Sales of traditional Korean distilled liquor "soju" has soared steadily in recent years as more people sought the relatively cheap alcoholic beverage over more expensive offerings amid the protracted economic slump, industry sources said Wednesday.Sales of Hite Jinro's Chamisul soju exceeded the 1 trillion won ($894 million) mark last year for the first time since its debut in 1998, with a total of 1.7 billion bottles of 360 milliliter soju sold, the sources said.It is the first time any South K

South Korean stocks opened higher Wednesday tracking overnight gains on Wall Street, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 3.88 points, or 0.16 percent, to 2,443.78 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Market kingpin Samsung Electronics, however, dropped 1.32 percent, and SK hynix was 2.7 percent down.Hyundai Motor, the No. 1 automaker, rose 0.34 percent, and AmorePacific, the country's top cosmetics maker, gained 2.78 percent.LG Chem, the country's top chemicals firm

NAMYANGJU -- A 150-kilometer, two-and-a-half hour drive proved that Kia Motors Corp.'s Stonic subcompact sport utility vehicle is perfect for people wanting an entry-level fuel-efficient crossover that is responsive to drive.In a mix of urban and expressway driving that took place from western Seoul to Namyangju in Gyeonggi Province, the Stonic subcompact SUV achieved unrivaled mileage numbers while proving to be an excellent performer, well-suited to wooing customers in their 20s and 30s.After

Sales of smartphones through online platforms in South Korea remain sluggish compared with other countries, data showed Wednesday, due mainly to strong dominance of mobile carriers in the mobile phone market.According to the data compiled by Strategy Analytics, the sales of smartphones through online platforms in the country are expected to take up 17.2 percent, or 3.8 million units of the total sales estimated at 22.1 million units in South Korea this year.Of the amount, the sales of smartphone

North Korea threatened Wednesday to stage a pre-emptive nuclear strike against the United States upon Washington's miscalculation ahead of the 64th anniversary of the signing of the armistice that ended the 1950-53 Korean War.Pak Yong-sik, the minister of North Korea's armed forces, made the remark during his speech in a meeting to mark the anniversary slated for Thursday."If enemies misunderstand our strategic status and stick to options of staging a pre-emptive nuclear attack against us, we wi

The United States will tighten the screws on individuals and entities that aid North Korea's missile and nuclear programs, including those in China, a senior administration official said Tuesday.Susan Thornton, acting assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, told a Senate Foreign Relations subcommittee that the US will take further action to force the communist nation to abandon its missile and nuclear development. (Yonhap)"We will continue to fully exercise all of our st

WASHINGTON -- The US House of Representatives on Tuesday passed a package of sanctions against Russia, Iran and North Korea, in a possible blow to President Donald Trump.The House voted 419-3 in support of the controversial bill that seeks to prevent Trump from unilaterally lifting sanctions on Russia. The legislation also calls for fresh sanctions on Russia for its alleged meddling in the 2016 US presidential election.Trump objected to the bill as he insists he received no help from Moscow to w

South Korea's financial regulator said Wednesday it has advised some foreign banks here to take steps to guard against money laundering activities. After an inspection of 37 branches of foreign banks in the country, the Financial Supervisory Service concluded that some small-scale branches showed a lack of awareness of money laundering. The FSS said, however, most branches had anti-money-laundering safeguards in place. It did not identify the vulnerable branches by name.The vulnerable branches d

Air traffic in South Korea rose 4.9 percent in the first half from a year earlier helped by increased demand on non-Chinese routes, government data showed Wednesday. The number of airplanes which flew on domestic and international routes to and from South Korean airports rose to 373,690 in the January-June period from 358,195 a year earlier, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation said in a statement. "An increase in travel demand on routes to Japan and Southeast Asian countries

WASHINGTON -- A top Republican congressman on Tuesday called for "forceful, swift" steps to stop North Korea's missile and nuclear development.Rep. Mac Thornberry made the call after the House Armed Services Committee held a closed-door briefing on the North's pursuit of intercontinental ballistic missiles.The session followed the communist nation's first test of an ICBM on July 4, which experts say could reach parts of the US, including Alaska. Republican Mac Thornberry (Yonhap)"The apparent su

