South Korean teenage footballer Ryu Seung-woo will join Borussia Dortmund in the top German league, a German report claimed.The online edition of Kicker, a German sports magazine, reported Monday that the 19-year-old will be the latest summer signing by the Bundesliga side. The report noted that Borussia Dortmund has yet to give an official confirmation of the move.Ryu recently represented South Korea at the FIFA U-20 World Cup, where the country reached the quarterfinals.In group stage, the win

The U.N. Security Council has refused to back a report by a panel of experts which unanimously concluded that Iran violated U.N. sanctions when it launched several ballistic missiles a year ago.Australia's U.N. Ambassador Gary Quinlan, who chairs the committee monitoring sanctions on Iran, did not identify which countries were opposed in his briefing to the council on Monday. But council diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity because consultations were private, said Russia was most vocal

A judge revoked Chris Brown's probation on Monday after reviewing the details of an alleged hit-and-run accident involving the singer and his behavior afterward. However, the singer was not ordered to jail.Brown appeared downcast. His lawyer, Mark Geragos, suggested that perhaps the matter will be resolved informally without a major probation hearing. Deputy District Attorney Mary Murray did not ask for Brown to be jailed, and the judge allowed him to remain free on his own recognizance.The sing

One worker was killed and six other workers are missing after being swept away by swift currents on Monday while removing old water pipes inside a water distribution reservoir near the Han River, police said. Cho Ryong-geun, 57, who was killed in the incident, is known to be Chinese. Work to rescue the six others -- including three workers also believed to be Chinese -- is currently underway. Water from the rain-swollen Han River, which flows through the center of Seoul, rushed into the nearby 4

 Mnet 오디션 프로그램 ‘슈퍼스타K’ 출신 가수 로이킴(20•본명 김상우)이 버스커버스커 장범준의 ‘축가 표절’ 관련 멘트 논란에 대해 재차 사과했다. 로이킴(@RoySangwooKim)은 14일 트위터를 통해 “어제 저의 경솔함으로 물의를 일으켜 죄송합니다. 저 역시 선배님의 음악을 좋아하는 팬으로서 의도치 않게 팬들께 심려를 끼쳐드렸습니다. 앞으로 모든 행동과 말에 신중한 사람이 되도록 노력하겠습니다”라고 밝혔다.그는 이날 오후 이틀 연속 서울 연세대학교 대강당서 열린 단독 콘서트에서도 “어제 경솔한 발언으로 물의를 일으켜서 죄송하다”며 재차 사과하며 “장범준 선배님께도 죄송하다고 했다”고 전했다.앞서 로이킴은 전날인 13일 자신의 첫 단독 콘서트에서 자작곡 ‘축가’를 소개하며 “버스커버스커 멤버 장범준이 결혼식 축가를 부르는 영상을 보고 영감을 얻어 만든 곡이다, 그런데 따라했다는 비난을 받았다”며 “‘빰바바밤’ 부분은 결혼 행진곡에 있는데 따라한 게 아니지 않느냐. 내가

South Korean stocks closed 0.28 percent higher Monday as China's economic growth for the second quarter met market estimates, analysts said. The local currency gained against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 5.18 points to finish at 1,875.16. Trading volume was moderate at 326.1 million shares worth 3.1 trillion won (US$2.8 billion) with gainers outpacing losers 436 to 355.Seoul shares gathered ground after China's National Bureau of Statistics said i

The government kicked off Monday its long-pending sale of Woori Finance Holdings Co. by putting two of its bank affiliates up for a bidding, as it takes a full approach in its fourth attempt to privatize the state-run banking group. The state-run Korea Deposit Insurance Corp. (KDIC) posted a sales notice to sell its 56.97 percent stake in Kyongnam Bank and Kwangju Bank, the two regional banks tied with Woori Finance as of July 15, according to the KDIC. The bidding comes as the first part of the

The volatility of the local currency against the U.S. dollar hit an 18-month high in the second quarter, largely due to the jitters in the foreign exchange market stemming from a weaker yen, the central bank's data showed Monday.The daily volatility rate of the won-dollar cross rate averaged 0.43 percent in the April-June period, the highest since 0.64 percent tallied in the fourth quarter of 2011 amid the Greece-led debt crisis in the eurozone, according to the data by the Bank of Korea (BOK).

