Special prosecutors looking into the influence-peddling allegations pivoting on President Park Geun-hye now face a pair of critical challenges: to summon Park for face-to-face questioning and to search the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae for evidence.The direct inquiry into the president is deemed an indispensable step to prove her liability in the corruption scandal, but is also an obstacle for investigators who are increasingly running out of time.The investigation team led by independent co

South Korea’s acting President Hwang Kyo-ahn is increasingly becoming seen as a potential presidential candidate, and as the beleaguered ruling Saenuri Party’s best shot at salvaging the conservative camp after President Park Geun-hye’s scandal-ridden demise. While Hwang has not explicitly said whether he will run in this year’s presidential election, political pundits say he appears to be harboring presidential ambitions, making high-publicity moves as the nation’s leader.Acting President and P

Despite its chief justice leaving his post Tuesday, the Constitutional Court is set to quicken its proceedings in February on course to decide President Park Geun-hye’s political fate by mid-March. But the top court will likely meet obstacles in its plan for a speedy trial and verdict in the country’s second presidential impeachment case in history, as the sanctioned president’s defense appears determined to fight with all means available any attempt to fast-track the proceedings. For now, the k

Nearly nine out of 10 South Koreans use the Internet, a survey showed Monday, with the growth noticeably high among seniors aged over 60.According to the poll of 61,238 people older than 3 years old in 25,000 households by the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning in 2016, 88.3 percent of South Koreans used the Internet, with the number of users estimated at 43.64 million, up 3.2 percentage points, or 1.7 million, from the previous year. (Yonhap)The survey was conducted through interviews

US President Donald Trump on Monday reaffirmed the country’s commitment to its ties with South Korea, saying he will be “100 percent” with Seoul in underpinning the alliance and resolving the North Korean nuclear issue. In his first, 30-minute phone conversation with acting President Hwang Kyo-ahn, Trump said the bilateral relationship will be “better than ever before,” expressing hopes for a face-to-face meeting in the near future, the Prime Minister’s Office said. “President Trump said the US

Children who suffer allergic diseases are three times more likely to become overweight or obese, a recent study shows. According to the study led by professor Bang Kyung-sook at Seoul National University’s College of Nursing, children diagnosed with either atopic dermatitis, allergy rhinitis or asthma were 2.78 times more likely to be overweight or obese, compared to children with none of those diseases. The research team said that the result could be the result of different eating habits, since

Seoul is collecting photos, video footage and other records of the millions-strong protests held in the center of the city that led to the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye in December, intent to preserve them as historical records at a city-run museum.According to the Seoul Museum of History, it has so far collected some 400 items, including picket signs and placards, used in or related to the large-scale anti-Park candlelight vigils, picked by museum staff from the site. It is also receiv

Trade between the two Koreas fell to the lowest level since 1998 last year, due chiefly to Seoul’s shutdown of a joint factory park as part of its efforts to tighten sanctions over Pyongyang’s unbridled nuclear program, government data showed Monday. Two-way volume stood at $332.6 million in 2016, a massive 87.7 percent plunge from a year before, according to figures from Korea Customs Service. Inbound shipments accounted for about 56 percent of the total. The latest tally was the lowest since $

South Korea's online retail sales surged 18 percent on-year in 2016, government data showed Monday, as consumers increasingly enjoy Internet shopping in search of discounts amid a prolonged economic slump. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said sales by 26 major retailers rose 8.5 percent. Their impressive performance amid the protracted economic slump was largely attributed to a robust growth in their online sales, which jumped 18.1 percent, compared with a 4.5 percent increase in offl

Funds that invest in domestic bonds suffered massive cash outflows in January as investors pulled part of their money out of the funds amid concerns over the accelerating pace of rate hikes, industry data showed Monday.According to the data compiled by industry tracker FNGuide, domestic funds have logged an outflow of 879 billion won ($752 million) as of Wednesday, and saw a cash outflow of 3.33 trillion won in the past three months as concerns over rate hikes in the United States emerged. (Yonh

