An upturn in global trade and exports has been helping the South Korean economy recover to some extent, but the gains are weighed down by flaccid domestic demand, including investment and private consumption, a government report said Friday."The South Korean economy has been on a upside cycle thanks to a steady rise in outbound shipments, while the domestic side is showing weak signs of recovery due to production and investment adjustment," the finance ministry said in its monthly econ

North Korea on Thursday dispatched a delegation to a United Nations meeting on the rights of the disabled to be held in New York next week, the country's state-run news agency said."A DPRK delegation led by Ri Hung-sik, ambassador of the Foreign Ministry, left here (Pyongyang) to take part in the 10th session of the conference of state parties to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities to be held in New York of the United States," the Korean Central News Agency said in a brief

China urged North Korea not to escalate tensions after the country launched what are believed to be several cruise missiles."Under the current environment, the countries concerned should not provoke each other or take any action that could escalate regional tensions," China's foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said in a briefing. "The countries should make joint efforts to ease tensions and work toward regional stability," she also said.  China`s foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying

Kia Motors Corp. on Thursday launched an upgraded K3 subcompact to attract customers with more features and simplified trims.The 1.6-liter K3 subcompact went on sale in the domestic market earlier in the day, the country's second-biggest carmaker said in a statement. Kia`s K3 subcompact (Courtesy of Kia Motors) (Yonhap)Kia reduced the number of trims of the diesel-powered K3 to four from six and of the gasoline version to three from six. It added improved features such as 16-inch alloy wheels an

Hyundai Motor Co. has launched the hybrid version of its latest Sonata sedan to diversify its lineup, the company said Thursday. The Sonata New Rise Hybrid went on sale earlier in the day in the domestic market with a lifetime battery warranty, 10-year/200,000-kilometer warranty on parts for hybrid vehicles and a guarantee of 62 percent of its value after three years, Hyundai said in a statement.  Hyundai`s Sonata New Rise Hybrid (Courtesy of Hyundai Motor) (Yonhap)The 2.0-liter hybrid sedan mat

South Korean stocks declined 0.27 percent on Thursday, as an elevating US political crisis involving its president prodded investors into a flight from making risky bets, analysts said. The local currency fell against the US dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index KOSPI closed down 6.26 points at 2,286.82. Trading volume was moderate at 374.4 million shares worth 5.83 trillion won ($5.18 billion) with decliners far outstripping gainers 507 to 296."Investors are beginning to w

Two South Korean auto parts companies have acquired plants in Hungary in a move to better supply their products to major customers, a trade promotion agency said Thursday.Shinheung SEC and Youngshin Components have recently wrapped up the process to separately acquire local manufacturing facilities near Hungary's capital city of Budapest to produce car battery and air conditioner compressor parts, respectively, the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency KOTRA said in a statement.Hungary plant a

Beleaguered major league infielder Kang Jung-ho on Thursday lost his appeal of an earlier drunk driving sentence, a development that puts his playing career in jeopardy.The Seoul Central District Court rejected Kang's appeal and upheld an eight-month sentence from March, which was suspended for two years, for leaving the scene of a drunk driving accident in Seoul last December.The decision casts Kang's future in the big leagues into further doubt. The 30-year-old remains without a work permit to

South Korea's state-run cybersecurity agency said Thursday that 17 companies have been struck by "WannaCry" so far, but the spread of the ransomware has slowed.The Korea Internet & Security Agency KISA said it is keeping a watchful eye on the spread of the ransomware, although the situation is presumed to have past its peak.Ransomware refers to malware that locks up files on a computer with encryption until the victims pay a certain amount of money to hackers. The latest instance o

Overseas card spending by South Koreans hit a record high in the first quarter due to a hike in the number of people going overseas, the central bank said Thursday.In the January-March period, overseas card spending amounted to $4.02 billion, up 21.9 percent from $3.3 billion a year earlier, according to the Bank of Korea BOK. From a month earlier, the Q1 tally marked a 7.4-percent increase.Overseas card spending includes purchases made with debit and direct payment cards, in addition to credit

GWANGJU -- Twin killings have been killing the LG Twins so far in this Korea Baseball Organization KBO season.The Twins traveled down to Gwangju, some 330 kilometers from their home in Seoul, to take on the first-place Kia Tigers in a three-game series starting Tuesday, with hopes of grabbing the top spot in the standings by the end of the showdown. The Twins were trailing the Tigers by 1.5 games in second place.In this file photo taken on May 7, 2017, players of the LG Twins celebrate a run dur

Joo Jae-un, a college student in Seoul, stayed in the nation's top science technology school in Daejeon for a month last summer to attend an intensive training course on computer programming.The 25-year-old business major took classes for three to four hours every weekday at Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology in the city, some 150 kilometers south of the capital.In this photo taken on Dec. 14, 2016, a member of the nonprofit foundation Like Lion teaches kids basic coding at a kid

South Korean stocks traded 0.49 percent lower late Thursday morning, dragged down by a drop in top-cap tech and IT service companies, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 11.22 points to 2,281.86 as of 11:20 a.m.   Market behemoth Samsung Electronics was down nearly 1 percent, with Naver, the operator of the country's top search engine, losing 0.8 percent.In contrast, shares of automakers and mobile carriers moved in positive territory. Top automaker Hyund

Samsung Display Co. said Thursday its quad-edge organic light-emitting diode display won an award from a major industrial organization.The South Korean company said its quad-edge OLED display won the Display Industry Awards from the Society for Information Display.  (Yonhap)The award is regarded as one of the top honors in the display industry.The SID said Samsung Display's quad-edge display boasts top-notch technology by adopting a curved design at all sides.Samsung Display, which started produ

Samsung Electronics Co. said it has started selling a new tablet PC on Thursday, which runs on the Windows 10 operating system.The South Korean tech giant kicked off sales of the Galaxy Book, which can connect to keyboards and be used like a laptop. As it runs on the Windows platform, consumers can use most PC software, such as Photoshop. A model poses for a photo with the Galaxy Book devices in this photo released by Samsung Electronics Co. on May 18, 2017. (Yonhap)Samsung said the Galaxy Book

South Korea's stock funds suffered outflows for an eighth straight trading session on profit-taking as the benchmark stock index stayed in a tight range, data showed Thursday. After touching its highest-ever close earlier last week, the Korea Composite Stock Price Index has lost some ground in recent trading sessions. According to the data by the Korea Financial Investment Association, domestic stock funds, excluding exchange traded funds, posted 993 billion won ($882 million) of net outflo

South Korean President Moon Jae-In warned Wednesday there was a "high possibility" of military clashes along the border with North Korea as tensions mount over Pyongyang's weapons ambitions.Moon, who was sworn in last week, warned that the North's nuclear and rocket programs were "advancing rapidly", days after Pyongyang launched what appeared to be its longest-range missile yet.(Yonhap)"I will never tolerate the North's provocations and nuclear threats," he said on a visit to the defence minist