A separatist leader in eastern Ukraine says rebels have recovered the black boxes for the downed Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 and are willing to hand them over to international investigators.Alexander Borodai, prime minister of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic, said Sunday that the devices would be handed over to the International Civil Aviation Organization.Borodai also said bodies which have been removed from the crash site would remain in refrigerated containers at a train station

North Korea's new top diplomat is likely to attend a major regional conference scheduled for early August in Myanmar, a diplomatic source in Seoul said Sunday, raising speculation of possible inter-Korean contact. Foreign Minister Ri Su-yong, who assumed his post in April, is fine-tuning the details of his attendance at the ASEAN Regional Forum, which will be held in Myanmar's capital of Naypyidaw on Aug. 9-10, as well as for a visit afterwards to Indonesia, according to the source. Ri may also

Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez quit FIFA's strategic committee on Friday in protest at the ban football's governing body imposed on his team's star striker Luis Suarez for biting an Italian player.He accused FIFA of an indiscriminate use of power by imposing an “excessive” punishment on Suarez. FIFA had made a “scapegoat” of Suarez and had “punished him with excessive severity” but the forward will have the full support of the Uruguayan football authorities, Tabarez told reporters on Friday.Tabarez

More than 1,200 Chinese workers who had been trapped in the embattled northern Iraqi city of Samarra have been evacuated to Baghdad, according to Chinese state media.The official Xinhua news agency says the Chinese arrived safely at a Baghdad hotel, with the Iraqi military providing security.The report said that China Machinery Engineering Corporation employed the workers at a power plant construction site in Samarra, near where security forces are battling militants from the Islamic State of Ir

Six subsidiaries of STX Dalian Group, STX Corp.'s China unit, have filed for bankruptcy court protection in the country's northeastern Liaoning province as they struggle with mounting debts, China's state-run media reported Saturday. The filing to seek "bankruptcy reorganization proceedings" by the six affiliates of STX Dalian, including STX (Dalian) Shipbuilding Co. and STX (Dalian) Engine Co., was made with the Dalian Intermediate People's Court on Thursday, the China Daily reported. Creditors

A group of U.S. lawmakers on Friday protested Japan's review of a 1993 apology for its sexual enslavement of Korean women during World War II, saying it is "unacceptable" for Tokyo to suggest it remains unconfirmed the victims were coerced.The 18 House of Representatives members, led by Rep. Mike Honda, also said in a jointly signed letter to the Japanese ambassador to Washington, Kenichiro Sasae, that they found the timing and the release of the contents of the report both "regrettable and unfo

The South Korean government is reviewing whether to evacuate Korean residents in Iraq on concerns that escalating violence in the country may be prolonged, an official said Monday.Sunni Muslim insurgents from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant seized Iraq's second-biggest city Mosul last week, raising prospects of civil war.A Seoul government official said that as the Iraq government forces' counterattack seems to have slowed ISIL's progress, it is possible the violence will be prolonged.A

Samsung Electronics chairman Lee Kun-hee, being treated in hospital after a heart attack over the past two weeks, has regained consciousness, the company said Sunday.Lee, 72, was operated at Samsung Medical Center in southern Seoul on May 11 after a heart attack.He was transferred to VIP hospital room on May 19 from an intensive care unit at the hospital, according to the hospital. “Lee was transferred to the ordinary ward and has recovered from an unconscious state. His response to diverse stim

Samsung Electronics chairman Lee Kun-hee, being treated in hospital after a heart attack over the past two weeks, has regained consciousness, the company said Sunday.Lee, 72, was operated on at Samsung Medical Center in southern Seoul on May 11 after a heart attack.He was transferred to VIP hospital room on May 19 from an intensive care unit at the hospital, according to the hospital.“Lee was transferred to the ordinary ward and has recovered from an unconscious state. His response to diverse st

▲ 한국, 일본 ‘잃어버린 10년’에서 배워라▲ ‘日과 같은 실수 않으려면, ‘구조적 개혁’ 정책 중요’하다고 일본 경제학자가 조언한국도 일본과 같은 장기적 경기 침체를 경험하지 않기 위해선 ‘구조적 개혁’ 정책들이 시급하다고 나오유키 요시노 (Naoyuki Yoshino) 일본 게이오 대학교 경제학교 교수가 지적했다.그는 코리아헤럴드와의 인터뷰에서 “통화정책만으로는 고령화 사회 같은 구조적 문제를 해결할 수 없다”며 잠재적 경제불안 요인을 극복하기 위해선 ‘구조적 개혁’이 필수임을 강조했다.그러면서 과거 일본의 지나친 통화정책 의존을 90년대 초반부터 10년간 지속된 장기적 경제침체의 원인으로 꼽았다. “일본의 경험을 통해서라도 (한국은) 통화정책만 의존하지 말아야 한다. 구조적 문제는 구조적 개혁만으로 해결할 수 있다”고 강조하며, 그는 일본이 경험한 ‘잃어버린 10년’의 실수를 반복하지 말라고 조언했다. 나오유키 요시노 (Naoyuki Yoshino) 일본 게이오 대학교 경제학