The outstanding household loans extended by the country's top five commercial lenders topped the 500 trillion-won ($428 billion) mark last year, as more people took out loans to buy homes and finance their costs for education and other things, industry data showed Monday.According to the data, the outstanding loans extended to households by the country's top five lenders -- Shinhan, Kookmin, Woori, Hana-KEB and Nonghyup -- reached a record high of 500.92 trillion won at the end of last year, up

A North Korean online propaganda outlet blasted South Korea on Monday for demanding information of family members separated after the Korean War (1950-53).Dprktoday.com claimed that it is utterly ridiculous that Seoul, which has brought about the worst inter-Korean tensions in history, is calling for the speedy resolution of the separated families issue on humanitarian grounds.The attack comes as South Korea's Acting President and Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn on Dec. 23 urged the North to respon

The privatization of Woori Bank, South Korea's No. 2 lender by assets, is expected to be completed this week after the state deposit insurer receives a final payment for its sale of a major stake. The Korea Deposit Insurance Corp.  signed a 2.4 trillion-won ($2.06 billion) deal with seven institutional investors on the sale of its 29.7 percent stake in Woori Bank. This photo, taken on Nov. 13, 2016, shows people passing by the headquarters of Woori Bank in Seoul. (Yonhap)The deal calls for IMM P

North Korean officials turned out in force for the Lunar New Year reception at the Chinese Embassy in Pyongyang last week, diplomatic sources in Beijing said Monday.According to insiders that cited the homepage of China's Embassy in North Korea, some 70 senior officials from the reclusive country's ruling Workers' Party of Korea, the government and the military were present at the event held Tuesday.They said Kim Yong-dae, the vice president of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly was

North Korea looks set to launch a Musudan intermediate-range ballistic missile instead of a long-range one as it still has to master the related technologies, military officials said Monday."There are no signs of an imminent test firing of an intercontinental ballistic missile by North Korea.But we are closely monitoring any new military activities in the country as it could launch an IRBM at any time if leader Kim Jong-un gives the order," an official at the defense ministry said.This year, Nor

A confidante of President Park Geun-hye at the center of a high-profile corruption scandal rejected the request by special prosecutors to undergo questioning over her bribery allegations Monday, criticizing what she calls a "coercive" probe.The investigation team, led by Independent Counsel Park Young-soo, plans to seek yet another arrest warrant to question her, a source said, as it is accelerating its probe into the scandal that led to the impeachment of the president on Dec. 9.Last Wednesday,

Exports of South Korean-made instant noodles, or ramyeon, nearly tripled over the past decade, as their popularity has been spreading beyond China and Asia to the United States, Middle East and Europe, industry agencies said Monday.The nation's ramyeon exports totaled $290.4 million in 2016, up 32.7 percent from the previous annual record of $218.8 million set in 2015, according to figures released by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, and the Korea International Trade Associat

North Korea has resumed its indoctrination of South Korean abductees as part of a broader effort by the reclusive regime to tighten control over its people, a local activist group said Monday.According to the Abductees' Family Union that cited sources with contacts in North Korea, Pyongyang has resumed its ideological brainwashing of South Korean prisoners of war, their families and people the regime kidnapped over the years.It said that the first indoctrination courses took place last year afte

The global memory chip market is expected to grow at an annual rate of 7.3 percent till 2021, on the back of solid demand and higher prices, data showed Monday. The global market size for DRAM and NAND flash is forecast to reach $109.9 billion in 2021, up from last year's estimated $77.3 billion, according to the data compiled by industry tracker IC Insights and other industry sources. Samsung Electronics Co.'s DRAM product (Samsung Electronics Co.)The DRAM market, which was the catalyst for the

A Seoul court settled a local dispute between management agencies following apparent moves by China to ban South Korean performers from operating in the country, records showed Monday.The Seoul Central District Court ruled against a local KOSDAQ listed K-pop management agency that filed a suit demanding the return of 260 million won ($222,700) in payment made to another entertainment firm. The contract called for the plaintiff, identified only as "management agency A" to get exclusive control ov