Ahn Hee-jung, a South Korean provincial governor and liberal presidential hopeful, on Thursday expressed dismay at former UN chief Ban Ki-moon's presidential ambition, calling it a "nonsensical, blatant breach of the norm for a leader of the world body."Ban was set to return to his home country in the afternoon after completing his second five-year term as UN secretary-general amid high expectations that he would run for the nation's top office this year.Ahn, South Chungcheong governor affiliate

The foreign ministry hailed President-elect Donald Trump's nominee for secretary of state on Thursday, who called for a continuation of a sanctions-oriented policy towards North Korea.During a Senate confirmation hearing on Wednesday in Washington, Rex Tillerson said that "adversaries like Iran and North Korea pose grave threats to the world," publicly mentioning threats made by Pyongyang for the first time since his nomination last month.  Tillerson also suggested that the US' increase pressure

South Korean shares continued to advance on large cap gains and foreign buying to reach a new high in over 18 months Thursday. The local currency also significantly gained ground against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 11.97 points, or 0.58 percent, to 2,087.14, breaching the 2,080 mark for the first time since July 21, 2015, when the index stood at 2,083.62. (132rf)Trading volume was high at 546.5 million shares worth 4.65 trillion won ($3.92 billion), with

Hyolyn of the Korean girl group Sistar will have a showcase at this year's South by Southwest(SXSW) festival, according organizers Thursday.On its website, SXSW LLC included Hyolyn among its newly announced artist lineup, describing her as the "Korean Beyonce."Launched in 1987, SXSW is an annual collective showcase of film, music and interactive media held every March in Austin, Texas, U.S. This year's festival will run from March 10-19.SXSW highlighted Hyolyn's career outside of South Korea, ci

Seven out of 10 aquatic mammals accidentally caught in nets or poached in South Korea are finless porpoises, designated as a maritime mammal to be conserved by the government last year, with the number of such victims reaching some 1,300 on average annually, the coast guard here said Thursday.According to the Ulsan Maritime Security Police, a total of 9,710 whales were trapped in nets or illegally captured inside the South Korean waters between 2011-15.  (Yonhap)Of the total, porpoises took for

President Park Geun-hye’s bodyguard remained quiet on key issues surrounding Park’s relationship to her close confidante Choi Soon-sil and her alleged negligence of duty over the Sewol ferry disaster during the impeachment trial on Thursday, citing national security and a confidentiality clause.During the fourth hearing of the trial, the Constitutional Court dismissed the stated reasons as unjustifiable, warning that his refusal could be seen as an attempt to conceal something fishy. Lee Young-s

Former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s return home Thursday has brought him closer to his much anticipated bid for South Korean presidency, signaling a tough few months ahead for other presidential aspirants. It also means a whole new political ordeal for the 72-year-old former diplomat, who now enters domestic politics for the first time as a rookie in the electoral game.Former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon speaks to reporters before boarding a flight at the JFK International Airport (Yon

The US slapped sanctions on North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s sister Thursday, in its latest move to ratchet up pressure on the regime over its rampant human rights violations.Kim Yo-jong, a vice director of the ruling Workers’ Party’s propaganda and agitation department, was among seven entities and two individuals to make it on the blacklist of the US State Department and Treasury. They are now subject to travel bans and an asset freeze. Seoul welcomed the action, saying it shores up the allie

The discipline of the North Korean army is reportedly extremely loose, with even fliers allegedly criticizing Kim Jong-un's hereditary succession of power having been distributed inside the military unit in charge of defending the North Korean capital of Pyongyang, a Seoul-based anti-Pyongyang civic organization said Thursday. An internal document of the North Korean army's Third Corps, entitled "Evaluation of Executive Members of the Workers' Party in the Army in April 2013," reads, "Abnormal p

LG Electronics Inc. said Thursday it will unveil its next flagship smartphone, the G6, at an annual technology fair in Spain next month, as it struggles to revive its money-losing smartphone business. In a teaser video released earlier in the day on its YouTube and Facebook accounts, LG hinted that the new smartphone would be released in February. The date means that LG will unveil the new smartphone at the Mobile World Congress show next month, an LG official said. The 40-second video asks seve

