable --, wore a red-color tongue ring, which almost looked like a candy in her mouth. “That’s what I first thought, too -- that she was having her candy,” Jeong, now a 32-year-old professional in Seoul, told The Korea Herald. “Until it was caught by our teac

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  Technology

  Samsung Medison showcases next-generation ultrasound system

  Samsung Medison, a medical equipment manufacturer under South Korea’s Samsung Electronics, on Monday unveiled a next-generation ultrasound system expected to better facilitate examinations during high-risk pregnancies and the early diagnosis of fetal abnormalities.　The company is showcasing HERA W10 -- short for Hyper-aperture Enhanced Reconstruction Architecture -- at the 28th World Congress of the International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology in Singapore, whuch continues un

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  Diplomatic Circuit

  ‘Spain, Korea can forge golden future with creativity, innovation’

  By Spanish Ambassador to Korea Gonzalo OrtizSpain and Korea celebrated the Spanish National Day in Seoul on Oct. 12, followed by another commemoration in Busan on Oct. 15. As ambassador, I addressed the attendees in Spanish, a lingua franca spoken by over 530 million people across 31 countries. The King and Queen of Spain were in Covadonga this year to commemorate the 1,300th anniversary of the victory of Visigoth leader Don Pelayo against Muslim invaders in 718. This historic event gave birth t

WEEKENDER

• Social affairs

  

  Hiking a national pastime with benefits, consequences

  Younger generation sets new tone for hiking