Turkey's state-run news agency says police have carried out raids in 10 cities, acting on a court order for the arrests of 67 people associated with a U.S.-based cleric who has become the chief foe of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.   Anadolu Agency says the warrants were issued against senior members of Fethullah Gulen's moderate Islamic movement, including journalists and a university president. Forty-three of the suspects were abroad and only five were detained Friday, Anadolu said.  

Korea’s fast-growing household debt increases potential threats for a credit cut and repercussions from future rate hikes, economists of the International Monetary Fund said Friday. 　In the aftermath of the global financial crisis, the steep increase in household and corporate debt in the Asian private sectors accelerated growth, but with potential aftereffects. 　“If the debt keeps going up, it can become a major risk for the Asian economies, which calls for (government) interventions to downsiz

Police on Friday requested the court issue an arrest warrant for Han Sang-kyun, chief of the nation’s second-largest umbrella labor union, a day after he was detained on charges of leading illegal rallies. 　Han, chief of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, was taken to Namdaemun Police Station for questioning Thursday as he voluntarily walked out of Jogyesa Temple in central Seoul, where he had been taking sanctuary to avoid arrest for 24 days.　 (Yonhap)　Police questioned Han overnight for

The looming monetary tightening in the U.S. is unlikely to have a major immediate impact on Korea, Bank of Korea Gov. Lee Ju-yeol said Thursday, as the central bank held its key rate steady at a record low level. 　“The (BOK’s) Monetary Policy Board reached a consensus on a rate freeze, with signs of ailing domestic demand, expectations of a U.S. rate hike and other related global uncertainties,” Lee said in a press briefing at the bank’s headquarters in central Seoul.   Bank of Korea Gov. Lee Ju

A set of bills designed to raise the country’s corporate tax rates failed to pass the parliament during its regular session that ended Wednesday.　The two major parties remained poles apart on the need to increase the rates, which currently range from 10 to 22 percent. Lawmakers of the ruling Saenuri Party, who opposed levying heavier taxes on corporations, were reluctant to deliberate on the bills submitted by legislators of the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy.   The ruling p

(123RF)Hanmi Science Co. was the top performer on the local stock market this year, thanks to the two multitrillion-won deals clinched by its pharmaceutical subsidiary, data revealed Wednesday.　Hanmi Science shares closed at 140,000 won ($120) on the benchmark KOSPI on Tuesday, posting a stunning 806.15 percent hike from 15,450 won recorded on Dec. 30, the final trading day last year. 　The company holds a 41.37 percent stake in Hanmi Pharmaceutical, the country’s largest drugmaker and this year’

Moody’s Investors Service has upgraded the insurance financial strength rating of Kyobo Life Insurance Co. to “A1” from “A2,” the South Korean insurance firm said Tuesday. The rating outlook is stable.　Some of Moody’s “A1” players in insurance include Prudential, Dai-ichi, Meiji Yasuda and Manulife. Moody’s “A1” banks include Morgan Stanley Bank, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America and Citibank.　“The rating upgrade reflects Kyobo Life’s proven track record of maintaining a good level of profitability

President Park Geun-hye on Monday pledged to complete her reform drive, stressing that it would create a new environment for Korean exporters facing both internal and external challenges.　In a speech delivered at the annual Trade Day, Park also urged to foster start-up exporters and industrial convergence with information technology in order to improve the nation’s trade competitiveness.　“(The government) will improve the country’s trade competitiveness and strengthen the economy by wrapping up

The doctor, engaged in a war of words with Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon over a deadly respiratory disease, has been released from a hospital after being treated for the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, an official said Sunday.The doctor at the Samsung Medical Center in Seoul was at the center of public attention in June when Park said in a news conference that the doctor had direct and indirect contact with over 1,500 people when a MERS infection was suspected.The doctor -- who was confirmed to ha

President Park Geun-hye is seeking the parliamentary endorsement of a set of bills meant to reform South Korea's labor sector within this year, Cheong Wa Dae officials said Sunday.The presidential officials described the issue as Park's top priority, citing concerns that bills could go nowhere next year when South Koreans go to the polls to elect new lawmakers and the current parliamentary term is set to end.Park appears likely to make her case again during this week's Cabinet meeting for the pa

Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mansoor has released a rare audio recording in which he denies claims by an Afghan official that he was wounded in a shootout during a meeting with other commanders in Pakistan last week. In a 17-minute audio recording sent to media by the Taliban late Saturday, Mansoor dismissed what he called “baseless claims” that were “part of the agenda of the enemy.” The Taliban had earlier sent The Associated Press a two-minute version of the recording.The voice resembled that

The deadly shooting in San Bernardino happened in a state with some of the toughest gun laws in the United States: California bars assault weapons, blocks the sale of large-capacity magazines and requires universal background checks for all gun purchases.Authorities say they believe suspected gunman Syed Rizwan Farook and wife Tashfeen Malik had legally obtained two handguns and that two rifles were also legally purchased in California. Federal officials say the attackers had large-capacity maga

Israel's prime minister insists his country is not heading toward becoming a binational state, rejecting a warning to that effect by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry.At his weekly Cabinet meeting Sunday, Benjamin Netanyahu says ``Israel will not be a binational state, but in order to have peace, the other side needs to decide that it wants peace as well.'' Kerry warned Saturday about the dangers of the possible collapse of the Palestinian Authority. He told a conference at the Brookings Instit

Armenia is holding a referendum on a proposed constitutional change that would give more powers to the prime minister and parliament at the expense of the president, who would become largely a figurehead.    The opposition has seen the reform as an attempt by President Serzh Sargsyan to extend his rule. Sargsyan has denied the claim, saying he has no intention of shifting into the prime minister's seat after his current second term ends in 2018.    Sargsyan's government has promoted the constitu

In climate math, the difference between 1.5 and 2 degrees is much greater than 0.5.Small nations say that for them, that half-degree could mean the difference between life and death. For larger nations, the question is what's realistic and what's not when it comes to limiting global warming.The broader issue is how much warming is too much. In 2010, international negotiators formally adopted a goal of limiting warming to 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) over pre-industrial times; Earth

The Ministry of Strategy and Finance said Sunday that Korea would increase its current 0.221 percent stake in an investment unit of the Inter-American Development Bank to 4 percent. 　This will make Korea the seventh-largest global shareholder, and the second-largest nonregional shareholder after China at 4.5 percent, of NewCo., a soon-to-be launched development finance institution under the Washington-based IDB for private sectors.  　“We could secure larger stakes than we had expected, thanks to

Swinging-door bathtubs (Chung Joo-won/The Korea Herald)Universal Design Expo was launched Wednesday to display some of the latest technologies and art objects with “universal designs,” or designs that all walks of life including the physically impaired can enjoy. 　On display from Dec. 2-6, the main exhibition of Seoul Design Week 2015 consists of 11 experience zones, seven “life experience zones” and four “transportation experience zones.” 　The life experience zones include five experience-yours

South Korea’s Finance Ministry expressed optimism Tuesday for an increase in the nation’s exports to China after the International Monetary Fund announced it would add the Chinese yuan to its special drawing rights currency basket. “As a preemptive measure for potential globalization of the Chinese yuan, the Korean government has built up strong bilateral cooperation with China in monetary and financial policies, in addition to continued efforts to increase usage of the Chinese currency in the d

                                        Kyobo Life Insurance chairman Shin Chang-jae (Kyobo Life Insurance)Kyobo Life Insurance chairman Shin Chang-jae vowed to donate 2 billion won ($1.7 million) out of his own pocket to a government-led youth job fund, the company said on Monday.　Shin’s donation comes after 1,824 Kyobo Life Insurance officials collected about 200 million won for the Youth Hope Fund. 　“The officials joined hands to help the young job seekers, the future of this nation, to overc

TV personality and lawyer Kang Yong-suk appears on the controversial “I sue you” advertisement poster that was voluntarily taken down in October. (Kang Yong-suk’s blog)The “right to advertise,” despite the powerful support of the right to free speech, is now facing a new challenge. 　Kang Yong-suk, a TV personality and lawyer at Next Law, recently triggered the controversy with a poster of himself roaring “I sue you!” 　What was meant to be a witty ad was taken down shortly after concerns emerged