Rep. Ahn Min-seok of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea said Wednesday he has requested K-pop sensation BTS hold a concert in North Korea in September in celebration of the first anniversary of last year’s inter-Korean summit. Ahn currently leads the National Assembly Committee on Culture, Sports and Tourism and serves as head of the Democratic Party’s special committee on inter-Korean cultural and sports cooperation.Ahn has been pushing for BTS’ concert in North Korea since last September ami

Amid ongoing debate over the minimum wage hike, the Ministry of Employment and Labor on Monday laid out a rough draft of the revised minimum wage calculation method, which contains details about the composition of the committees in charge of deciding the annual hourly minimum wage.But the changes face escalating opposition from labor groups, which argue that the new process is less likely to reflect their position.“The minimum wage decision-making process has remained the same since 1988, while

A growing number of politicians here are taking to YouTube to convey their opinions and gain loyalty, unfettered by physical and time constraints.With the platform rising as a battleground for conservative and liberal politicians here, Rhyu Si-min, a liberal politician-turned-writer, posted his first video Friday, aiming to rival that of conservative firebrand Hong Joon-pyo. In the first episode of the hourlong weekly series “Rhyu Si-min’s Alileo,” Rhyu was joined by Moon Chung-in, a special adv

The former official at the Ministry of Economy and Finance who accuses the Moon Jae-in administration of manipulating the issuance of treasury bonds for political reasons was found alive after going missing and admitted to a hospital in southwestern Seoul, police said Thursday. Shin Jae-min, 34, was found at a motel in southwestern Seoul at noon following searches of his house, where his cellphone was found along with three pages of suicide notes.  Police raid the house of Shin Jae-min, whistleb

After commanding significant attention last year, green cars are set to expand their presence in the auto industry even further this year thanks to higher government subsidies and the plans of import carmakers to release new eco-friendly models.Green cars, often considered to offer good value for money while minimizing harm to the environment, are looking even more promising both in terms of stronger performance and sleeker designs. Kia Motors` Soul EV (Kia Motors)The number of eco-friendly cars

Supreme Court Chief Justice Kim Meong-su on Monday reiterated that prosecutorial probes into allegations that top court justices abused their judicial authority were necessary in order to restore the right to a fair trial.Kim has been pushing for judicial reform in an effort to regain credibility and the right to a fair trial.“The difficulties the court is currently undergoing are unavoidable in giving back to citizens their right to a fair trial, free from outside interference,” Kim said during

SsangYong Motor, the South Korean unit of Indian carmaker Mahindra & Mahindra, reinstated on Monday 71 employees and hired 34 new workers as a follow up measure of the September agreement ending a decadelong conflict between labor and management.“The decision to reinstate the workers was made to deal with the production of the long-body version of Rexton Sport and succeeding model of Korando C named C300 alongside reduced work hours,” the company said in a statement.In late September, four parti

Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors, which combined form the world’s fifth-biggest carmaker, swept awards at the Korea New Car Assessment Program 2018, with Hyundai’s Nexo hydrogen fuel cell vehicle taking home three awards, the companies said Wednesday.At Korea NCAP, managed by the Transport Ministry, the Nexo sport utility vehicle took first in three categories -- midsize SUV, environmentally friendly car and child protection -- and dispelled worries that the hydrogen tank positioned at the back of t

South Korea’s Transportation Ministry confirmed Monday the cause of BMW engine fires that sent jitters across the country this summer was the faulty exhaust gas recirculation cooler, and slapped an 11.2 billion won ($9.9 million) fine on the German carmaker for concealing and downplaying the defect. The investigation team consisting of government officials and auto professionals released the final result, including plans to file criminal charges against the German luxury automaker and for the ad

GM Korea’s new research and development entity, dubbed GM Technical Center Korea, is expected to officially launch early next year, after its second-largest shareholder gave the green light despite strong opposition from its union, the company said Friday.The local unit of US auto giant General Motors said in an official notice that the “due date for the spinoff has been decided as Dec. 31 at a board meeting held on Dec. 18, and registration is slated for Jan. 2.”  (Yonhap)Roughly 3,000 workers