Moon Jae-in, former head of the main opposition Democratic Party, outpaced ex-UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in an opinion poll of potential presidential contenders, data showed Thursday.   Moon posted an approval rating of 27.9 percent this week up 1.1 percentage points on-week, followed by Ban with 20.3 percent and Seongnam Mayor Lee Jae-myung with 11.3 percent, a survey conducted by RealMeter showed.  Moon Jae-in of the Democratic Party of Korea (Yonhap)Ban's popularity fell 1.2 percentage

South Korea has been working on floating 10-year foreign exchange stabilization bonds worth up to $1 billion, the finance ministry here said Thursday.The Ministry of Strategy and Finance said it has made a deal announcement in the United States on Wednesday (US time) to issue the bonds as part of its efforts to stabilize the market."Detailed rates and amount will be decided later in accordance with the market situations," said the ministry in a release.The ministry said it picked seven companies

An appeals court on Thursday confirmed a 30-year jail term for a man accused of stabbing to death a 22-year-old woman near one of the country's busiest subway stations in Seoul that sparked nationwide shock and protests. Gangnam Station (Yonhap)The Seoul High Court upheld a lower court's decision and convicted the man, surnamed Kim, of stabbing the victim, whose identity was withheld, multiple times in a bathroom in a building near Gangnam Station in May last year. The victim was a complete stra

Acting President and Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn on Thursday vowed to expand policy support for small and medium-sized enterprises, stressing their role in creating jobs and revitalizing the economy.During the New Year's greeting session with local SME leaders, Hwang also said that his government will strive harder to promote the globalization of SMEs as part of efforts to shore up flagging exports. (123rf)"SMEs are the root of our economy. They are locomotives for another leap forward and the

The net asset of South Korea's overseas investment fund is forecast to reach 100 trillion won ($84.5 billion) soon, as investors are seeking higher returns amid declining rates, market watchers said Thursday.The figure hit a record high of 91.7 trillion won on Friday after surpassing the 90 trillion mark for the first time on Dec. 22, 2016, they said.Real estate-based funds came to 12.7 trillion won to account for most of the total overseas investment funds, followed by equity funds with 7.5 tri

Former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's return home on Thursday has sent South Korea's conservative parties scurrying to court the powerful potential presidential candidate.Pundits bet Ban will choose to ally with an existing political party rather than creating his own to prepare for an early presidential election. Hit by a recent scandal involving President Park Geun-hye, the ruling Saenuri Party and a soon-to-be-launched splinter party are struggling to find a potent figure to lead them thr

A Seoul-based North Korean defectors' association said Thursday it has sent the combined testimonies of some 20 defectors over the North's human rights violations to the International Criminal Court. "We have sent the testimonies of 20 North Korean defectors who suffered human rights violations to the ICC via email," an official from North Korean Writers in Exile PEN Literature told Yonhap News Agency.  ICC’s letter to a NK refugee rights group (Yonhap)The email includes testimonies that the Kim

Impeached President Park Geun-hye is actively considering issuing another statement to rebut a string of corruption allegations against her, political sources said Thursday, as public sentiment has deteriorated amid an accelerating probe into the high-profile scandal involving her close friend.When and how Park will deliver her message has yet to be decided, the sources said. Park has reportedly been mulling another press conference to explain her position before the Lunar New Year's holiday tha

A bodyguard for President Park Geun-hye appeared at the Constitutional Court Thursday to face questioning over an influence-peddling scandal involving Park and her friend.Lee Young-sun, an employee of the presidential security service, was summoned to testify at the fourth hearing of Park's impeachment trial following revelations he ran errands for the friend, Choi Soon-sil.He refused to answer most questions by the parliamentary impeachment panel, but admitted to regularly visiting a dressmaker

South Korea's two state financial regulatory agencies sought to dispel public worries Thursday about possible conflicts over overlapping work and a lack of synergy, holding a joint meeting of top officials."At a time when uncertainties run high like this year, risk management is more important than any other time," said Yim Jong-yong, chairman of the Financial Services Commission. Yim Jong-yong, chairman of the Financial Services Commission (Yonhap)"For that, the FSC and the Financial Supervisor