South Korea's new chief prosecutor on Tuesday asked his officials to go back to the fundamentals in carrying out duties as public servants to realize social justice and rebuild the "lost trust" of the public. "We need to focus our efforts on protecting our constitutional values and law and order, while sternly handling the investigations into any corruption cases," Prosecutor-General Moon Moo-il said in his inauguration speech. (Yonhap)He was officially appointed by President Moon Jae-in earlier

President Moon Jae-in is set to hold his first dialogue with top business leaders here this week over beer to help break the ice and possibly allow more frank discussions, an official from the presidential office, Cheong Wa Dae, said Tuesday.The talks will be held Thursday and Friday, each day involving part of the top executives from the 14 largest business conglomerates, according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Park Soo-hyun."To ensure practical and candid discussions, President Moon will lis

North Korea will launch a nuclear strike at the heart of the United States if Americans attempt a regime change in Pyongyang, the North's state news agency said Tuesday in denunciation of recent remarks by the Central Intelligence Agency director.In a forum last week, Mike Pompeo, the chief of the US intelligence agency, alluded to the possibility of a regime change in North Korea by saying that the most important thing the US can do is "separate (nuclear) capacity and someone who might well hav

South Korea's unification minister on Tuesday met with Japan's top envoy to Seoul to discuss the security situation on the divided peninsula and the two nations' North Korea policy, government officials said.Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon held talks with Amb. Yasumasa Nagamine, during which they exchanged views on inter-Korean relations and North Korea issues, according to Seoul's unification ministry.It marked their first meeting since Cho took office in early July. This photo, taken on J

President Moon Jae-in on Tuesday urged far-fetching reform measures to enhance the transparency and political neutrality of the prosecution, also noting a need to check the prosecution by empowering the police with its own authority to launch criminal investigations.The president also said that some "politically motivated" prosecutors must be held responsible."The people want to see a great change in the prosecution, but such a wish must be considered an affection that hopes to see it become an

South Korea's government on Tuesday announced an updated list of victims of a 1948 government-civilian clash on the southern island of Jeju, a step to restore the honor of the victims long labeled as "commies."A government panel, dedicated to verifying the truth behind the so-called Jeju April 3 incident, put the total number of victims at 14,232 and that of the bereaved family members at 59,426. The designated victims can receive a monthly subsidy of 300,000 won ($268.90).The list was announced

Russia's deputy nuclear negotiator has visited North Korea to discuss issues on the divided peninsula with the North's senior diplomats, Pyongyang's state media said Tuesday.Oleg Burmistrov, Russia's ambassador-at-large, met with North Korea's vice foreign minister Sin Hong-chol and also talked with a director in charge of North America affairs, according to the Korean Central News Agency. Burmistrov is known to also serve as Moscow's deputy negotiator to the now-stalled six-party denuclearizati

South Korean stocks finished lower Tuesday on profit-taking, after the key index hit a record high in the previous session, analysts said. The Korean won fell against the US dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 11.63 points, or 0.47 percent, to close at 2,439.90. Trade volume was moderate at 270 million shares worth 5.3 trillion won ($4.7 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 499 to 300.The local stock market opened nearly flat as investors sought profit-taking after

South Korea's new chief ICT policymaker made a visit to the state-run science laboratory on Tuesday, stressing that both the government and researchers should push forward reform to face various challenges under the fourth industrial revolution. You Young-min, who took office earlier this month, made his first official visit to the Korea Institute of Science and Technology located in northern Seoul. (Yonhap)"I will make visits as much as possible to communicate more with field researchers," Yoo

The Supreme Court decided Tuesday to allow verdict hearings of major trials in lower courts to be televised starting on Aug. 1.  The revised rule will make it possible for the public to watch courts rule on the ongoing trials of former President Park Geun-hye and Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong. The decision was made at a meeting attended by all 14 justices at the top court. Whether to approve the live TV coverage is up to the presiding judge. Verdict hearings can be broadcast liv