Samsung Electronics Co.'s mobile-payment service, Samsung Pay, has hit 2 trillion won ($1.8 billion) in accumulated transaction volume in South Korea, the company said Wednesday. The record came about one year after Samsung launched the mobile-payment service at home. Of the accumulated transaction volume, the value of fingerprint-identification mobile payments, which started this year, stood at about 500 billion won, Samsung said. Samsung is expanding the mobile-payment service globally. The co

The South Korean government will have an annual consultation with Fitch Ratings Inc. this week on the country's credit valuation, the finance ministry said Wednesday.Led by Thomas Rookmaaker, head of Asia-Pacific sovereigns at Fitch, the delegation will visit South Korea for meetings with the Ministry of Strategy and Finance from Wednesday to Friday.Fitch will look into South Korea's macroeconomic policies, including its mid- and long-term plans, and financial issues like household debt and corp

A key measure of oil refining companies' profitability has tumbled in recent months due to surging crude prices, casting a cloud on South Korean refiners' third-quarter earnings, industry sources said Wednesday.The benchmark Singapore complex gross refining margin plunged to the $3 per barrel range this month from $4.80 in July after hovering at $9.90 in January, according to the sources.Singapore is the regional trading hub of the benchmark Dubai crude.The margin is the difference between the t

Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho on Wednesday said the National Assembly must speed up deliberation to pass the extra budget plan, adding that the fund must be distributed as soon as possible to effectively revitalize the national economy.Political parties, including the ruling Saenuri Party and the main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea, failed to put the extra budget bill of 11 trillion won ($9.82 billion) to a vote by Monday's deadline.Yoo said the parties must promptly pass the bill, noting that th

The presidential office Cheong Wa Dae on Wednesday held an emergency standing committee session of the National Security Council to discuss North Korea's submarine-launched ballistic missile launch. Photo taken on Aug. 22, shows President Park Geun-hye (center) presiding over a National Security Council session at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul. (Yonhap)Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff said that the communist regime test-fired the SLMB near its eastern port city of Sinpo at around 5

South Korea needs to further remove regulations to support the development of domestic autonomous or self-driving vehicles, a private think tank here said Wednesday.In a report, the Korea Economic Research Institute claimed excessive or unnecessary regulations here created a major hurdle to local developers of self-driving cars, partly by adding to their costs.The report came amid government efforts to help develop and commercialize level 3 self-driving cars by 2020. A level 3 self-driving car r

The South Korean government on Wednesday launched a consultative body of the public and private sectors in order to steer the hydrogen car industry to a leading growth engine of Asia's fourth-largest economy, the trade ministry here said.Led by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the alliance for hydrogen convergence is comprised of provincial governments and local automotive and energy companies including Hyundai Motor Co., the country's largest carmaker, SK Gas and the state-run Korea

South Korea's antitrust watchdog said Wednesday that it has closed an inspection on two local humidifier sterilizer manufacturers, citing a lack of evidence, amid a ballooning toxic disinfectant scandal that has resulted in numerous deaths and illnesses here.Aekyung Industrial Co. and E-Mart Inc. had allegedly manufactured and sold humidifier cleansers using the chemicals chloro-methylisothiazolinone and methylisothiazolinone between 2006 and 2011.The Fair Trade Commission had accused the two co

최근 유명 관광지를 겨냥한 테러로 추정되는 연쇄 폭탄공격이 잇따랐던 태국에서 또 다시 연쇄 폭발이 일어났다.24일 현지 언론에 따르면 전날 밤 10시40분(현지시간)께 태국 남부 빠따니주(州)의 한 호텔에서 20분 간격을 두고 차량에 설치된 폭탄이 잇따라 터졌다.첫번째 폭탄이 터진 장소는 호텔 주차장이었으며, 이어 호텔 입구에 세워져 있던 트럭에서 두번째 폭발이 있었다.이날 폭발로 1명이 목숨을 잃었으며 30명이 다쳤다고 현지 경찰이 전했다. 사상 자는 모두 태국인으로 첫 번째 폭발 이후 현장에 출동한 경찰관과 구경꾼들이었다.앞서 태국에서는 지난 11∼12일 남서부 7개 주에서 테러로 추정되는 14차례의 폭 발과 5차례의 방화사건이 일어나, 최소 4명이 숨지고 35명이 부상했다.경찰은 당시 현장에서 수거한 사제 폭발물 등을 근거로 말레이시아 국경 지대에서 활동해온 이슬람계 분리주의 무장세력이 테러의 배후일 것으로 추정하고 있다. (연합뉴스)