A South Korean court on Thursday slapped a 2.8 billion won ($2.48 million) fine on Mercedes-Benz Korea for selling some 7,000 vehicles equipped with unauthorized parts in violation of Korea’s Clean Air Conservation Act and customs law.The Seoul Central District Court said a Benz employee surnamed Kim “has been arrested and sentenced to eight months in jail for failing to straighten out the matter for three years and a half on top of four penalties levied.” Kim was in charge of receiving approval

South Korea’s automakers will see lackluster sales in their three major overseas markets next year as well as at home due to slowing economies, trade disputes and rising lending rates, a research institute affiliated with Hyundai Motor Group said at a seminar Thursday. Hyundai Motor’s Global Business Intelligence Center predicted that vehicles sales in the US would be about 17 million next year, down 1.4 percent from an estimated 17.25 million this year. Sales in Europe would drop 0.2 percent to

South Korea’s trade volume with China reached $247.3 billion in the first 11 months of this year, rising to the level reached before a diplomatic row over the deployment of an anti-missile system here took a toll on trade between the two countries, government data showed Wednesday.Korea’s No. 1 export and import market has been China since the South Korea-China free trade agreement was inked in December 2015, accounting for roughly 25 percent of Korea’s trade turnover and about twice the volume

GM Korea was given the green light Tuesday by the Korea Development Bank to proceed with the controversial setup of an independent research and development entity here, ending a monthslong tug-of-war since GM shut down a factory here this February as part of global restructuring. In return, GM Korea reaffirmed its long-term commitment, which centers on its plan to make Korea General Motors’ production base for all-new sub-compact SUVs and all-new crossover utility vehicles. GM Korea’s unionized

Hyundai Motor Group, the world’s fifth-largest automotive group, is slated to begin construction of its new headquarters, dubbed the Global Business Center, in southern Seoul in the first half of next year, with the government moving to clear regulatory hurdles for the project that had hit a snag for years.The development comes as part of government plans shared at the economy-related ministers’ meeting, led by President Moon Jae-in on Monday, on fostering economic growth in 2019 by encouraging

GM Korea, the local unit of the US automaker, said Thursday that the state-run Korea Development Bank has completed recapitalization of $375 million as part of the rescue plan signed in late April, raising prospects of the automaker and its second-largest shareholder narrowing their differences on GM’s spinoff plan.This is the latest development amid ongoing talks between related parties after a Seoul court approved an injunction against the process related to GM Korea’s spinoff of GM Technical

Hyundai Motor, South Korea’s No. 1 automotive company, has pledged 1.67 trillion won ($1.4 billion) in support of local small and midsize auto parts suppliers in a move to restore stability and bolster research and development, the company said Thursday.Due to tumbling sales at Hyundai and Kia, which stand as the world’s fifth-largest automaker, their parts suppliers have been posting operating losses or seeking debt workout programs in recent months. To assuage growing instability, in October t

Following a recent fire at an oil storage center and hot water pipeline ruptures that have caused casualties here, South Korea’s Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Sung Yun-mo on Wednesday reaffirmed the ministry’s principle of zero tolerance by calling an emergency meeting of agencies in the energy sector, underscoring the importance of safety management. Yun summoned the leaders of 31 government agencies in the energy sector -- including Korea District Heating Corp., Korea Gas Corp., Korea Na

CHUNGJU, North Chungcheong Province -- Hyundai Motor Executive Vice Chairman Chung Eui-sun on Tuesday introduced the automaker’s long-term plan to manufacture 500,000 units of fuel cell electric vehicles here annually by 2030 in an effort to overtake rivals Japan and China in the FCEV market.With these goals in mind, Hyundai Mobis, the auto parts supplier, held a groundbreaking ceremony for its second hydrogen fuel cell stack factory, which when complete is expected to produce stacks for some 40

Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors’ green car sales are widely expected to grow further in 2019 on the back of the government’s increased budget to expand the use of ecofriendly cars here, industry insiders said Sunday. The two flagship companies of Hyundai Motor Group sold a combined 257,861 units globally between January and November this year, up 10 percent on-year, according to officials.By vehicle type, sales of electric vehicles soared 112.4 percent to 52,370 units, plug-in-hybrids 51.9 percent