선진국 중심으로 담배에 대한 규제가 점차 강화되고 있는 가운데 일부 다국적 담배회사들이 규제를 피해 생산력을 유지할 수 있는 곳을 물색하고 있다. 최근 말보로 등을 만드는 필립 모리스가 호주 빅토리아 주의 공장을 올해 연말까지 정리하고 생산 시설 전부를 한국으로 옮기겠다고 발표한 것도 이와 같은 이유다.호주는 금연을 유도하기 위해 담뱃갑에 제조사명을 제외한 상표와 이미지, 로고 등을 넣지 못하게 하는 등 강력한 담배규제 정책으로 잘 알려져 있다. 또한, 지난 2010년부터 새로 바뀐 화재 예방 규정에 따라 호주에서 생산되는 모든 담배는 연소성분을 줄여, 스스로 꺼지도록 규제하고 있다. 필립 모리스 측은 호주 정부의 규제강화로 인해 현재 “(호주) 공장 생산력의 절반도 사용하지 못하고 있으며, 수출의 기회도 제한됐다”고 밝혔다.반면, 한국 시장은 이에 비해 아직은 규제가 덜 까다로울 뿐만 아니라, 국내 생산공장들의 기술력과 생산 효율성도 높아 외국계 담배회사들이 주목하고 있다는 것이다

Samsung Fine Chemicals to buy into U.S. chip materials firm Samsung Fine Chemicals Co., a chemical unit of South Korea's top conglomerate Samsung Group, saidThursday it will buy shares in a new U.S. chip materials company that will be listed on the U.S. tech-heavy NASDAQ.   Samsung Fine Chemicals said it will spend US$100 million in cash to buy the new shares of SSL, which was spun off U.S. solar energy firm SunEdison.   The chemical firm and SunEdison are partners in a 50-50 joint venture SMP.

중앙은행인 한국은행 부채가 가파르게 증가하고 있다. 반면 순익은 6년 만에 가장 낮은 것으로 조사됐다. 20일 한은 통계에 따르면 지난해 말 한은의 부채는 448조3993억원으로 1년 전 보다 13조(약 3.1%) 가량 늘었고, 5년 전인 2008년과 비교했을 때는 140조9천억(약 45.8) 가량 증가한 수치다. 한편 한은의 지난해 순이익은 2조669억 원으로 전년(3조8854억원)보다 46.8% 감소했다. 2007년 4447억원의 순손실을 기록한 이래 가장 부진한 실적이다.한은은 지난해 순이익이 큰 폭으로 감소한 것은 외환보유액 운용수익이 미진한 탓으로 분석하고 있다. 하지만 이미 지난해 공공부문과 가계부채가 각각 사상 최대치를 기록한 상황 속에서 한은의 지속적인 부채상승은 화폐가치나, 물가상승에도 영향을 미칠 수 있어 우려를 낳고 있다지난해 말 현재 한은의 부채를 유형별로 보면 통화량을 흡수하기 위해 발행한 통안증권(163조6541억원), 금융사에서 받아둔 예금(129조8842

 North Korea's two major universities, Kimilsung University and Kimchaek University, were found to have inscribed their names in English on their emblems, pro-North Korean media in Japan reported Saturday.   According to the Choson Sinbo, the North's most prestigious university, named after its founder Kim Il-sung, inscribed the school's name in English on its emblem, an uncommon practice in the reclusive socialist country.   The circular mark also includes illustrations of the university on a g

North Korea on Saturday lashed out at U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry for his remarks on MSNBC last month, according to its state media.   "North Korea is one of the most closed and cruel places on earth," Kerry said on Feb. 26 in an interview with the U.S. television broadcaster, adding that "there's evil that is taking place there."   The Rodong Sinmun, the mouthpiece of the Workers' Party of Korea, said that "his remarks are too lowbrow to be considered as those of a person fancying himsel

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Saturday that China "will never allow war or instability" on the Korean Peninsula.   Wang also urged North Korea and the United States to make joint  efforts to achieve the "denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," describing a long-running standoff between Pyongyang and Washington as a "stumbling block" in denuclearizing North Korea.   "We must work persistently without a halt" in order to denuclearize North Korea, Wang said at his annual press conference

Four U.S. congressmen submitted a resolution to a House committee calling for the reunion of Koreans in the United States with their long-lost families in North Korea, according to the Library of Congress.   The measure was sponsored by Rep. Charles Rangel, Howard Coble, John Conyers and Samuel Johnson, all Korean War veterans.   "The division on the Korean Peninsula separated more than 10,000,000 Korean family members, including some who are now citizens of the United States," said the resoluti

Malaysia and Vietnam launched searches on Saturday for a Malaysia Airlines flight that lost contact with traffic controllers, as fears mounted over the fate of the 239 people aboard.Vietnamese state media said citing a Navy official that the Kuala Lumpur-Beijing bound Flight MH370 had crashed into the sea, some 240 kilometers off the coast of Vietnam's Tho Chu Island.Vietnamese authorities said contact with Flight MH370 was lost near the country's airspace, but its exact location remained a myst

South Korea's short-term foreign debt declined to its lowest level in eight years on a fall in banks' overseas borrowing, the central bank said Wednesday.The country's short-term external debt totaled $112.8 billion as of end-December, down $14.3 billion from a year earlier, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK).It marked the lowest level since 2005 when short-term foreign debt hit $65.9 billion.Korea's total external debt amounted to $416.6 billion as of end-December, up $7.2 billion from the pr

The White House said Tuesday it has strongly and consistently condemned North Korea's human rights violations, which were highlighted by a new U.N. panel report."We are extremely vocal and critical about the appalling conduct of the North Korean regime," White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said at a press briefing.He was asked about the presidential office's view on a Commission of Inquiry (COI) report about human rights situations in the secretive communist nation.After a year of investigati