북한이 24일 시험발사한 잠수함탄도미사일(SLBM)이 500여㎞를 비행, 남한 전역을 타격권에 넣을 수 있는 것으로 분석됐다.군은 SLBM은 초기 개발단계에서 300여㎞를 비행하면 성공한 것으로 판단하고 있기 때문에 북한이 이번에 발사한 SLBM은 사실상 성공한 것으로 평가되고 있다. (연합)북한이 지난달 9일과 4월 23일 발사했던 SLBM은 각각 10여㎞, 30여㎞를 비행한 다음 공중에서 폭발한 것과 비교하면 이날 발사한 SLBM은 기술적으로 큰 진전을 이룬 셈이다. 청와대가 이날 오전 북한의 SLBM 발사와 관련해 국가안전보장회의(NSC) 상임위원회를 긴급 소집해 대책을 논의한 것도 SLBM의 개발수준이 예상했던 것보다 빠르게 진전되고 있는 것으로 판단했기 때문으로 분석된다.군 당국은 그간 북한이 이르면 2~3년내로 SLBM을 전력화할 것으로 예상해왔지만 이번에 500여㎞를 날려 보낸 것으로 평가됨에 따라 실전배치 시점도 이르면 내년 초반까지 앞당겨질 것으로 관측된다.이에 합참

President Park Geun-hye on Tuesday requested again that the National Assembly adopt its report on the confirmation of a police chief nominee, her aides said, a legal step to accelerate the process of officially appointing him.On Aug. 2, Park requested that the legislature conduct a confirmation hearing on Lee Cheol-seong, currently deputy commissioner general of the National Police Agency, and adopt a report on the nomination.But the adoption of a confirmation report has been delayed as oppositi

North Korea was seen laying anti-personnel mines along its side of the inter-Korean border, presumably to block potential defection by its own soldiers, a government source said Tuesday."The North Korean military was witnessed burying land mines on the northern side of a bridge in Panmunjeom last week," the source said. The small bridge known as the Bridge of No Return is located within the truce village and spans the military demarcation line between the two Koreas.It was the first time North K

South Korean shares advanced 0.38 percent Tuesday, partly aided by gains in top cap Samsung Electronics and other tech shares. The local currency sharply gained ground against the US dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index closed at 2,049.93, gaining 7.77 points from the previous session. Trading volume was slim at 355.7 million shares worth 4.35 trillion won ($3.9 billion) with losers outnumbering gainers 414 to 388.Market behemoth Samsung Electronics spiked 1.32 percent to a rec

Mobile Internet speeds in Seoul are the fastest among seven cities in the world, a survey by a US mobile analytics firm showed on Tuesday. In Seoul, a median download speed for the wireless network run by mobile carrier LG Uplus is 74.7 Mbps, followed by Madrid with 44.6 Mbps and Tokyo with 39 Mbps, according to the survey by RootMetrics. London came fourth with 29.8 Mbps, followed by Paris with 29.7 Mbps, Dublin with 28.7 Mbps and New York with 23.7 Mbps. The download speed by LG Uplus means th