South Korean stocks traded 0.34 percent higher late Monday morning on reports that China's on-year economic growth for the second quarter met the market estimate of 7.5 percent, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 6.4 points to 1,876.38 as of 11:20 a.m.Carmakers led the market gain, with No. 1 player Hyundai Motor adding 1.44 percent and its smaller affiliate Kia Motors rising 1.54 percent. Top auto parts maker Hyundai Mobis moved up 0.98 percent.Logistics

Lawmakers began the process of reviewing the transcript of the 2007 inter-Korean summit Monday in the hope of putting to rest the controversy over former President Roh Moo-hyun’s stance on the Northern Limit Line.The de facto maritime border between the two Koreas in the West Sea has been a source of contention between the ruling Saenuri Party and the main opposition Democratic Party. At issue are claims that the late former leader denied its validity during his talks with late North Korean lead

South Korean stocks got off to a weak start Monday as investors sat on the sidelines amid the rising uncertainties over the Chinese economy and the U.S. firms' second-quarter earnings, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) shed 14.02 points, or 0.75 percent to 1,855.96 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Tech blue chips lost ground, with market behemoth Samsung Electronics losing 1.22 percent and leading chipmaker SK hynix falling 1.4 percent. Top flat panel maker

개성공단 입주기업들은 12일 완제품과 원•부자 재를 갖고 나오기 위해 개성공단을 방문했다.물자반출 첫날인 이날에는 전기전자•기계금속•화학업종 45개사 관계자 130명을 포함해 총 174명이 100여 대의 물류 차량을 타고 방북했다. 방북 인원은 물류기사와 보수인력 등을 포함해 업체당 3명으로 제한됐다.이들은 오전 9시부터 공단에 들어가 오후 5시께 차량에 완제품과 원부자재를 싣 고 나왔다.기업들은 그동안 출입이 통제돼 납품하지 못한 완제품과 습기가 많은 공단에서 손상될 수 있는 전자부품 등 원•부자재를 가져 나왔다.공단에서는 업체들이 요청한 북한 직원들이 나와 물자를 차량에 옮기는 작업을 도와줬다. 그러나 북한 측은 기업인들이 수리•정비를 위해 설비를 실어 내는 것에는 부정적인 입장을 보였다.유병기 비케이전자 대표는 "북한 근로자들이 부품을 포장하고 싣는 것까지 도와 줘 순조롭게 가지고 나올 수 있었다"면서 "하지만 우리가 기름칠하려고 일부 설비를 가져가려 하자 설비는 다음에 얘기하

South Korean stocks closed 0.41 percent lower Friday, led by steep falls in auto stocks following media reports that China may restrict new car purchases, analysts said. The local currency fell against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) dropped 7.62 points to finish at 1,869.98. Trading volume was light at 262.3 million shares worth 3.42 trillion won ($3.04 billion), but gainers marginally outpaced losers 404 to 380. "News from China that it may further expa

The United States said Thursday it saw a “strong consensus” with China on demanding that close Beijing ally North Korea take clear steps to give up its nuclear program.A White House statement said that President Barack Obama and two Chinese officials, who were visiting Washington for wide-ranging talks, “agreed on the fundamental importance of denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.”Deputy Secretary of State William Burns, one of the main US officials in the annual Strategic and Economic Dialo

South Korea's top court on Friday partly reversed a lower court ruling that said two U.S. producers of a toxic chemical should compensate most of the South Korean Vietnam War veterans who sued the firms for their exposure to the defoliant.Sending the case back for review, the Supreme Court said the Seoul High Court should reconsider its 2006 verdict of a combined 63 billion won ($61 million) in damages awarded to 6,795 South Koreans.In a ruling, the court did not recognize epidemiological correl

Authorities were searching for scores of inmates, including terrorists, who escaped a crowded Indonesian prison that was still burning Friday after prisoners set fires and started a deadly riot at the facility in the nation's third-largest city.Thousands of policemen and soldiers are deployed around Tanjung Gusta prison to blockade roads linking Medan, the capital of North Sumatra, to other provinces were blockaded while fire brigades were battling the fires.About 200 prisoners escaped following

South Korean stocks traded 0.26 percent lower late Friday morning, led by losses in automakers and financial firms, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 4.88 points to 1,872.72 as of 11:20 a.m.Hyundai Motor tumbled 4.5 percent, with its smaller affiliate Kia Motors also dropping 4.2 percent. No. 4 lender Shinhan Financial and leading life insurer Samsung Life Insurance lost ground, slipping 1.4 percent and 0.8 percent, respectively. But chemical companies a

 The office of President Park Geun-hye burst out in anger Friday and demanded the main opposition Democratic Party apologize after its floor spokesman insulted her by calling her an offspring of a man who shouldn't have been born.Rep. Hong Ihk-pyo made the remark Thursday, accusing Park of trying to revive the dictatorial rule of her father, former strongman President Park Chung-hee, as the opposition stepped up attacks on her over allegations the state spy agency attempted to influence December

South Korean stocks got off to a weak start Friday, as investors opted to sell off shares on profit-taking following the 3 percent rally in the previous session, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) shed 5.59 points, or 0.3 percent to 1,872.01 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Top-listed blue-chips led the fall. Tech giant Samsung Electronics inched down 0.08 percent, with leading carmaker Hyundai Motor tumbling more than 3 percent. In contrast, steelmaker POS

The U.S. stock market surged to an all-time high Thursday after the Federal Reserve chairman said the central bank will keep supporting the economy.The Dow Jones industrial average and Standard & Poor's 500 jumped. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note continued to decline as investors bought bonds. Stocks that benefit most from a continuation of low interest rates, such as homebuilders, notched some of the biggest gains.In a speech late Wednesday after U.S. markets had closed, Fed Chairman Ben