(AFP) BARCELONA, Spain (AFP) - Hundreds of shoppers in Spain braved chilly weather to queue outside shops in their underwear on the first day of the winter sales Friday to take advantage of an offer of free clothes."Come in your underwear and get a free outfit", so declared an offer by Spanish-based clothing retailer Desigual for the first 100 people to enter each of their stores in cities around

Wang Shikuan, 76, takes his 100-year-old mother to the workplace on the far site of another village in Zaozhuang city, East China's Shandong province on August 4, 2010.[Photo/Zaozhuang dzwww.cn]Two brothers Wang Shikuan, 76, and Wang Shixi, 73, have been taking care of their 100-year-old mother for more than 30 years in Zaozhuang city, East China's Shandong province, dedicating their time to their

A man carries a lamb on a motorcycle in Havana, Cuba, Thursday, Jan6, 2011 (AP Photo) 

North Korean leader Kim Jong-il is on a tour to observe military excercises. (Yonhap News)North Korea's military appears to have lowered its alert level for the tense Yellow Sea border with South Korea, a government source here said Friday, after weeks of tension triggered by the North's bombardment of a southern island."The North Korean military recently lifted its order of special alertness for

 The 42-million yuan jackpot winner dressed in a disguise poses for a photo while holding his check, in Dongguan, Dec 31, 2010. [Photo/Guangzhou Daily]China’s latest multi-millionaire lottery winner collected his prize wearing a disguise and said he would not immediately tell his family about his new fortune.The man, about 40 years old, received his 42.25-million yuan ($6.4 million) lottery prize

DOHA, Qatar (Yonhap) -- South Korea's Chung Mong-joon came up short in his bid for re-election as FIFA vice president for a fifth run.In a vote held here Thursday during the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Congress, Chung lost 25-20 to Jordanian Prince Ali bin al-Hussein, head of the Jordan Football Association. Prince Ali will serve until 2015.Chung, 59, had been the vice president of the worl

LG Electronics Inc., the beleaguered world's third-largest handset maker, said Thursday that it will introduce a new smartphone model with an enhanced screen display that has significantly lowered power consumption.The Optimus Black is the company's first model to use a "NOVA" display, which cuts power consumption in half in comparison to previous products and features an enhanced visibility even

The number of registered cars in South Korea jumped last year as consumers purchased more vehicles amid recovering economic conditions, the transportation ministry said Thursday.The number of registered cars reached 17.94 million at the end of last year, up 616,000 from a year earlier, according to the ministry. The increase was the second largest following a jump of 637,000 in 2003.The ministry a

Mortgage loans extended by South Korean financial firms grew by the largest amount in four years in December, as low borrowing costs and eased rules on home-backed lending spurred demand, data showed Thursday.Home-backed loans handled by local financial institutions grew by 4.9 trillion won (US$4.36 billion) on-month to 379.3 trillion won in December, according to data by the Financial Supervisory

Hynix Semiconductor Inc., the world's second-largest maker of computer memory chips, said Thursday that it will spend 3.4 trillion won (US$3.03 billion) on plants and equipment in 2011, around the same level as last year.The investment plan is subject to change depending on market conditions, the company said in a regulatory filing.Hynix, which trails its bigger industry rival Samsung Electronics

North Korea on Wednesday proposed the two Koreas unconditionally reopen governmental talks to resolve the current crisis between the countries."We courteously propose having wide-ranging dialogue and negotiations with the political parties and organizations of South Korea including its authorities," the North said in a joint statement adopted in a meeting of the North Korean government, political

 WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Wednesday met with Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi as they seek to prepare for Chinese President Hu Jintao's visit to Washington this month on North Korea, the trade imbalance and other issues.   "We are preparing diligently for the upcoming state visit by President Hu Jintao," Clinton said just before the start of the meeting at

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- The United States on Wednesday expressed skepticism about North Korea's proposal for unconditional dialogue with South Korea to ease tensions, saying Pyongyang must first apologize for recent provocations and show commitment for denuclearization. "We all understand that ultimately to resolve the challenge of North Korea, there has to be dialogue," State Department spokesman

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- South Korea's Hyundai Motor Co. notched record sales in the United States last year amid a surging auto market in the world's biggest economy after the worst recession in decades.Hyundai Motor America (HMA) sold 538,228 vehicles in 2010, up 24 percent from a year earlier and an all-time sales and market share record, HMA said in a statement.Hyundai's affiliate Kia Motor Co.

The economic gap between South and North Korea remained wide across the board with differences in income level and trade more apparent than in other areas, data showed Wednesday.According to the data by Statistics Korea, South Korea's per-capita gross national income (GNI) amounted to US$17,175 at the end of 2009, about 18 times larger than the $960 tallied for the North.During the cited year, the

Samsung Group, South Korea's top family-owned conglomerate, said Wednesday that it will spend a record 43 trillion won (US$38.3 billion) in capital expenditures this year to cement its market dominance and speed up a search for new growth engines.The figure represents an 18 percent increase from the 36.5 trillion won invested in new plants and equipment last year, according to the group. (Yonhap N

(Yonhap News)Midfielders Lee Chung-yong and Ki Sung-yueng scored a goal apiece as the South Korean men's football team blanked Al Jazira of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Football League 2-0 on Tuesday, local time. It was South Korea's second and final tune-up match ahead of the Jan. 7-29 Asian Cup in Qatar.South Korea had edged Syria 1-0 in its previous game on Dec. 30. The team is scheduled to a

Chris Jessen cuddles up his genetically manipulated miniature panda calf  which is believed to be one of about 24 in the world. (AP)CAMPION, Colo. (AP) – A rare miniature cow with markings similar to a panda bear was born on a farm in northern Colorado.The so-called "panda cow" born in Larimer County is thought to be one of only about 24 in the world.The (Loveland) Reporter-Herald reports the mal

(Yonhap News) South Korean President Lee Myung-bak said Monday that the door for inter-Korean dialogue remains open but North Korea should first show its seriousness about the talks."I remind the North that the path toward peace is yet open. The door for dialogue is still open," Lee said in his New Year's address broadcast live.Lee reiterated that should the North show sincerity, the South has "bo

South Korea confirmed seven additional foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) outbreaks at beef and milk cattle farms and a pig farm in provincial areas on Sunday despite nationwide quarantine efforts to contain the spread of the highly contagious animal disease, central and provincial government officials said.The South Chungcheong provincial government said two milk cows at a farm in the central city of C