자질구레하게 준비할게 많은 휴가란 자칫하면 스트레스 지수를 높이는 일이 되기도 한다. 가족의 화합을 위해 가지는 휴가 기간이 되려 구성원간에 독이 될 수 있다는 연구결과가 최근 발표되었다.　　미국 워싱턴대학교 연구원 줄리 브라인스 (Julie Brines)와 브라이언 세라피니 (Brian Serafini)의 공동연구 결과는 지난 20일부터 23일까지 시애틀에서 열린 사회학 협회 연간 회동에서 발표되었다.　(123RF)　일년 중 이혼율이 가장 높은 시기는 지속적으로 3월과 8월인 것으로 나타났는데, 연구원들은 이러한 결과가 크리스마스 휴가와 여름 휴가의 ‘후폭풍’이 아닌가 추측했다. 　　변호사를 선임하는데 두 달 내지 세 달의 시간이 필요하며 이혼서류 수속 등의 시간이 걸리는 것을 따졌다. 　　이 연구는 애초 불경기가 이혼율에 끼치는 영향을 알아보고자 시작되었으나 연구원들은 연구 진행 중 실업률과 주택시장과는 무관하게 휴가철과 이혼율에 일정한 관계가 있음을 발견해 방향을 틀었다고 한다

순종적일 것을 요구하는 엄격한 부모 밑에서 자란 아이들일수록 거짓말 도사가 될 확률이 높다는 연구 결과가 나왔다. 　　캐나다 맥길 대학교에서 아동 사회인지 발달을 연구하는 전문가 빅토리아 탈워 (VictoriaTalwar)는 ‘잘못된 행동을 할 경우 벌을 받는다’는 분위기를 조성할 경우 아이들로 하여금 처벌을 피하기 위해 교묘한 술수를 부리게끔 만든다고 한다. 　 (123RF)　권위주의적인 부모일수록 속임수에 기민한 아이를 키우게 된다 　　탈워와 그의 동료들은 이러한 거짓말쟁이 아이들을 가려내는 ‘엿보기 게임 (Peeping Game)’을 개발해 아프리카 서부 학교 두 곳에서 실험했다. 　　한 학교는 규율이 느슨했고 다른 한 학교는 반대로 매우 엄격했다.　　아이들은 뒤를 돌아보지 않은 채 자신의 뒤쪽에서 소리를 내는 물체가 무엇인지 알아 맞추는 게임을 했다.　　마지막으로 들려올 소리는 도무지 그 물건과 연관되지 않는 희한한 소리이게끔 고안되었다. 예를 들어 야구공이 꽥꽥거리는 소리를

The South Korean Army on Tuesday conducted a joint military drill with police, government officials and private experts to counter possible terrorist attacks by North Korea, officials said.South Korea's 2nd Operations Command said that the joint anti-terror exercise was conducted at a football stadium in Daegu, some 302 kilometers south of Seoul, as part of the broader ongoing annual military exercise between South Korea and the United States.The Army's drill, which involved some 250 personnel a

North Korea recently ordered the children of its diplomats stationed overseas to return home, intelligence sources said Tuesday, adding that this likely didn't lead to the latest defection of a high-ranking Britain-based official and his family.According to the sources, the National Intelligence Service told a closed door session of parliament's intelligence committee that Pyongyang has ordered all diplomats' children aged 25 and above to return home, in an apparent bid to block potential defect

Outbound shipments by the country's small and medium-sized enterprises sank 4.5 percent in the first half of the year from a year earlier amid a protracted slowdown in the global economy, data showed Tuesday.According to the data compiled by the Small and Medium Business Administration, smaller firms' exports reached $90.55 billion in the January-June period, while outbound shipments by large companies dropped 12.9 percent to $150.8 billion over the cited period.Overall, local companies' exports

North Korea urged its young people to pledge allegiance to leader Kim Jong-un three days before a rare youth congress, a state-run daily said Tuesday, as the country moves to solidify its one-man rule through support from the youth.In an editorial on Tuesday, North Korea's main newspaper Rodong Sinmun said the 9th Congress of the Kim Il-sung Youth League which opens on Friday is the start of a new history for young Korean heroes, claiming that "now is the most golden time for the youth movement.